SIP was ablaze with lights on the Chinese Lantern Festival which, reckoned on the fifteenth day of the first month on the Chinese lunar calendar, fell on Feb 24 this year.
The lantern show in HB World, a film-themed entertainment complex, was among the most attractive events on the Lantern Festival. There were various sets of lanterns with different themes. Performances were staged with the lanterns as background.
The Zigong lantern show, a national intangible cultural heritage that originated in Zigong, Southwest China’s Sichuan province, kicked off at LAN PARK commercial plaza, and will last till May. Lanterns of diverse shapes form amazing patterns in the about 20,000-square-meter exhibition zone. The event is paired with riddle guessing, parades with performers in traditional costumes, traditional handicraft experiencing, bazaars and games.
Celebrations were also held in shopping malls, communities and industrial clusters where the participants enjoyed yuanxiao (stuffed small dumpling balls made of glutinous rice flour) that the Chinese like to eat on the festival, guessed riddles on lanterns and played games.
In the event in Donggang Jiahe Community in Loufeng Sub-district, the participating residents made paper dragons as a token of good wishes for the Year of the Dragon (or Loong).
February 24, 2024
