Spring Festival is around the corner and many who are ready to celebrate the Year of the Monkey might find that Sichuan province in Southwest China is an ideal destination to experience traditional folk customs.

People will encounter monkeys at Mount Emei; enjoy the splendid culture of the Three Kingdoms, experience folk customs and Sichuan food in Chengdu; trace the origin of Spring Festival in serene and old Langzhong; celebrate the holiday with Tibetans in Aba prefecture; and visit Zigong, hailed the capital of salt.

Temple fairs

Each year, major attractions in Chengdu will hold a series of festive events with themes ranging from the Three Kingdoms, the ancient Shu state, folk customs, poetry and food.

This year, the Chengdu Temple Fair, Chengdu Jinsha Sun Festival and the 7th Chengdu Du Fu Festival will be held from Feb 6 to 22.

The Chengdu Temple Fair will focus on the Three Kingdoms and hold events under the theme of the ancient Silk Road and the Year of Monkey.

It will feature performances, traditional Chinese arts and lantern exhibitions. Visitors will have a chance to taste Chinese and foreign snacks and check out traditional artworks.

Chengdu Jinsha Sun Festival, which is featuring ancient Chengdu as its theme, will showcase the ancient city's cultural achievements from the Shu State to the zenith of the Roman Empire through exhibitions, lanterns and performances.

The 7th Chengdu Du Fu Festival will kick off on Feb 5. With its theme of poetry and flowers, the event will include a poetry festival and a plum flower exhibition.

The first Sichuan Festival of Cultural Consumption as well as the Yangtze River Temple Fair will be held from Feb 6 to March 6 in the city of Yibin, located in southeastern Sichuan.

The event, planned and implemented by the Chengdu Temple Fair organizers, will feature lantern exhibitions, stage performances and food stalls. There will be about 80 performances, including singing and magic shows.

Lantern fairs

Lantern fairs have a history of 800 years in the city of Zigong, located in southern Sichuan. Locals have staged lantern fairs during Spring Festival for more than 20 years.

The city's organizers have been invited to hold lantern fairs in about 200 cities and regions in China and in 60 cities across the globe, including the United States, Russia, South Korea, Singapore and Malaysia.

The 22nd Zigong International Lantern Fair, which began in late January, will run through the middle of March. Across a 10-hectare park, the event consists of 110,000 modern lighting displays in four categories: Amazing China, Romantic France, Great China and Happy Chinese New Year. Visitors can enjoy performances from French clowns and 3-D balloons from the US. They can also try their hand at making lanterns.

The 48th Chengdu International Panda Lantern Fair began on Feb 2 at Qicai Tianye in Sansheng township, located near Chengdu. The fair boasts more than 100 lighting displays over more than 26 hectares, double the size of the fair of previous years. The event incorporates folk customs, international elements and tulip exhibitions.

The city of Langzhong, located in the northeastern region of Sichuan, has long been hailed as the birthplace of the Spring Festival holiday. Legend has it that astronomer Luo Xiahong during the Han Dynasty set the first day of the first lunar month, which is the start of Spring Festival, in the city. Across the city, there will be lots of performances celebrating the holiday.

Folk customs

Langzhong residents customarily celebrate the festival by eating porridge on the eighth day of the 12th lunar month, after which they sweep the house, hold a New Year's vigil, organize ceremonies to worship their ancestors, set off fireworks, make dragon lanterns, fly Kong Ming lanterns and have family gatherings. Colorful festive events will not stop until the second day of the second lunar month.

Visitors can also go to Deyang, located in northern Sichuan, where they can see New Year's paintings, or participate in ceremonial events in nearby Sanxingdui.

There is also a two-day trip designed for visitors to celebrate Spring Festival. Stops include Jiuhe Farm in southwestern Sichuan where they can explore a village filled with New Year's paintings and traditional performances. The trip also takes visitors to Lushang Hot Spring, the only warm spring rich in sodium bicarbonate, and the Sanxingdui Museum.

lifusheng@chinadaily.com.cn

The lantern fairs in the city of Zigong, Sichuan province, which have a history of more than 800 years, attracts visitors from home and abroad. Photos provided to China Daily

Residents in Sichuan province hold a variety of colorful activities to celebrate the coming Spring Festival.

(China Daily 02/05/2016 page12)