Chinese New Year

Lion and dragon dances

Often there are street dances which are thought to bring good luck to the community. The lion dance has two dancers, one for the head and one for the body. They will dance in the street dressed as the lion, and are given a lettuce which has a red money packet hidden in it. The lion eats the lettuce and the packet, then scatters leaves around the street as a symbol of good luck in the New Year.

Dragon dances are slightly different. All over the world at New Year, dancers dress as a dragon and dance through the streets, spreading good luck. The longer the dragon (the more dancers it has), the luckier it will be.