Sydney Chinese New Year Festival

Celebrate the Lunar New Year at City of Sydney's Chinese New Year Festival. This vibrant arts Festival has a program bursting with cultural events, markets, tours, exhibitions and entertainment, most of them free. Join in the celebrations for the Year of the Sheep by including your event in the 2015 Chinese New Year Festival.

The Festival showpiece is the spectacular Twilight Parade which will lights Sydney streets, with the very popular Dragon Boat Races commencing the following Saturday and Sunday.

With over 80 events to choose from, visit the Sydney Chinese New Year web site to plan your Festival.

For more information - Visit Sydneychinesenewyear.com

Also - Chinese New Year Festival Launch

As the warmth of a Sydney summer evening comes alive with a feast of flavours from a vast array of cooking stalls, firecrackers are guaranteed to scare off any lingering misfortunes from the previous year. Soak up the atmosphere and then tuck into a bowl or two of delicious New Year dumplings with family and friends, before you settle in for a night of celebrations.

There will be lion dancing, as well as special launch night performances on the market stage, including a sneak preview of the Twilight Parade, plenty of pop and more traditional music and dance.

For more information - Visit Sydneychinesenewyear.com

Its Year of the Goat!

1907 13 Feb 1907 - 01 Feb 1908 (Fire)
1919 01 Feb 1919 - 19 Feb 1920 (Earth)
1931 17 Feb 1931 - 05 Feb 1932 (Metal)
1943 05 Feb 1943 - 24 Jan 1944 (Water)
1955 24 Jan 1955 - 11 Feb 1956 (Wood)
1967 09 Feb 1967 - 29 Jan 1968 (Fire)
1979 28 Jan 1979 - 15 Feb 1980 (Earth)
1991 15 Feb 1991 - 03 Feb 1992 (Metal)
2003 01 Feb 2003 - 21 Jan 2004 (Water)
2015 19 Feb 2015 - 07 Feb 2016 (Wood)

A City Wide Celebration

Chinese language students with red lanterns ahead of the Chinese Moon Festival next week. (Image: Claudia Baxter)

IPSWICH'S Chinese community hopes to get the rest of the city involved in its first annual Moon Festival, to be held on September 21.

The Moon Festival is a traditional family celebration in the Chinese community, but one that has not been enjoyed in Ipswich until members of the Australian Culture Link Association's Alpha Chinese School got the ball rolling.

ACCLA president Windy Wu said the event aimed to promote the exchange of cultures, crafts, knowledge and ideas between ordinary people.

"In Chinese culture and tradition, Moon Festival is a day for family to be together and have fun," Ms Wu said.

"To the Chinese the full moon represents the whole family siting at the round table and there are many legends and stories associated with Moon Festival."

The event, to be staged at Ipswich Central State School Hall, will feature Chinese music, drama, singing, dancing and other cultural performances.

Members of the public will be able to enjoy the activities for free.

Ms Wu said the Australia China Culture Link Association was a non-profit organisation promoting cultural exchange between China and Australia through language lessons in both countries.

Alpha Chinese School is part of ACCLA and it has been providing local community classes of Chinese language and culture.

"This is the first time that the Chinese Moon Festival will be accessible to Ipswich, and we have created this event as an opportunity for all cultures to come together," Ms Wu said.

FAST FACTS

When: September 21 from 10am-noon

Where: Ipswich Central State School Hall, 2A Griffith Rd, Ipswich