Source: CCTV.com

02-03-2009 09:47

Special Report:   2009 Spring Festival

Although the Spring Festival holiday in China is over, celebrations are continuing overseas. Overseas Chinese in the UK, France, Australia and the United States stirring the new lunar New Year fever by organizing parades and stage performances.

The cold snap didn't stop the enthusiasm of Chinese who live in London, as well as the locals. On Sunday they descended on Trafalger Square to watch a gala show of Chinese ethnic singing and dancing. The performance is part of a series of events promoted by China's Ministry of Culture all around the world. Shopping for traditional handicrafts and sampling Chinese snacks have become a new tradition for Londoners.

 Overseas Chinese in the UK, France, Australia and the United States stirring the new lunar New Year fever by organizing parades and stage performances.
Overseas Chinese in the UK, France, Australia and the United States
stirring the new lunar New Year fever by organizing parades and stage
performances.

In Paris, 18 Chinese communities jointly organized a parade show over the weekend. The show featured a dragon dance, a lion dance, a Peking Opera and a waist drum dance all distinctive Chinese art forms. Art groups from China's Hunan Province and Shanghai Municipality also attended the event. Thousands of French people shared the festive atmosphere by watching the parade, which has become a much anticipated annual event over the years.

Another parade took place in the Australia's most populous city of Sydney on Sunday. Over 2000 people took part in the event, including 500 performers from central China's Henan Province. The parade started at the Town Hall and ended at Darling Harbor. Representations of the 12 animals of the zodiac led 12 groups who performed traditional Chinese dances, acrobatics and martial arts. It is the 12th year that the city has celebrated the Chinese New Year and is the first time the parade has taken place in the evening.

In Washington, Chinese artists performed a cultural extravaganza. 
In Washington, Chinese artists performed a cultural extravaganza. 

In Washington, Chinese artists performed a cultural extravaganza. The gala blended singing, dancing, acrobatics and opera, and won warm applause from the audience. The gala show will tour through New York, Boston, Los Angeles and San Francisco until February 14.

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Editor:Zhao Yanchen