Ordos residents enjoy fishing festival

The first Winter Fishing Festival and the fifth Dalad Banner Rural Culture Tourism Festival opened in Dalad Banner, Ordos, Inner Mongolia autonomous region, on Jan 26.

Local residents swarmed to the site to buy the fresh fish netted out of the icy water. As per tradition, the first batch of fish caught was auctioned to the highest bidders, with the first four fish sold netting 99,888 yuan ($14,832) at this year’s event. 

The activity, which will last until Jan 28, also included a car racing competition on ice, a fish cook-off involving around 1,000 people, a dance performance and a paper cutting competition.

A farmer smiles while holding a fish with his hands during the fishing festival held in Dalad Banner, Ordos, Inner Mongolia, on Jan 26. [Photo/WeChat account of Ordos News]

The first four fish that were netted out of the water are auctioned to the highest bidder symbolizing luck and prosperity for the new year, as per the local tradition. [Photo/WeChat account of Ordos News]