The Regatta Lepa 2013 was a successful event that saw many locals attending the festival held here in Semporna in Sabah.
This unique festival is a homage to the traditional sea Bajau people of East Sabah, where traditions are still practised heavily.
Regatta Lepa 2013
I have written a previous article on the
Regatta Lepa in Semporna that I attended back in 2012, and it was my first time seeing such an amazing festival take place in Malaysia.
This is truly one of the very local events that highlight the traditional sea Bajau of east coast Sabah held yearly.
Below are random photos taken around the Regatta Lepa festival, which brings the town of Semporna to life in April.
Photos of Regatta Lepa
 |
| A banner from the Semporna Poly-Tech Mara branch. |
 |
| A wide shot of all the Lepa boats at sea. It looks like an invasion of colourful boats. |
 |
| Zooming in slightly reveals the colours of all the Lepa boats coming in for the contest. |
 |
| A closer shot of the Lepa boats around the Semporna Harbour. |
Types of Lepa Boats
Below is a series of photographs showing a close-up of the different types of Lepa boats that participate in the Regatta Lepa competition.
 |
| A simple type of Lepa boat. |
 |
| Very minimal-designed Lepa boats. |
 |
| A simple and common wooden boat decorated with a lot of flags. |
 |
| This is one of the traditional wooden Lepa boats, well decorated too. |
 |
| Another example is a traditional Lepa boat. |
 |
| A modified speedboat in the Lepa design. |
 |
| A row of Lepa boats were being towed to the competition area of the harbour. |
 |
| It is almost a traditional Lepa boat without the intricate wood carving on the bow. |
 |
| Another commercial wooden boat decked in the Lepa designs. |
 |
| One of the brightly coloured traditional Lepa boats. |
 |
| A very simple wooden Lepa boat taking part. |
 |
| One of the Lepa competitors places their name and village on a sign. |
 |
| The male and female Bajau dancers wait their turn to perform the 'Mengiluk' dance. |
 |
| A traditional Bajau umbrella on top of the boat mast. |
 |
| This is called the Sambulayang, a crucial part of the Lepa designs. |
 |
| One of the local Semporn women on a boat. |
 |
| A type of Mantis Shrimp is being sold by the locals around the festival area in Semporna. |
 |
| Semporna town is seen from my rented boat. |
 |
| Some of the kid's activities in Semporna town in conjunction with the Lepa festival. |
 |
Lace hats were the trend here during the Regatta Lepa 2013.
|
 |
| During the Regatta Lepa weekend, the local council allowed daytime markets to operate in town. |
For a more detailed story, please read my Regatta Lepa in Semporna article, which I did the previous year in 2012.
Conclusion
The photos of the Regatta Lepa 2013 above were taken using my Nikon D5100 with a standard kit lens and an 18-300mm zoom lens.
The photos are also randomly taken from a boat and on land as I spent the opening morning using a boat to move around the Lepa boat parade.
