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Watch a traditional dance or fireworks show

Perhaps not the most hangover-friendly of traditions, LNY wouldn’t be complete without pyrotechnics. In China, New Year’s firecrackers are made from strings of rolled red paper containing gunpowder that, when set off, leave shreds of scarlet paper in their wake.

The belief is that the loud noise of the firecrackers serves to scare Nian, the lion-like monster who legend says rose from the sea for a feast of human flesh on the new year.

Nian mythology also plays out during lion dances across LNY festivities. These dances are one of the most globally recognised traditions because of their prominence in diaspora celebrations. These colourful traditional dances are performed outdoors to the accompaniment of drums and cymbals, sometimes as a street parade – or in the air, if a flying lion dance is taking place.

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