International visitors joined residents in Longhua District on March 3 to celebrate the Lantern Festival, highlighting the district’s efforts to promote cultural exchange and international engagement.

At the “Chinese New Year · World's New Year” Longhua Lantern Festival Celebration held at Uniwalk, visitors from Kazakhstan, Colombia, Pakistan, Brazil, Bangladesh, Russia and Bulgaria explored traditional Chinese festivities alongside local residents. Many participated in activities such as solving lantern riddles and learning paper-cutting, gaining hands-on experience of Chinese folk culture.

International visitors touch a lion’s head for good luck during a lion dance performance at the Lantern Festival celebration in Longhua. Photos from Bao'an Daily

The event was part of Longhua’s Spring Festival activities welcoming APEC, showcasing the district’s vibrant cultural scene and its openness to international visitors.

A festive parade combining intangible cultural heritage and modern “guochao” elements opened the celebration. Lion dancers performed energetic routines symbolizing good fortune, while a Hanfu procession brought traditional Chinese attire into the bustling commercial district.

Artists from the Shenzhen Opera and Dance Theatre performed songs including “Passionate Land” and “My Lover, Can You Hear Me,” bringing performing arts into the public space and drawing enthusiastic crowds.

Nearly 50 themed booths at the cultural market displayed national and local intangible cultural heritage projects, including straw painting, dyed paper-cutting, micro-carving and traditional kung fu tea art.

A mother and her child ring a bell for blessings during the Lantern Festival event in Longhua.

According to the Longhua District Culture, Radio, Television, Tourism and Sports Bureau, bringing festival celebrations into commercial districts helps integrate culture, tourism and commerce while showcasing Longhua’s cultural vitality to the world.