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Celebrating the Chinese New Year |
Rat arrives in spectacular style!
Chinese New Year celebrations a huge success as 300,000 watch performers
GUNG Hey Fat Choi! Welcome to the Year of the Rat!
An estimated 300,000 came to Chinatown on Sunday to celebrate the Chinese New Year – officially the biggest event outside of Asia.
The festivities began with a two-hour parade of hundreds of performers featuring dragons, lions and dancers.
The opening ceremony at Trafalgar Square included Chinese dragons, martial arts, and traditional and contemporary music and dance.
Children threw fire snaps on the ground and the fizzing trail of fireworks – set off at regular intervals in Leicester and Trafalgar squares – filled the sky on a perfect day.
“What started as a community event is now a major public festival which hundreds of thousands of people come to enjoy,” said the President of London Chinatown Chinese Association, Chu Ting Tang.
People lined the streets to cheer as crowds were treated to a variety of performances from visiting artists including the All China Women’s Federation Art Group and the Beijing Dance Drama Opera House.
The Mayor of London Ken Livingstone said: “London’s Chinese New Year celebrations get more successful every year.
“They are one of the highlights of London’s calendar and the most colourful, energetic, noisiest and biggest outside Asia.
“This year the celebrations are particularly special for both London and China, as we are celebrating a double Olympic year.
“This summer Beijing hosts the 2008 Olympic Games, and at the end of the Games, the Olympic flag will come to London as we start our four years as Olympic host city.
“That double pride is particularly felt by London’s Chinese community, who make such a crucial contribution to the capital, and help build our vital economic and cultural links with China itself.
“I would like to thank the London Chinatown Chinese Association and their partners for making the day an overwhelming success.” |
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