Riding a White "Horse" Down the Streets – Chinese New Year in Paris’s Chinatown Is Wildly Festive!

▲ To celebrate the Chinese "Year of the Horse," Paris’s Chinatown formed a "wooden horse team" to parade through the streets. (Photo / fromParis Tourism Fan Page, the same below)

By / Hully
On the first Sunday of February, the fashion capital of France, Paris, was "bustling with energy." The Marais district, Belleville district, and the southern part of the 13th arrondissement were alive with the sounds of drums and gongs, as dragon and lion dances weaved through the streets, accompanied by bursts of firecrackers and music, drawing many locals out to join the fun—perhaps to catch a glimpse of some "Peanuts magic"?

▲ Dragon dance teams parading through the streets of Paris had many Europeans reaching for their phones to take photos.

It turns out this was the annual New Year celebration event in Paris’s Chinatown. To welcome the Chinese Lunar New Year, the 13th arrondissement—home to numerous Chinese shops and restaurants—hosted a grand street parade. Lion dance troupes in vibrant costumes performed enthusiastically, while a wooden horse symbolizing the "Year of the Horse" made a grand appearance. Performers wearing masks and Peking opera costumes strutted down the streets, and even rarely-seen deities came out for a stroll, bringing traditional Chinese culture into the heart of a European city and spreading the blessings of the New Year to every corner.

▲ Rarely "parading" deities also joined the street procession, with their traditional Peking opera attire proving a novelty to Europeans.