A dragon rising as Kwang Hua Private High School students perform a dragon dance during CNY lighting up ceremony at Fo Guang Shan Dong Zen Temple in Kuala Langat, Selangor. — Photos: CHAN TAK KONG, IZZRAFIQ ALIAS, GLENN GUAN, YAP CHEE HONG and MUHAMAD SHAHRIL ROSLI/The Star
Fortnight of celebrations fills Klang Valley streets with festive air
FESTIVITY was the buzz word in the streets of Klang Valley as the Chinese community ushered in the Year of the Wood Dragon.
Dragon motifs and auspicious greetings adorning shops and houses were symbolic of people’s hope for strength and good fortune in the Lunar New Year.
Streets were decorated with red lanterns while firecrackers popped and echoed through neighbourhoods, in the belief this would ward off evil spirits and bring prosperity.
Folks working abroad and out of state returned home for festive gatherings with family and friends.
Chinese temples were decorated with lanterns and adorned in keeping with the dragon theme to welcome devotees who came to pray.
Alongside the ubiquitous lion dance, there were also plenty of dragon dance performances accompanied by rhythmic beats of drums and cymbals, captivating onlookers with the majesty of these mythical creatures “brought to life”.
For the Hokkien community, prayers to the Heaven God (Bai Tian Gong) on the ninth day of the first lunar month saw offerings like fruits and food being made to seek blessings and protection in the new year.
During Chap Goh Meh, which fell on the 15th day of the first lunar month, single women looking for romance wished for luck as they tossed mandarin oranges marked with their contact details into rivers or lakes, hoping eligible bachelors would retrieve the fruits and respond to them.
Chin Min Yi, 14, (left) taking a wefie with sister Min Xuen, 21, surrounded by festive decorations at Thean Hou Temple in Kuala Lumpur.
With fantastic leaps, Isaac Gregory, 19, (left) and Koo Jenn Feng, 28, from Hoong Seng Dragon and Lion Dance troupe usher in the Year of the Dragon at Thean Hou Temple.
Dragon-shaped lanterns at a lantern and floral festival among a slew of Chinese New Year flourishes throughout Klang Valley.
KL’s Chinatown brimming with festive preparations.
Members of Xuan Long Dragon and Lion Dance KL troupe tending to a dragon dance prop that glows in the dark and made in the colours of the Jalur Gemilang to show unity among Malaysians.
