Chinese welcome ‘Year of the Snake’

Millions of people are celebrating Lunar New Year, also known as Chinese New Year, the most important annual holiday in much of Asia.

Fireworks lit up the skyline of Beijing as the Lunar New Year arrived

The new year began in China at midnight, with firework displays and family gatherings.

It marked the openinging of the year of the snake, taking over from the dragon.

In China, an estimated 200 million people have travelled to be with their families in what is considered the biggest mass human migration on Earth.

The BBC’s John Sudworth, in Shanghai, says the big cities have been emptied of migrant workers, who are now at home in the far-flung provinces, reunited with family, often including their own young children, for the first time since last Lunar New Year.

On Saturday evening, an anticipated 700 million people tuned in for state television’s annual TV gala, a variety performance show in which Celine Dion was due to sing her theme tune from the movie Titanic.

Our correspondent says that, according to one well-known Chinese songwriter, My Heart Will Go On is one of two English songs that are well known in China. The other is Happy Birthday.

However, the gala’s producers had been ordered to make the show a more low-key affair, in the wake of the new leadership’s recent crackdown on corruption and official extravagance.

The authorities in Beijing are also asking people to limit the number of fireworks they set off, given the recent high levels of pollution.

The snake has a mixed reputation in China. It is associated with wisdom, beauty and intelligence but also pride and anger.

Lucky foods

Ahead of the New Year, vast crowds of people passed through China’s railway stations, airports and bus stations on to crowded transport, many of them making journeys of thousands of miles, sometimes lasting several days.

Migrant workers in China often only have one holiday a year in which to visit their home towns, and will be taking the money they have saved back to their families.

Vietnamese media said tens of thousands of people were also on the move there.

Markets and shops have been selling red and gold decorations – colours considered lucky – for the past few weeks, bearing messages wishing good fortune and prosperity.

Traditional foods associated with long life or good luck are a key part of Lunar New Year festivities.

“I’m slicing the rice cake so that people can make rice noodle soup during the holidays,” said Oh Jung-sook, a 72-year-old rice cake seller in the South Korean capital, Seoul.

“People say that eating rice noodle soup can keep them healthy, age one more year and have no unfortunate events for the family throughout the year.”