Chinese New Year

In the South East (where we are advised not to travel) there is a state of conflict with Malay Moslem, so this year fireworks may only be discharged within Temple grounds.

We visited a chinese temple where there were shrines with statues of every kind of deity you can imagine. People bring gifts and burn candles and incense and pray to their gods.

This is the Chinese Year 2550, the Year of the Pig.

As a highlight of the Chinese New Year celebrations, a visiting Chinese Dance Group put on a spectacular show of dancing and martial arts. Whilst all of the dances and outfits were fantastic, The Dance to the Godess of Mercy, was particularly memorable. The dancers, wearing long golden fingernails, lined up behind each other and used their arms to create some quite mesmorising effects. These blurry photos are poor testament to the sheer beauty of the dance.