Chinese New Year Celebration in London 2012
Chinatown, Leicester Square, and Trafalgar Square are the main venues where Chinese New Year celebrations take place in London. In fact, London is the only place where the festival is celebrated at large outside the Asian countries.
Several cultural events mark the celebrations in London during Lunar New Year. Lunar New Year is the time when most of the events and shows take place. Let us take a sneak peak at the various events and celebrations.
The main highlights of the celebration are lion dance performances, colorful cultural shows, lantern parades, and the make-shift food stalls that serve delicious food. After enjoying the parades and cultural shows, people flock to the food stalls to enjoy lip smacking food.
The celebrations take place on the Sunday following the Lunar New Year day. For instance, January 23rd is the Chinese New Year day in 2012, so the celebrations will commence on Januay 13th 2011, which is a Sunday. The festivities are scheduled to begin at 12PM and continue until 6PM in the evening.
Celebrations at Trafalgar Square
Celebrations kick off with the opening ceremony at Trafalgar Square. Parades, live performances, and firework displays are the main attraction of the festivities. You will also find acrobats, dance groups that travel all the way from China to perform live and martial art artists.
Celebrations at Leicester Square
The firework display at Leicester Square is undoubtedly the best and the most watched. Visiting food stalls, watching dance performances, and applauding local artists as they perform live on the temporary stages are what people do during Lunar New Year.
Other places where cultural events take place include Charing Cross and Strand.
The celebrations begin on a Sunday and continue for a week ending on the following Sunday.
Lunar New Year Traditions
Staying outside China doesn’t necessarily mean that people don’t follow the customs and traditions that are observed ever since these festivities started in yesteryears.
Chinese New Year is also the time to make a resolution, party with your near and dear ones, perform the traditional rituals, and cook good food. The Chinese people exchange gifts, visit houses of friends and relatives, participate in the annual events that take place across London. Amidst all the pomp and show, they do not forget Hong Bao and Kitchen God, which essentially are part of the celebrations during Spring Festival irrespective of whether you are in London or Los Angeles.
Latest Updated on 01/13/2012
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