If you're near Chinatown now, head to Sara Roosevelt Park for the 15th annual Lunar New Year Firecracker Ceremony and Cultural Festival. Put on by the trained detonation experts at the Better Chinatown Society, the firecrackers start popping off around noon.
Last year reportedly featured 600,000 rounds of colorful firecrackers—believed to scare away evil spirits—Lion, Dragon, and Unicorn dance troupes, and performances by traditional and contemporary Asian-American musicians.
If you're stuck in an office (like we are), don't despair: A parade and another cultural festival will fill neighborhood streets Sunday at 1 p.m., presenting yet another alternative to the Stupid Bowl. The parade starts in Little Italy and marches through Chinatown and the Lower East Side, and the cultural festival will again be at Sara Roosevelt Park.
Not to be left out of the festivities—and fresh off his announcement that he is considering making Lunar New Year a school holiday—Mayor Bill de Blasio announced New Years' Greetings in both English and Chinese:
“Chirlane and I send our best wishes to everyone celebrating the Lunar New Year. New York City is exceptionally proud of its vibrant Chinese community. Today, we thank our Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders for all of their contributions to this city and nation—be it in art, history or economic vitality. You add to the rich fabric of our culture and the diversity of our neighborhoods. This is a time of celebration and hope, so to all who are celebrating the Lunar New Year, my family and I extend our warmest wishes for a peaceful, healthy and prosperous new year.”
雪蓮和我向慶祝農曆新年的各位送上最美好的祝願。紐約市以充滿活力的華人社區活動為自豪。今天，我們要感謝我們的亞裔美國人和太平洋島民為這城市和國家在藝術、歷史或經濟活力等方面做出的貢獻。你們的加入，使我們的文化更豐富，使我們社區更具多樣性。 這是一個慶祝和希望的時刻，我和我的家人向所有慶祝農曆新年的人致最熱烈的祝福，愿你們有一個和平、健康和興旺的新年。
In the meantime, consider having some of these symbolic foods.
