After the government dropped its tight zero-Covid policy, people rang in the lunar new year with family gatherings and large numbers visiting temples, marking the largest holiday celebration since the pandemic started three years ago.
The lunar new year is the most important annual holiday in China. Each year is named after one of the 12 signs of the Chinese zodiac in a repeating cycle, with this year being the year of the rabbit. For the past three years celebrations were muted in the shadow of the pandemic.
Many people were able to make their first trip back to their hometowns to rejoin with their family when the majority of Covid-19 restrictions were relaxed because they no longer had to worry about quarantine, prospective lockdowns, or travel bans. For what is known as the spring festival in China, broader public celebrations also returned, with the capital holding thousands of cultural events – on a larger scale than a year earlier.
In Beijing, many worshippers offered morning prayers at the Lama Temple, but the crowds appeared to be smaller compared to pre-pandemic days.
The Tibetan Buddhist site allows up to 60,000 visitors a day, citing safety reasons, and requires an advance reservation.
Crowds packed the streets in the Qianmen area near Tiananmen Square, many enjoying snacks from barbecue and New Year rice cake stands, and some children wore traditional Chinese rabbit hats.
Beijing resident Si Jia said she felt that life in Beijing was back to normal in general, pointing to the return of tourists.
