海外华人迎新春 悉尼同胞庆兔年

Sydney is hopping with excitement ahead of Chinese New Year celebrations, with more than 600,000 locals and overseas visitors set to welcome the Year of the Rabbit.

The four-footed furry creature, symbolising endurance, beauty, peace and hope, sits in fourth position on the Chinese calendar.

"The Chinese New Year celebration really focuses on one of the major groups that live here, and they\'re very much a developing part of our Australian culture," Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore said on Thursday.

More than 50 free festival events will be on offer from January 28 to February 13.

The celebrations kick off on Friday evening at Belmore Park in the heart of Sydney\'s Asian community.

Festival markets, exclusive performances, fireworks and the best of local Asian cuisine will be available at the park.

The City of Sydney has partnered with China\'s Hubei province to bring a fighting theme to this year\'s celebrations.

Wudang, a form of martial arts from Hubei that featured in the worldwide film sensation, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, will feature prominently throughout the festival.

About 250 artists from Hubei will join more than 2500 local and international performers in the Chinese New Year twilight parade on February 6.

"I think the parade is the highlight," Ms Moore said.

Enormous zodiac lanterns, exotic floats and flamboyant dragons will make their way through the CBD, entertaining an estimated 100,000 onlookers.

On February 12 and 13, the much-loved dragon boat races will see more than 3000 paddlers compete to the beat of a drum on Cockle Bay.

Sydney\'s festival is the largest Chinese New Year celebration outside Asia and will include exhibitions, tours, sport, food and cinema.

Ten percent of inner Sydney residents are of Chinese background, and Mandarin and Cantonese are the languages most spoken in Sydney households after English, Ms Moore said.

Sydney councillor Robert Kok said the celebrations marked the beginning of a new lunar calendar and the conclusion of 2010 - the Year of the Tiger.

"It is also a celebration of discarding old and bringing in new and celebrating the coming of new things," Mr Kok said at Thursday\'s launch.

"You have to have new clothes and new shoes and everything\'s new in the house. So that does a lot for shopping."

中国农历兔年春节来临之际，悉尼繁忙中洋溢着喜悦之情。超过60万当地居民和海外游客将在悉尼共迎兔年新春。

按照中国农历生肖，兔年排在第四。这只毛茸茸的四脚动物象征着持久、美丽、和平和希望。

悉尼市长克劳沃•摩雅上周四说：“欢庆中国新春佳节的是悉尼最大的群体之一，也是澳洲文化中发展最迅速的一个群体。”

从1月28日至2月13日，悉尼将举办50场免费的节庆活动。

庆祝活动上周五晚间在悉尼亚洲社区的中心贝尔摩公园拉开帷幕。

公园里将举办节庆市场、独家演出、以及焰火表演。游客还将品尝到最美味的当地亚洲菜肴。

悉尼市还与中国湖北省合作，将中国功夫融入到今年的庆祝活动中。

来自湖北、曾在国际大片《卧虎藏龙》中演绎的武当功夫将成为整个庆祝活动的亮点。

在2月6日清晨迎新年的欢庆游行中，大约250名来自湖北的武术高手将闪亮登场。超过2500名当地演员和来自世界各地的表演者将参加这次游行演出。

摩雅女士说：“我想这次游行会成为庆祝活动的亮点。”

巨大的生肖灯笼、异国情调的彩车、华丽的舞龙狮队伍将穿过中心商务区。据估计将有10万人前往观看。

在2月12日和13日，将有超过3000名桨手在科克湾参加非常受欢迎的赛龙舟，随着鼓点声划起浆来。

除亚洲地区外，悉尼的春节庆祝活动是最隆重的，包括展览、观光、体育、美食、和影视等活动。

摩雅女士介绍称，内悉尼有10%的居民都有华裔背景。在悉尼家庭中，普通话和广东话是除英语外最常用的语言。

悉尼市议员罗伯特•郭表示，春节庆祝活动标志着中国农历新年的开始，和2010年虎年的结束。

郭先生在上周四的午餐会上说：“这也是辞旧迎新，庆祝新生活到来的节日。”

“大家都要穿新衣，穿新鞋，屋子里的物品都要焕然一新，所以这对销售业也是利好。”

Vocabulary:

hopping: working energetically; busily engaged（忙碌的，卖力的）

martial arts: any of the traditional forms of Oriental self-defense or combat that utilize physical skill and coordination without weapons, as karate, aikido, judo, or kung fu, often practiced as sport（武术，指功夫，柔道，空手道等）

zodiac: 十二宫图，黄道带

float: a vehicle bearing a display, usually an elaborate tableau, in a parade or procession（彩车）

inner Sydney: 内悉尼。悉尼按行政区划可以分为内悉尼和外悉尼。内悉尼是澳洲人口最稠密的地方。