YANGON, April 12 (Xinhua) -- People in Myanmar are busy preparing to celebrate their traditional New Year as the annual water festival is drawing near.

The celebration of the traditional New Year festival, also known as the Thingyan water festival, this year will run from April 13 to 16, and the traditional Myanmar New Year's Day will fall on April 17.

In the country's major cities such as Yangon and Mandalay, local residents have already constructed water throwing pandals for the celebrations.

Thousands of migrant workers from the commercial hub city of Yangon have begun to leave for their hometowns in various areas in the Southeast Asian country in order to spend the holiday with their family members.

Special celebrations such as the walking Thingyan festival in some towns and the floating water festival in the Inle Lake of Shan State are also parts of this year's traditional water-splashing festival.

On Thursday evening, traditional dance troupes performed in a rehearsal for the traditional New Year celebration in Mandalay, an ancient capital in Myanmar.

Among Myanmar's 12 seasonal festivals throughout the year, the Thingyan water festival is grandly celebrated across the country with water-splashing activities and merit-making activities. Enditem

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