LUNAR NEW YEAR:

Arresting pics of Chinese celebrations

Dragon dancers perform for the crowd on a street on the first day of the Lunar New Year of the Snake at Chinatown in Manila

People watch lion dancers performing at a shrine on the first day of the Lunar New Year of the Snake in Bangkok

People burn incense as they pray at a shrine on the first day of the Lunar New Year of the Snake

Lion dancers perform on a street in the midst of exploding firecrackers on the first day of the Lunar New Year of the Snake at Chinatown in Manila

Dancers wearing lion costumes perform during a midnight Lunar New Year celebrations in New York

Folk dancers perform at the Ditan Park Temple Fair in Beijing

Folk artists perform at a temple fair, on the first day of the Lunar New Year in Beijing

Performers take part in a reenactment of a royal ceremony from the Qing Dynasty

A woman whispers to a Chinese statue as she prays at a Chinese temple on Lunar New Year in Bangkok, Thailand

Folk dancers perform at the Ditan Park Temple Fair in Beijing