Square in front of Chenghuang Temple (Guangzhou Daily)
Lantern Festival, or Yuanxiao festival in Chinese, marks the end of Spring Festival, with families traditionally meeting one last time before heading back to work. Lantern Festival falls on the 15th day of the new lunar year this year it's tomorrow (Feb. 17th). It is tradition for families to eat Tangyuan (sweet rice dumplings) and to take a walk under the moonlight holding a lantern.
In ancient times, lantern parades would be held across China and it was believed that the town's "Chenghuang," a local god protecting the town, would descent from heaven and take part in the parade.This year, Yuexiu district authorities have tried to recreate this ancient practice with a parade scheduled to commence in front of Guangzhou's Chenghuang Temple ( )," at 10pm Saturday (Feb.
19th). For a taste of ancient China, taking part in the parade promises to be a wonderful experience. The short parade shall leave Chenghuang temple and pass through Beijing Pedestrian Street.A Cantonese lantern fair will also be held at Wuxian Guan ( , Five-god Taoist Temple) until February 23rd presenting a variety of traditional and local lanterns.
Finally, a series of folkloric events will be held on the square in front of Chenghuang Temple:February 18th (15:00 to 16:30)Puppet playFebruary 20th (15:00 to 16:30)Cantonese Opera, Cantonese music and cultural heritage craft exhibition (flour sculpture, mud sculpture, paper-cutting and wood carving)February 21st (15:00 to 16:30)Folk art performances (face-changing from Sichuan Opera, acrobatics, magic, vaudeville, Qigong)February 22nd (15:00 to 16:30)Lion dance and Kongfu
Chenghuang Temple (Guangzhou Daily)
