A stall selling Chinese New Year goods in Manila's Chinatown. Photo courtesy of Liang Yitao.
New Year decoration of Manila mall. Photo courtesy of Liang Yitao.
The Four Seas are in the same spring].
On the occasion of the arrival of the Year of the Dragon in the lunar calendar, Manila, the capital of the Philippines, and Chinese communities around the country held a variety of Spring Festival celebrations, attracting a large number of overseas Chinese and local Filipinos to participate in the Chinese New Year together.
Founded in 1594, Manila's Chinatown is one of the world's earliest overseas Chinese settlements. To welcome the Chinese New Year of the Dragon, Manila's Chinatown is decorated with red lanterns, and the roads are crowded with vendors selling Chinese New Year items. On February 10, the first day of the Lunar New Year, Manila Chinatown held a grand Chinese New Year float parade, organized by the Chinese Embassy in the Philippines, various groups of the Philippine Chinese Community and Manila City**, more than 20 floats with the theme of "Dragon" slowly drove through Chinatown, distributing New Year red envelopes, candy, rice cakes and other festive foods to the Filipino people along the way, and the local people also chanted Chinese greetings such as "Wishing you prosperity" and "Happy New Year", blending into the festive atmosphere.
On Chinese New Year's Eve, Manila's Chinatown also held the Chinese New Year's Eve Celebration and the "Huaxing Night" New Year Gala hosted by the Philippine Huaxing Art Troupe. About 5,000 people participated in the countdown to the New Year's Eve, and nearly 10,000 people attended the fireworks show held at the Binondo-Wangcheng Bridge built with China's assistance.
In addition to the capital Manila, Chinese New Year celebrations of the Year of the Dragon are also held throughout the Philippines. Cebu, a city in central the Philippines, held its second "Red Lantern Festival" on February 10, with Chinese lanterns hanging on the streets of the city, and lion and dragon dances, fireworks displays, and Chinese food tastings were held. The city of Iloilo held the "grandest" Chinese New Year event, inviting puppet shows from Quanzhou, China's national intangible cultural heritage and the city's sister city, to perform live performances, allowing Filipinos to experience the charm of traditional Chinese theatre.
Manila, Feb. 15 (Xinhua) -- Liang Yitao, our correspondent in Manila).