Ancient Cambodian festival drops anchor in Silver Lake (Rochester)

Aug 15, 2012
By Christina Killion Valdez
The Post-Bulletin, Rochester MN

If you go

• What: Cambodian Water Festival
• When: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday
• Where: Silver Lake Park, near Silver Lake Pool, Rochester
• Admission: Free. Suggested donation of $5 for the dragon boat rides. Registration for the volleyball tournament is $10 a person or $60 for a team of six.

To volunteer or be a vendor at the event, contact Narate Keys at (763) 607-2752.

An upcoming community festival in Rochester is sure to make a big splash.

A first-ever Water Festival, modeled after a popular ancient holiday that draws upwards of a million people to the banks of two Cambodian rivers, will be held Saturday and Sunday at Silver Lake.

The event, sponsored by the Cambodian Association of Rochester Minnesota (CARM), will include dragon boat rides, music and cultural performances and a volleyball tournament. The goal is to raise awareness about CARM, a nonprofit association designed to preserve and share the Khmer culture, as well as its plans to build a community center for all cultures.

"We hope to provide a center for the community," said Kim Sin, interim director of CARM.

Currently the group rents a small office with a computer lab in northwest Rochester where they provide photo and video editing classes for youth from a variety of cultures, Sin said.

"We think opening the doors to learn about each other will help eliminate discrimination and racism," Sin said.

The Water Festival, with its focus on culture and community, is one step in doing that.

The festival, called Bum Om Touk, began centuries ago in Cambodia as a way to celebrate the abundance of water during the monsoon season, said Narate Keys, event coordinator for Rochester's Water Festival. Held on the banks of the Tonle Sap and Mekong rivers in Cambodia, it was also a competition where kings tested the skills of their warriors and recruited new ones.

Back then the military used the long naga, or dragon, boats in battle. They were also used to transport people and commodities.

Dragon boats are also used in Rochester, but to promote fun, physical activity and health, Sin said. This weekend, he said, they will also help the group make a bigger splash in the community.