The year of the fire rooster has begun with a bang.
A crowd of 8000 to 10,000 was on hand to celebrate the Chinese New Year at Dunedin’s Chinese Garden with multicultural performances and a fireworks display on Saturday night.
The entertainment included a dragon parade from the Octagon and performances by members of the Christchurch Zhong Hua Qing cultural group, Korean drummers, kapa haka and the Dunedin City Council’s own waiata group.
A highlight was a spectacular fireworks display that marked the start of the Year of the Rooster — and a fire rooster, no less.
Among the crowd enjoying Saturday night’s event were Dunedin Mayor Dave Cull and Christchurch-based Chinese Consul-general Jin Zhijian, who was impressed by Dunedin’s multicultural event, garden trust chairman Malcolm Wong said.
"He thinks it’s marvellous, particularly the multicultural aspect of it," Mr Wong said.
The "very happy" crowd had enjoyed the event, helped by the weather, and fireworks were a symbolic way to ward off evil spirits and start the year "in a positive manner", he said.
