Chinese New Year celebrations and parties

VOA’s Kari Jensen predicts less extravagant Chinese New Year celebrations in Hong Kong and elsewhere in Asia due to current economic problems but the ongoing preparations say she might be wrong.

From a blog in the International Herald Tribune:

… the Hong Kong Tourism Board – in that kooky overly enthusiastic way it has — is making it as big a spectacle as possible this year.

Its 2009 Chinese New Year promotion is called “World’s Happiest Party” and features a cartoon cow dressed like an American cowboy. (It’s the Year of the Ox). Attractions range from the traditional — fireworks, lion dances, parades — to the less than traditional — like scantily clad samba dancers from Denmark, of all places.

And Chinese New Year parties and celebrations will take place all over the world. CNN lists 6 Great Chinese New Year Parties (New York, Honolulu, Singapore, Hong Kong, London and Sydney). And, in Virginia:

It has been more than a decade since the Chinese drum, gong and cymbals were played to ring in Chinese New Year at Peking Imperial Restaurant in downtown McLean. The ancient Chinese Lion Dance ritual will be rekindled for this year’s Chinese New Year Eve’s celebration to welcome in the Year of the Ox (Lunar Year 4707) on Sunday, Jan. 25. Peking Imperial will feature a special Chinese New Year four-course menu and reservations are strongly recommended as previous celebrations have led to a full house.

In Seattle, the celebrations begun six days before the first day of the Lunar New Year. Taiwan is expecting over 13,200 visitors during the holidays while Thailand projects it will make 550 million baht (USD14.3 million) from the over half a million tourists who will arrive each day over the holidays.