Thanks to Florence Eng for sending us these photos from the Lion Dance activities that took place the day before the big parade. She writes: I love the publicity (the float parade on Sunday) receives but the lion dancing on Saturday received zero coverage. It is a much more family friendly, fun event…We get invited by all the storefronts to come into the stores and “bless” it with good fortune by lion dancing and scaring away the bad spirits.
Our group encourages people to come up to the lions, touch them for good luck and we get really playful and interactive with children because we want them to not be afraid of the lions and of course, it makes them and their parents happy.
Florence couldn’t have said it better. The day before the parade festivities is how I remember it as a kid, getting dim sum in the morning with my family, and then splitting up into pairs or small groups to follow the different troupes blessing the businesses. The crowd is much smaller and easier to deal with, which makes it a much more intimate and interactive experience. Makes my heart flutter every year.
Golden lion club has some of the prettiest heads around.