1,000 performers take part in parade to celebrate CNY

This year’s “Parade for Celebration of the Year of the Dog” featured a range of attractions, from a float parade, several large-scale performances and fireworks display to a mobile phone game.

The parade started on Sunday from Sai Van Lake Square with 15 dazzling floats gliding along Avenida Dr. Sun Yat-Sen on Macau Peninsula to the destination at the Macau Science Center.

The parade told the story of a kennel of dogs called Wong Choi (meaning “Fortune” in Chinese) gathering blessings over the past twelve years and collecting all kinds of delectable cuisines in order to lay them before local residents and visitors, conveying best wishes for a fruitful, energetic and flourishing year ahead.

The event involved over 1,000 performers, including a total of 25 local performance groups as well as nine non-local performance groups from eight countries and regions.

Souvenirs were distributed along the route to boost the festive vibes, according to information provided by the Macao Government Tourism Office.

Hong Kong celebrity Kitty Yuen, hip hop group Fama and local singer Germano Guilherme were invited to host the event in Sai Van Lake Square.

Several floats in the parade were lit with elements of culinary delights as the city welcomed the arrival of 2018 as the Macau Year of Gastronomy.

In addition, the Year of Gastronomy song, “You Can Find it Here”, composed by local talent Sou Io Kuong with lyrics written by Eagle Chan, was sung by Germano Guilherme as a debut alongside MGTO’s float. Hong Kong and Macau singers Jason Chan, Fama, Mag Lam and Vivian Chan also performed, followed by a fireworks display at 9:45 p.m.

Another float parade and finale show with cultural performances will take place in the Northern District on the ninth day of Lunar New Year on February 24.

The floats are showcased at the seafront of the Macau Science Center until February 24, and following that will be displayed at Tap Seac Square until March 4.

Residents and visitors will be able to see the illuminated floats from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. during the above periods.

Crowd control measures implemented during CNY holiday

A RECORD number of border crossings was registered during the Chinese New Year Holiday (CNY), according to statistics released by the Public Security Police Force (PSP). From the start of the first day of CNY (Friday) until 9 p.m. that night, and the start of the second day of CNY (Saturday) until 9 p.m. that night, approximately 325,000 and 403,000 crossings were recorded across all the city’s borders respectively. Last year, 376,000 crossings were recorded on the second day of CNY. A further increase in human traffic flow was registered on Sunday, with more than 476,000 crossings recorded. Of all the borders, the Border Gate still dominates the number of tourist entrances.  Yesterday, crowd control measures were implemented close to Senado Square to cope with the influx of tourists.