Red turtles rise in Phuket Town

PHUKET: Phuket’s ethnic Chinese community is in the midst of celebrating its annual Por Tor festival to honor their ancestors.

The annual festival is held on the first day of the waxing moon in the seventh Chinese calendar month.

This year, the festivities began on Tuesday with a ceremony at the Fresh Market on Ranong Rd in Phuket Town after a ceremony led by Phuket Governor Tri Augkaradacha, Phuket MP Rewat Areerob, and Phuket City Mayor Somjai Suwansupapana.

The road, now the traditional venue for the start of the festival, for the past two days has been the main center for stalls set up to sell the renowned Ang Ku red turtle cakes.

Turtles have become synonymous with the festival as many ethnic Chinese consider them to be a symbol of longevity.

Believers buy the cakes and present them as gifts to the gods at shrines, or hand them to friends and family members as a way of making merit for the spirits of their ancestors.

From today through August 28, the turtles can be found in front of the Bang Neow Shrine on Phuket Road, where the festivities and stalls will continue until August 28.

— Chutharat Plerin