DUE to the influential, prestigious and voluminous Chinese community in Cebu, the traditional celebration of the Chinese Lunar New Year is marked with much pomp and spectacle!

Marco Polo Plaza Cebu welcomed the Year of the Earth Pig with its various traditions: A Wushu performance by the Talisay Malayan Academy, followed by the Eye-Dotting rite. What’s New Year without exotic drum beats, breathtaking fireworks and intricate dragon and lion dances? We all want to start the year with good luck and ward off the bad, don’t we?

Now, a much-anticipated showpiece is the Yee Sang Tossing ceremony. This was led by the People’s Republic of China Consul General Jia Li and other prominent members of the local Chinese community. The exciting and amazing part was the giant Yee Sang bowl at the lobby, with matching huge chopsticks to toss the contents high up: The higher it goes, the more happiness and prosperity one will receive!

And still another treat was the sumptuous array of Chinese dishes waiting to be savored at Cafe Marco.

Happy Chinese New Year, all!