CHINATOWN, Manhattan (WABC) -- As millions of people around the world celebrate the Lunar New Year, a cultural kick off -- in the form of the Firecracker Festival -- packed the streets of Chinatown on Wednesday.
Chinatown is the place to celebrate the Lunar New Year. This is the 27th year that the Parks Department and Better Chinatown put the celebration together, marking 4,000 years of the Chinese New Year - a holiday that reaches back to the beginnings of Chinese civilization.
These days, one-fifth of the entire world celebrates the holiday.
This Year of the Snake is special because the Lunar New Year is now a New York State holiday, so CUNY colleges are out, and young kids can be at home to celebrate with their families.
ALSO READ: Who celebrates Lunar New Year and why?
"The year of the Wood Snake is a year of renewal," said New York Assemblywoman Grace Lee.
Lee made the celebration happen.
"To make sure that this holiday is something that not only Asian Americans can celebrate, but something all of our friends and neighbors can celebrate together," she said.
This is a time-honored family holiday to welcome good fortune and a long, healthy life, and to make lots of noise to scare away a legendary sea monster that would bring the opposite of that.
Red is the color of good luck, and everything has meaning -- even food -- from noodles to citrus fruits, to spring rolls and dumplings, which specifically represent comfort and prosperity.
Eyewitness News President and General Manager Marilu Galvez also made an appearance at Wednesday's celebration.
To celebrate, a lot of families do spring cleaning, toast their neighbors, pray and offer gifts of money, usually in red envelopes, to bring more good luck.
You might be wondering what the snake means. The Year of the Snake represents wisdom and adaptability, which are good things to think about going into this new year.
The Lunar New Year will culminate in a parade and festival on Sunday, Feb. 16, 2025 at 1 p.m.
WABC-TV is a proud sponsor of the 27th annual NYC Lunar Year Parade and Festival, and will stream the parade live on abc7NY.com, our mobile and connected TV apps, and on YouTube.
You can re-watch the 2024 NYC Lunar New Year celebration here:
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