TAIPEI, Taiwan -- Taiwan is set to mark the upcoming Lantern Festival with various activities around the island, according to the Tourism Bureau.
▲圖/翻攝自中國郵報
The Lantern Festival, held on the 15th day of the first month of the lunar calendar, falls on Saturday, Feb. 11 this year.
Displays of lanterns are a must for the festival, and while various areas have their own lantern exhibitions, the annual Taiwan Lantern Festival is always the biggest of all.
This year's Taiwan Lantern Festival, held in Yunlin County's Huwei and Beigang townships, started on Tuesday and will run until Feb. 19, the Tourism Bureau said.
Hosting the festival for the first time in its 28-year history, the southern county is displaying 3,000 lanterns in the two areas which cover more than 50 hectares — the largest number of lamps and the biggest display area ever.
For residents of Northern Taiwan, the Taipei Lantern Festival, running Feb. 4-12, is a closer option.
Billed with the slogan "West Side Story, Taipei Glory," the capital's lantern festival is being held in the vicinity of North Gate, a historic area and former commercial hub.
Visitors can enjoy traditional lantern displays amid high-tech light shows that illuminate the walls of the historical sites and buildings in the area.
In Pingxi, New Taipei, there will another kind of lantern display that will light up the night sky on Saturday.
The city government plans to have a total of 1,200 sky lanterns released that night, and anyone wishing to release one of them can apply to do so.
The organizer accepts on-site applications starting at 10 a.m. Saturday, according to the Tourism Bureau.
Apart from lantern displays, the Yanshui Beehive Fireworks in Tainan is also an attraction that should not be missed.