On February 17th, Confucius Institute at UNSW collaborated with the Bayside Council to welcome the Year of the Dog. A wide variety of performances were enjoyed by the local residents and both children and adults alike were able to participate and have fun with activities such as calligraphy and paper cutting/colouring. Around 2000 local residents attended the festival.
This year’s guest speakers included the Honourable Mr Matt Thistlethwaite MP, Federal Member for Kingsford Smith; Mr Michael Daley MP, State Member for Maroubra; Mr Ron Hoenig MP, State Member for Heffron; Mr Bill Saravinovski, Bayside Council Mayor; Mr Niu Wenqi, Education Counsellor of the Chinese Consulate General in Sydney; Mr Neil Morris, Vice Chancellor of the University of New South Wales, and Associate Professor Junfang Xi, Chinese Director of the Confucius Institute at UNSW.
Mr Bill Saravinovski, Mayor of the Bayside Council, emphasised that the City of Sydney is an active participant in Lunar New Year celebrations. He mentioned that holding multicultural activities within the community is very important to the Bayside Council. The Council continually aims to bring a wide range of cultural traditions and customs to the community and he stated that he is extremely pleased about events such as the Lunar New Year festival that are bringing the community closer.
Mr Niu Wenqi, Education Counsellor, talked about how cultural exchange is a crucial link for both countries. “The relationship between countries is built through the people and the people’s relationship with each other is created through mutual understanding.”
Mr Matt Thistlethwaite MP also greeted the crowd and displayed the Chinese skills he had been practicing.
Lunar New Year celebrations at the Dacey Gardens have become a tradition for Confucius Institute at UNSW and it gets bigger and better every year. The fesitival displays the connection that Confucius Institute at UNSW has to not only university students but also the local community.
This time, there were Chinese musical instrument performances, Chinese songs, traditional folk dances, martial arts and lion dance performances that were all positively recieved by the local crowd. Additionally, besides the actitivity booths, there was also a “Hanfu” booth, where many residents were able to try on the beautiful Hanfu (traditional clothing inspired by Ancient China) and take photos against a backdrop of the Great Wall of China. Adults and children were able to learn Chinese greetings for the New Year and also learned how to write and pronounce the Chinese version of their names. There was also a God of Wealth going around, giving out lucky Red Pockets filled with chocolate.