Things to do  |  5 Feb 2024

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Celebrate the Lunar New Year and mark the Year of the Dragon with a range of vibrant festivities at your local library.

Christchurch City Libraries are hosting a variety of fun and festive activities and events from 10 to 24 February 2024 to celebrate the Chinese New Year.

“We love being able to celebrate Christchurch’s diverse communities across the Christchurch City Libraries network, and marking the Lunar New Year is a great example of this,” says Christchurch City Council Head of Libraries and Information Carolyn Robertson.

“The celebration is such a significant part of Chinese culture and we’re excited to put on such a range of activities across the city.”

The key event for this year’s celebrations is the spectacular display of colours, costumes, music and performances on 10 February at Tūranga. The Celebration of Culture will be held from 1 – 4pm with traditional crafts and activities after the show.

Learn how to fold and make Chinese dumplings at Tūranga with two demonstration workshops on 10 February. Bookings are required for these sessions and each booking is for a group which includes six cooked dumplings to take away and enjoy.

Learn about the world of lion dance and practice the basic dancing movements with Lion Dance Storytelling at South Library on 13 February and the Lion Dance Workshop at Upper Riccarton Library on 17 February.

Upper Riccarton Library will be hosting a Family Celebration from 1 – 3pm on 17 February – a chance to bring peace and joy to your family this Lunar New Year with a variety of Chinese games and themed activities.

Bilingual Storytimes will also be on throughout the period at local libraries across Christchurch.

Further events through the Christchurch City Libraries network include Mahjong Group, Family Makerspace and Lunar New Year Afterschool Activities.

View the full list of Christchurch City Libraries events for the Lunar New Year.