Text and photos: Constanza Mazzotti
Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations took place on February 4th in the vicinity of Courthouse Square on Broadway in downtown Redwood City.
The event was celebrated by children, young people and parents who accompanied the participants, where they met the main administrative, artistic and political figures of the city.
And just as described in the fables of Aesop in the West and the Jade Emperor in the East, the fast and elusive rabbit made his presence felt at the inaugural event of the Chinese New Year, however, he had to do so quickly due to the rain that marked the colorful day.
The event began at 11:00 a.m. with the participation of the Shaolin Cultural Center as well as various participating organizations such as Sing Tao Entertainment, California Kung Fu and Tai Chi, Orion Mandarin Immersion, Playthrive School, Taiko Soba, Happy Social Dance Association and Rising Phoenix Lion Dance.
The celebration brought together members of the Redwood City community to enjoy music, cultural performances and martial arts to celebrate the arrival of the Year of the Rabbit.
The Rabbit of the Chinese Horoscope
Legend has it that it was the Jade Emperor who said that the Chinese zodiac would be decided by the order in which the animals arrived at his feast.
The rabbit, as portrayed in the West by the Greek fabulist Aesop in his fable "The Hare and the Tortoise", decided to run ahead from one side to the other; tired of running so much and above all, of waiting for the other participants in the race, he decided to rest.
When the rabbit woke up, he realized that the other animals, even the slower ones like Aesop's tortoise, had left him far behind.
So much so that the Ox, a slow-moving animal, and the Rat, who was so small that he could not overcome the obstacles on the path, arrived at the Jade Emperor's party as late as he thought they would.
The rabbit, boasting of his speed, thought that the rat, the ox and even the arrogant tiger would give him first place for obvious reasons, which was not the case.
It is said that in Chinese culture, rabbits represent the moon, perhaps because the shadows that this satellite has emulate a rabbit.
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