Celebrating the Year of the Dragon
-
1 of 34
Fireworks explode over the Victoria Harbor to celebrate the Chinese Lunar New Year in Hong Kong. 2012 is called the Year of the Dragon and is said to be particularly auspicious, as it is the only mythical creature among the dozen Chinese zodiac symbols.
-
2 of 34
Chinese folk artists perform the lion dance at a temple fair to celebrate the Year of the Dragon in Beijing, China. The Chinese Lunar New Year, also known as the Spring Festival, which is based on the Lunisolar Chinese calendar, is celebrated from the first day of the first month of the lunar year and ends with Lantern Festival on the fifteenth day.
-
3 of 34
Dancers perform in front of a fish-shape float in a night parade in Hong Kong.
-
4 of 34
Indonesian-ethnic Chinese hold a lantern together before releasing it in celebration in North Sumatra, Indonesia.
-
5 of 34
A fire breather performs in Chinatown in Manila, The Philippines.
-
6 of 34
Thousands of people visit a lantern festival in Shanghai.
-
7 of 34
A worshiper burns a bundle of joss sticks at a temple in Shanghai.
-
8 of 34
Performers take part in a dragon dance during a night parade in Hong Kong.
-
9 of 34
Chinese performers dressed in Qing Dynasty costumes participate in an ancient Qing Dynasty ceremony in which emperors prayed for a good harvest and fortune at a temple fair in Ditan Park during Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations, in Beijing.
-
10 of 34
A performer takes part in a night parade in Hong Kong.
-
11 of 34
Nelson Chan is dressed as the God of Fortune in the Chinatown section of New York City in celebration of the Chinese New Year. Celebrations began in New York with the firecracker detonation, intended to ward off evil spirits. Millions of ethnic Chinese, Vietnamese and Koreans around the world are ringing in the New Year with fireworks, feasting on traditional foods and family reunions.
-
12 of 34
Firecrackers explode as Filipino-Chinese perform the dragon dance in the Philippines.
-
13 of 34
An Indonesian ethnic Chinese man carries his boy to help light a candle during Lunar New Year celebrations at a temple in Chinatown in Banten province, Indonesia.
-
14 of 34
Chinese workers install red lanterns for a lantern festival in the Summer Palace in Beijing.
-
15 of 34
A large illuminated dragon is seen in Chinatown in Singapore. Thousands of people converged to usher in the Year of the Dragon. For the Chinese, The Year of the Dragon is said to bring abundance and good fortune.
-
16 of 34
A young girl and her brother sample sweets at a traditional market selling candies and fruits for the Chinese New Year in Taipei, Taiwan. The Chinese believe that babies born in this iteration of the 12-year Zodiac cycle are gifted with prodigious quantities of luck and strength. In ancient times the dragon was a symbol reserved for the Chinese emperor, and is considered to be an extremely auspicious sign.
-
17 of 34
A Chinese woman attaches a blessing tablet with her wishes for the new year at the Dongyue Temple in Beijing.
-
18 of 34
A Filipino-Chinese lights candles while praying inside a Chinese temple in celebration of the Chinese New Year at Manila's Chinatown district.
-
19 of 34
A child performer adjusts her dragon costume during a performance at the 2012 Cathay Pacific International Chinese New Year Night Parade in Hong Kong. The parade featured illuminated floats accompanied by local and international performing groups which entertained both locals and tourists alike.
-
20 of 34
Balinese ethnic Chinese burn incense sticks as they pray at a temple to celebrate the start of the Chinese Lunar New Year, in Bali, Indonesia.
-
21 of 34
A performer reaches out for the gift being dangled from a supermarket during a dragon and lion dance performance in celebration of the Chinese New Year at Manila's Chinatown district in the Philippines.
-
22 of 34
A Chinese woman smiles while holding joss sticks as she visits Baiyunguan, known as the White Cloud Taoist Temple.
-
23 of 34
A large dragon balloon floats in the 2012 Cathay Pacific International Chinese New Year Night Parade in Hong Kong.
-
24 of 34
Children admire a dragon puppet following a performance by Filipino-Chinese artists.
-
25 of 34
Chinese women wear dragon hats as they tour the Ditan Temple Fair, which is one of the highlights of the Lunar New Year in Beijing.
-
26 of 34
Nicasio Leong Magdaraog puts the finishing touches to the head of a dragon.
-
27 of 34
Chinese folk artists prepare to perform the lion dance at a temple fair in Beijing.
-
28 of 34
People perform during an underwater theater show in Jakarta.
-
29 of 34
Chinese folk artists perform a stilt dance at a temple fair.
-
30 of 34
People rush to catch their train at Beijing station. Millions of Chinese flood China's train network and public transportation systems to return home for the Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations. For many living in the cities, it is one of only a few times during the year that they will travel to their hometowns.
-
31 of 34
A worker inspects a dragon lantern decoration made from recycled materials and energy-saving LED lights at the Fo Guang Shan Dong Zen temple in Jenjarom.
-
32 of 34
A Chinese man looks at New Year decorations hanging in a store for sale at a market in Beijing.
-
33 of 34
People dressed as a Chinese dragon swim at the Beijing Aquarium.
-
34 of 34
Workers carry red lanterns out from a workshop in a village in Taizhou, China, as they prepare to meet orders from overseas ahead of the Chinese New Year celebrations.
-
Nation
-
Miss USA 2013
-
Remembering D-Day on Its 69th Anniversary
-
Building Collapses in Philadelphia, Traps Victims
-
More Tornadoes Splinter Oklahoma, Midwest
-
Remembering Sen. Frank Lautenberg: 1924-2013
-
Kids Crushed at Scripps National Spelling Bee 2013
-
Freight Train Derails, Explodes in Baltimore
-
Remembering Fallen Soldiers on Memorial Day 2013
-
Boy Scouts Lift Ban on Gay Members
-
I-5 Bridge Collapses Near Seattle
-
Cicadas Emerge From Hibernation
-
Women on Death Row: Females Executed in the U.S. Since 1976
← prev -
-
Latest Galleries
-
NBA Finals 2013: Spurs vs. Heat
-
G8 Summit Gathers World Leaders, Protesters
-
Miss USA 2013
-
The 2013 U.S. Open
-
Storms and Wildfires Tear Across U.S.
-
G8 Summit Protesters Clash With Police in U.K.
-
Doughnut Day 2013: Famous People Eating Them Through the Years
-
Preparing for the 2013 Belmont Stakes
-
Violence Erupts in Turkey After Police Crack Down
← prev -
