PRESERVING TRADITIONS
While the digital economy and high-speed trains are transforming the way people celebrate the festival, some cultural traditions and customs are well preserved.
Returning to hometowns remains the most important part of the Spring Festival. Whether self-driving, or taking the trains or flights, homecomings and family gatherings are a priority for many Chinese. The National Development and Reform Commission estimated that about 2.98 billion trips would be made during this year's Spring Festival travel rush between Feb. 1 and March 12.
Temple fairs have been a popular choice for experiencing traditional customs during the Spring Festival. In Beijing, the Ditan and Longtan temple fairs attracted more than 1.7 million tourists in five days.
For the past decade, 76-year old Niu Dewang has visited a temple fair in Beijing every year.
"Going to the temple fair is like going out for a stroll every day. The flour tea, sugar-coated hawthorns, shadow puppetry, and sugar figurines make everyone in the family cheerful," he said.
Lion and dragon dances, as well as ceremonies welcoming the God of Wealth were also held in most parts of China during the festival. For the Chinese families, hanging new red couplets and the Chinese character of "fu" on their gates is an important way to usher in a prosperous and happy new year.
GLOBAL CELEBRATION
Galas and celebrations are not only held in China, but are widely embraced globally.
Yu Yan and his wife flew to New York City during the holiday, and they were more than surprised to see a fireworks display on the bank of the Hudson River.
The ten-minute show incorporated traditional elements of the festival such as Chinese knots and the animals of zodiac. "Not only Chinese, but also many locals took part in the celebration," Yu said.
Yan Yan took a photo with her family in front of a giant dog-shaped lantern in Australia. This year is the Year of the Dog, which holds the 11th position of the 12 animals on the Chinese zodiac.
What astonished Yan even more was the popularity of the Chinese "fu"-scanning game. The game, launched by Alipay, allows users grabbing a digital red packet after collecting five "fu" characters.
"Many locals were scanning the Chinese character 'fu' with their mobiles. Sometimes they mistakenly scanned other Chinese characters, which was funny," Yan said with a smile.
More than 400 cities in over 130 countries and regions have joined the celebration of the Chinese Lunar New Year in 2018, the State Council Information Office said.
"The Chinese New Year is like a global cultural symbol, rather than a festival just for Chinese," said Yu.
"The festival carries rich connotations of Chinese culture such as family values, harmonious society and amicability. These are shared by people across the globe and have therefore made the Spring Festival more accepted by other cultures," said Zhang Quanlin, a sociologist.
