Source: CCTV.com
02-09-2008 12:28
Special Report: 2008 Spring FestivalOverseas Chinese around the world have joined in celebrations for the Lunar New Year. Mark Dryer has more on the many different ways they've been ringing in the Year of the Rat.
New York City's large ethnic Chinese community kicked off their New Year with a bang. A dozen dance troupes dressed as colorful lions performed in the city's Chinatown. Downtown Manhattan also saw in the New Year with a fireworks display and confetti.
In Cuba, hundreds of Chinese and Cubans followed the traditional dragon dance through the streets of Havana's Chinatown, one of Latin America's oldest Chinese communities.
Tourists from around the world also took part in the festivities, which ended with fireworks and generous helpings of Chinese food.
Fireworks also lit up the Central Train Station in the German capital Berlin. Other activities and exhibitions were held inside the station, including performing acrobats and the traditional mask changing opera of Sichuan episode. Red lanterns, Olympic mascot, Fuwa, and Chinese paper cuttings also added colour to the celebration.
Many people in China get together on New Year's Eve to watch the Spring Festival Gala on television. But due to the time difference in the UK, the gala started at noon. Not to be put off, many Londoners, including overseas Chinese, finished work early and watched the Gala on the internet, before hosting a New Year's Eve dinner at home.
Editor:Du Xiaodan
