Thousands line Whanganui River for Lanterns on the Awa

Up to 6000 people lined the Whanganui River for Lanterns on the Awa on Saturday evening.

The weather was a welcome relief for organiser Kai Lim, after the previous event in 2022 was postponed multiple times due to weather before eventually being held indoors.

This time, the thousands of people soaked in the autumn evening air for the cultural extravaganza celebrating Chinese New Year.

Lim said the lion and dragon dances were a highlight, along with the Shirley McDouall School of Dance performance.

“It went really well. Obviously, the weather was good,” he said.

Lim said Chinese New Year was usually celebrated between the end of January and mid-February but the festival was pushed back until after daylight savings when it was easier to run the lantern festival with earlier darkness.

Lanterns signify celebration and reunion.

This year is the Year of the Dragon, which Lim said was the most important in the Chinese calendar.

“People seem to celebrate more in the Year of the Dragon. Obviously, that is something to show off.”

Lim said Lanterns on the Awa appealed beyond the Chinese community.

“The world is a global village now because we travel so much and the internet is so popular – we can search up anything and find anything… I guess it’s just for local people to see cultural things. Food is another thing. I think it’s something attractive. Cross-culturalism is everywhere now, people are interested in other cultures.”

The festival also works closely with Whanganui High School, which has a relationship with the Confucius Institute, and Whanganui District Council supports the event as part of its sister city relationship with Lijiang in China.