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Chinese residents ring in the New Year
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2005-01-03 15:56

People across the nation rang in the New Year in a variety of ways.


A monk in the famous Buddhist resort Baima Temple in Luoyang, central China's Henan Province, rings a bell during a new year countdown ceremony. [newsphoto/file]

Hundreds of residents in Beijing gathered around the Yongding Gate, a famous relic site in the city that was restored in November, to watch the dazzling night scenery on Friday.

"It looks more beautiful now than in the daytime," said Zhou Lianfeng who likes to take a 15-minute walk near the gate every day.

The gate and the nearby square, which is 1,000 meters long, 285 meters wide and approximately 5 kilometers south of Tian'anmen Square, became a fascinating fairyland in the light of colorful bulbs, lamps and lanterns. All the street lamps and lights on public buildings in Beijing were also turned on.

Despite the extreme cold, many Chinese spent the first day of 2005 outdoors.

A total of 2,005 amateur runners climbed the Great Wall at Badaling, in the northern suburbs of Beijing, on Saturday. More than 10,000 people went for a street race in Shijiazhuang, capital of North China's Hebei Province.

More than 2,000 residents and visitors attended a New Year's national flag raising ceremony in front of the Potala Palace in Lhasa, capital of Southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region.

"The coming year will be very important to the Tibetan people and Tibet will have bright prospects this year," said Gongbao Zhaxi, secretary of the Lhasa City Committee of the Communist Party of China, who attended the ceremony.

Meanwhile, tens of thousands of Chinese and foreign travelers flocked to the beaches in Hainan, an island province in South China.



 
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