Chinese New Year Celebrations Roaring!

Dunedin’s first two-week long Chinese New Year festival, welcoming the Year of the Tiger with a roar, is halfway through and proving very popular!

Almost 4000 people visited the Dunedin Chinese Garden last Sunday for the opening celebrations which culminated in stunning fireworks that lit up the city.

New activities this year include calligraphy and papercutting workshops, traditional tea ceremonies, and a cooking class making tasty New Year treats. While most classes are almost full and the cooking class on Monday night sold out two weeks ago, including an English couple who will be visiting Dunedin, there are still opportunities to take part in the Chinese New Year festival, on at the Chinese Garden until 27 February.

The city has purchased a new Dragon from Shanghai and this will dance its way from the Octagon to the Chinese Garden as part of the closing celebrations on Saturday, 27 February, from 2.30.

Event organiser, Kim Newman, is thrilled at the success of the festival to date. “The support from the local Chinese communities and the public has made this the best Chinese New Year celebrations to date.”