The Spring Festival
The Spring Festival, also know as the lunar New Year, is the greatest traditional festival. It is usually a time between late January or early February, which means rest and relaxation between winter and spring after a year's toil, and means celebration as well. Before the Spring Festival, people clean their house, put red coupletson their gates, and set off firecrackers, according to fairy tale, for driving a demon, named Nian away. On the eve of the Spring Festival, a get-together banquet is a must, and the most popular food is Dumpling, which is supposed to bring good fortune. On the first day of the new year, everybody wears new clothes and greets relatives and friends with bows and congratulations wishing each other lucky during the new year.
Chinese New Year starts with the New Moon(新月)on the first day of the new year and ends on the full moon(满月)15 days later. The 15th day of the new year is called the Lantern Festival(元宵节), which is celebrated at night with lantern displays and children carrying lanterns in a parade.