One day in Tibet, two New Year's celebrations

Two days ahead of the Year of the Earth Pig, people in the Tibet autonomous region have geared up for the final preparations of the Tibetan New Year, also known as the Losar celebration.

The alleys around Tsalgongthang Monastery in the regional capital of Lhasa were more crowded than usual on Sunday, and business was booming as people were busy preparing for not one but two New Year's celebrations on the same day. This year, Losar and Spring Festival both fall on Tuesday.

Losar dates to about 100 BC, the time of the ninth king of Tibet, Pude Gungyal, and the celebration runs as long as 15 days.