Lunar New Year in Washington DC - 1st February 2023

It's the Lunar New Year. People around the world are happy. Covid stopped the festivals. Now, people are meeting again.

Wallace Lee plans the festival in Washington DC.

Wallace Lee: "So, this is our first year back. So we're pretty happy about that. Don't have as many groups, we still have 40 groups which is pretty large. Back before Covid, we had at least 60, I think close to 60 groups I think at one point."

It was a colourful festival. There were dragons and traditional dances. The Asian community shared their culture.

Justin Chuang loves to see the community together.

Justin Chuang: "So I, I grew up in Southern California, so I'm expecting a lot of stuff that would happen around me when I was a kid, right? Good food, seeing a lot of my community members especially, right? It's kind of like my family, a little bit."

The New Year holiday is very important in China. People travel to their hometowns. But many people still have Covid. People are staying inside with their families.

Covid 19 started in China. In the US, some people hated Asians for this. But the Mayor of Washington DC wants Asian hate to stop. She wants people to come together.

Muriel Bowser: "It is important for us to not only celebrate where we are, to look back over the last couple of years and congratulate ourselves for our resilience, for sticking with our neighbours, for standing up against Asian hate anywhere we see it, anywhere we hear it, any place in the world."

It's the Chinese Year of the Rabbit. This means a year of peace and quiet. But for now, people are partying together in the streets of Washington DC.