Lantern Festival (燈會 denghui)

The Chinese New Year goes on for two weeks, and each of the days has a different corresponding activity that the people do. On the last day, celebrating the new year once more, there is a lantern festival. It show cases the schools' and groups' lanterns around the city. They are all handmade, and quite the magnificent works of art! Some are traditional lanterns, some are contemporary types of the typical lantern, and some are just fun. I saw the basic spherical lantern with designs on the outside, tubular lanterns made by local artists, and even "transformers" made into lanterns. Thousands of people showed up, from near and far. And thus, you can probably tell the about the crowds. It was packed and I was being pushed around in all directions!

I went to the Taipei Lantern Festival one evening to see what all the business was about. It was jam packed! I could barely get 100 meters without have an ounce of trouble. Haha! But the lanterns were impressive! A good amount of them were made by elementary and middle school students. Why couldn't we make these lanterns when were their ages? They were huge, and super artistic! Such detail and difficulty... I was amazed. 

There were even shows going on: puppet shows (puppeteering is a popular art here in Taiwan, it is both fun and traditional!). There was also an acrobatic show by the Taipei Opera House, which was really cool. 

However, I didn't stay in Taipei, I went back to Lukang to visit my host family once again to see the Taiwan Lantern Festival. Here there was many more people, more than I had ever seen. But the sights were truly not to miss. It was very similar to the festival in Taipei, that with lanterns being showcased from students, artists, and different groups. But in the middle of the festival grounds was a huge lantern made to be a dragon. When it was lit, there were lights, lasers, fog, and music going everywhere! People cheered and shot off fireworks; the entire place had this aura of pure joy. It was super cool. 

Plus, there was a bunch of food to go around, and we got to try some new things. But I was being picked out by some locals to get their pictures taken with me! What can I say, I'm famous! Haha. 

The next day we went back to the grounds and toured around in the daylight. Disneyland Tokyo came to the festival and held a huge parade with dancers, bands, and even some characters! That was a real treat, because they didn't just do the spectacles you see in Disneyworld, but traditional dances from Japan and Taiwan. Everywhere there were groups putting on different dances and music (some where even on stilts!). 

I can say, the Taiwanese definitely know how to party and celebrate. The Chinese New Year is the most important festival to them. It's like our Christmas, and it's extraordinary, indeed. But with the new year coming to a close, it starts the year with great memories and good wishes for the upcoming days ahead.