Nile Sisters Celebrates Thingyan New Year Water Festival

On Saturday, April 16, 2016, the Burmese community and other Nile Sisters stakeholders gathered in City Heights to celebrate Thingyan, the Burmese New Year water festival, a Buddhist event with roots in Hindu mythology. In Myanmar, Thingyan takes place from April 13 through April 16 and culminates on Lunar New Year Day.

Photo Caption
Elizabeth Lou flanked by two Thingyan guests

Nile Sisters sponsored the Thingyan festivities for a third consecutive year in 2016. The half-day celebration featured multigenerational members of San Diego’s Burmese community, who performed traditional music and dance routines and prepared and served traditional Burmese cuisine. The celebration also opened opportunities for constituents to interact socially with one another. Engaging in Thingyan’s most distinguishing traditional activity, young children gleefully splashed water on one another.

In San Diego County, a large and growing Burmese refugee population thrives after fleeing merciless homeland persecution. Seeking both political freedom and greater economic opportunities, many of these new refugees enlist Nile Sisters’ support in assimilating American culture. Nile Sisters is always grateful to be included in planning the Thingyan festival and helping to restore a piece of cultural tradition to Burmese family life in San Diego.

Learn more about Thingyan.»

Photo Captions
In festive green,
Nah P., a new family child-care home license vocational training graduate

In festive blue,
Yu Yu Khaing, Nile Sisters Community Outreach Specialist