Drums and party snappers rang out through the streets of Chinatown and Leicester Square as the annual Chinese New Year parade hit London.
The Year of the Snake began on 29 January, and the celebrations marked one of the most important dates on the Chinese calendar where people gather to celebrate and honour their ancestors.
Crowds milled through the packed streets as families and friends enjoyed the lanterns, food, and dragons, but for the Chinese community, these festivities stood for a lot more.
William said: “We came to celebrate Chinese New Year and I want to let my children feel the atmosphere of our biggest festival.
“We’ve been here for ten years now, but recently foreigners are more and more interested in Chinese culture and it’s nice to celebrate with people from all over the world.”
Before and throughout the 15-day long festival, Chinese people honour different traditions with a focus on family and preparing for a good year, like reunion dinners, spring cleaning, and bai nian.
Bai nian is the practice of house visits to friends and family, typically to the husband’s family on the first day and the wife’s on the second.
This includes exchanging auspicious greetings and lai see, or red packets with money, from married couples.
Red decorations hang everywhere from apartment buildings to shopping malls as a colour of fortune and prosperity, but also to ward off evil spirits according to legend.
Markets are also popular where people can enjoy the sights and decorations, but also shop for flowers with orchids, narcissus, and plum blossoms being popular as symbols of values like abundance and luck.
Hong Kong tourist Ella said: “We’re here to grab some food and enjoy the atmosphere.
“There are a lot of Chinese people here for study and work, and it is good to remember traditions because these are iconic features and part of the history of China.”
Children were heavily involved in the Chinese New Year festivities, watching the parades and throwing party snappers on the ground.
Some were even dressed up in traditional clothing or lion dance costumes, taking in the sights alongside their parents.
This Chinese New year marks the first year since the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) deemed the festival an Intangible Cultural Heritage.
William said: “I think Chinatown has a really big impact and place for the community, when I came years ago it was quite different.
“In the past we did not have this kind of big celebration here, so it’s good to see that it is bigger and very diverse.
“It’s important to show the next generation that this is a holiday we share together, where we unite and we can share a meal together.”
For more information about Chinatown, visit its website.
Picture credit: Castor Chan
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