Episode 210: "The Lantern Celebration" - Taiwan

For good luck in the coming year, people in Taitung province throw firecrackers at a man masquerading as the god Handan, who parades though the streets and wears nothing but shorts and protective headgear. Taipei Lantern Festival is a modern take on Lunar New Years. Millions of spectators come each year to see the humongous animal lantern displays. At the Pingsi Sky Lanterns Festival, thousands of handmade lanterns are released into the sky. Pingsi residents used them for communication in older times. The lanterns, which hold written prayers and requests for the gods, can reach 3,000 feet in the air.








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