january. it's not as boring as it sounds.

image courtesy traveltop.org

usually january is kind of a snooze. the holidays are over, and the only thing to look forward to is yucky weather and ground hog day.

but wait. chinese new year is coming up jan. 23-feb. 6 (a two-week-long holiday!) and it is sure to offer lots of fun.

i do love a festival.

2012 is the year of the dragon, the most important symbol in chinese culture, so that makes it even more likely there will be fun things to do wherever you are.

last year we had the most wonderful time at a celebration of food and dance at the downtown nashville public library. look at this yummy food.

we loved the lantern dance so much that we drove all over town looking for tiny paper lanterns.

target, world market, pier one ... nobody had them and we were appalled.

they kept telling us paper lanterns are seasonal ... and we kept arguing, but it's chinese new year! how much more seasonal can you get?!

so far i have not heard there will be a repeat performance at the library, but the event poster you see here will more than likely include a children's dance performance, traditional chinese food and much more.

i'm sure we'll see this guy....

image courtesy vu/john russell (c)

... and this lovely woman and her furry lion friend are sure to make an appearance somewhere along the way.

hurray for chinese new year, festival of spring!