Hey there! Guess what? On February 12, the Lantern Festival lit up the Asian Winter Games in Harbin, a city in the northeastern part of the Chinese mainland. ๐
The Lantern Festival is like the grand finale of the Chinese New Year celebrations. It’s a time when people come together to enjoy beautiful lanterns, solve riddles, and eat yummy sweet rice balls called tangyuan! ๐ก
This year, athletes, team members, and reporters from across Asia gathered to celebrate. They came from countries and regions like the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, and Mongoliaโover 40 representatives in total! ๐
Everyone got to make and taste tangyuan, try out Chinese calligraphy (that’s fancy writing with brushes), and even learn traditional dances like the Long Drum Dance and the Northeast Yangko Dance. Some even played cool instruments like the Guzheng and Guqin, which are like ancient Chinese string instruments. ๐ถ
And guess what was a big hit? A robot dog joined the fun! ๐ค๐ถ It walked around and made everyone super excited. How awesome is that?
Important people like Mr. Ho Zhen Ting, vice president of the Olympic Council of Asia; Mr. Zhou Jian, director of media and broadcast for the Olympic Council of Asia; and Mr. Kenneth Fok Kai-kong, head of the Hong Kong, China delegation to the Asian Winter Games, were there too. They enjoyed all the fun activities! ๐
This year’s Asian Winter Games is the biggest ever, with over 1,270 athletes from 34 countries and regions. ๐ For the first time, athletes from Saudi Arabia, Cambodia, and other countries are joining in. Next time, Saudi Arabia will host the Winter Games!
The festival was a great way for everyone to experience Chinese culture and make new friends from all over Asia. It was a night full of joy, learning, and lots of smiles! ๐
Reference(s):
Lantern Festival celebrated at Asian Winter Games in Harbin, NE China
cgtn.com
