Free Lantern Festival to Shimmer in Chinatown

Bid farewell to Lunar New Year festivities at this activity-packed afternoon festivity.

What to Know

  • Saturday, March 2
  • Noon to 5 p.m.
  • Chinese American Museum

How does a holiday end?

It depends upon the special day or weekend or moment in question, of course. And we may wryly say "with cleaning up," because, yes, there are ribbons and plates and decorations and other items that need to be stowed, washed, and removed once the revelry has concluded.

But Lunar New Year festivities are something quite different. Revelers can expect a few weeks of fun, of ceremonies and lion dances and firecrackers and special meals, as well as a celebratory close to the occasion.

That "end to the start," as in the final festive wrap-up of the beginning of the Year of the Pig, will dance, with joy and flair, at the Chinese American Museum on Saturday afternoon, March 2.

The free Lantern Festival is a Chinatown tradition, one that bids a glad-hearted goodbye to all of the good times that the Lunar New Year parties and parades brought. There's a spirit of looking-forward-ness, too.

What to expect during the noon-starting, 5 o'clock-ending affair? Enjoy "... community booths, museum tours, live entertainment, music, and arts & crafts" at the 18th annual festival.

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This festival is "rain or shine," and, indeed, March 2 looks as though it will be on the damper side. 

Shouldn't every occasion have a ebullient ending? One that is very much about closing down the opening ceremonies in a way that is a little whimsical and threaded through with hope and happiness?

This is it, Year of the Pig people. Make Lantern Festival your final stop on your way into this fortune-amazing year.

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