Festivities Usher in Year of the Horse 02/17 06:27

   

   BEIJING (AP) -- Traditional prayers, fireworks and fairs marked the Lunar 
New Year on Tuesday -- alongside 21st-century humanoid robots.

   The activities ushered in the Year of the Horse, one of 12 animals in the 
Chinese zodiac, succeeding the Year of the Snake.

   Thousands of people in Beijing jammed into the former Temple of Earth to buy 
snacks, toys and trinkets from stalls. Sun Jing, who brought her parents to the 
capital for the holiday, said the atmosphere was as lively as in her childhood.

   "I haven't felt such a strong sense of Lunar New Year festivity in a very, 
very long time," she said.

   Crowds descended on popular temples to burn incense and pray for happiness 
and success in the coming year. The Lunar New Year is the most important annual 
holiday in China and some other East Asian nations and is celebrated outside 
the region, too.

   Robots take the stage of an annual TV show in China

   As every year, China celebrated the Lunar New Year with a TV show and once 
again the humanoid robots were a central part of the performance Monday night.

   One of the highlights of the CCTV Spring Festival gala was a martial arts 
performance by children and robots. For several minutes, humanoids from Unitree 
Robotics showed different sequences and even brandished swords.

   The performance showed China's push to develop more advanced robots powered 
by improved AI capabilities.

   Viewers applauded the robots, with one saying they give good guidance and 
direction for young people. One man, though, said that while China's advances 
in robotics are great, they detracted from his experience.

   "It lacks a bit of the New Year atmosphere," Li Bo said. "It's not as 
enjoyable as when I was little watching the gala."

   Temple crowds at midnight in Hong Kong

   Incense smoke wafted into the air at a temple in Hong Kong where people line 
up every year to make wishes for the new year at midnight.

   Holding up a cluster of incense sticks, many bowed their heads several times 
before planting the sticks in containers placed in front of a temple hall.

   Fireworks light up skies in Vietnam

   Entertainers in Vietnam sang at an outdoor countdown event before multiple 
fireworks shows at several cities in the Southeast Asian nation, where the 
festival is called Tet.

   Light shows lit up bridges and skyscrapers as the fireworks went off and 
crowds clapped in rhythm to live pop music performances.

   Chinese street fairs in Moscow

   People sampled Chinese cuisine from stalls and strolled along snowy streets 
decorated with red lanterns and dragons as two weeks of events got underway 
Monday at various venues in the Russian capital.

   The third annual Lunar New Year celebration comes at time of warming 
relations between China and Russia -- ties that have frustrated many European 
governments because of the war in Ukraine.

   A temple bell rings 108 times in Taiwan

   The solemn peal of a temple bell rang out 108 times -- an auspicious number 
-- as people flocked to the Baoan Temple in Taipei on Tuesday morning.

   They lit incense sticks, bowed their heads and left offerings of colorful 
flower bouquets on outdoor tables on the temple grounds in Taiwan's capital 
city.

   Argentines join celebrations in Buenos Aires

   Thousands of Argentines gathered in Buenos Aires' Chinatown to celebrate the 
Lunar New Year and enjoyed dragon and lion dances on the main stage, alongside 
martial arts demonstrations.

   The Chinese immigrant community is among Argentina's most dynamic, 
accounting for more than 180,000 people in the South American country.