The Lunar New Year was welcomed Tuesday with prayers, fireworks, and cultural festivities as communities across Asia and beyond ushered in the Year of the Horse, following the Year of the Snake.
The holiday remains one of the most significant in the Chinese zodiac, widely celebrated in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Southeast Asia, and among global Chinese communities.
Robots and Entertainment in China
China’s CCTV Spring Festival Gala featured a mix of traditional and modern performances, with humanoid robots taking center stage. Children and robots performed synchronized martial arts routines, including sword demonstrations, highlighting China’s push to develop advanced AI-powered robotics for both entertainment and technological innovation.
Temple Rituals and Midnight Prayers
In Hong Kong, devotees gathered at temples at midnight to make wishes for the new year, holding incense sticks and bowing repeatedly before placing them in temple containers.
Taiwan’s Baoan Temple marked the occasion with 108 peals of the temple bell—an auspicious number in Buddhist tradition. Worshippers lit incense, offered colorful flower bouquets, and prayed for health, prosperity, and luck in the coming year.
Global Celebrations Extend Beyond Asia
Vietnamese cities celebrated with live music, light shows, and fireworks during the festival known locally as Tet. Bridges and skyscrapers were illuminated, and crowds clapped along to outdoor performances.
In Moscow, Chinese street fairs offered traditional cuisine, dragon dances, and decorations as part of two weeks of Lunar New Year festivities, reflecting growing cultural exchange amid warming Sino-Russian relations.
In South America, Buenos Aires’ Chinatown welcomed thousands to enjoy lion and dragon dances, martial arts displays, and festive foods, engaging Argentina’s Chinese immigrant community of over 180,000 people.
Across the globe, the Lunar New Year blends centuries-old traditions with modern celebrations, uniting communities through rituals, performances, and shared cultural experiences.