Chris Volpe Photos @newhaven365
Oliver, age 5, and Andrew Swartzell of New Haven made a new friend Saturday at the the annual Lunar Fest Parade.
The 14th annual parade marked the Year of the Snake with a procession up Whitney Avenue.
The event’s organizers included the Yale-China Associationm New Haven Museum, the Town Green District, Peabody Museum, and New Haven Free Public Library. Performers included dancer Evan Choy of the Wan Chi Ming Hung Gar Institute.
Vanessa Santana of New Haven showed up with her children Inez, age 5, and Jael, age 3 …
… as did Yale students Jaeha Jang of Korea and Baala Shakya of Texas
Joshua and Jeremiah Bernacchia of Southport, both age 9, participated in the ritual of placing red envelopes (hongbao) in the lion’s mouth. These offerings symbolize good fortune, prosperity, and blessings for the upcoming year.
Other parade participants included Richard Luo of the Asian Network at Yale …
… and Arthur Lam of the Yale Wushu Club.
Parade-goers reached for yuanbao, symbolic gold ingots representing wealth and prosperity, “spit” out by the lion.