Bambudda restaurant in Ripon served up a taste of Chinese New Year celebration with a lion dance yesterday evening.
The colourful event was due to take place on Kirkgate at 6pm, but the dancers and musicians were held up in traffic on their way from Manchester.
However, a large crowd of people, including families with young children, returned for 7.30pm to see two puppet lions gyrating to the percussive beat of drum, cymbals and tambourine.
The Chinese New Year, or Spring Festival, dates back more than 4,000 years and is the longest holiday of the year in China. This year is the year of the tiger.
The lions ‘scare off evil spirits and bring positive energy’
The celebrations will last until 15 February and end in China and other countries with a spectacular Lantern Festival, which features ancient spiritual traditions and celebrates family reunions and society.
Some ancient Chinese traditions were on display in Ripon, as Bambudda owner Benjamin Wu, who was born in Hong Kong, told the Stray Ferret:
“It is believed that the lions will scare off evil spirits and bring positive energy.”
He added:
“They can also bring good luck and good health, which is what everybody wants and I’m delighted that so many people came to share and enjoy this cultural tradition with us. “
Bambudda owner Benjamin Wu, with the lions who bring good luck and good health
General manager Lucy Nguyen, said:
“I come from Vietnam and the New year is also celebrated there in a similar way.
“It’s like Christmas in this country and is a time to be with family and friends.”
The musicians
She added:
“We’ve brought the lion dance to Ripon since we opened four years ago, but we couldn’t hold it last year because of the covid lockdown.”
Read more:
All Ripon hornblowers will gather together for Monday night return
Ripon’s hornblowers will make their keenly awaited return to Market Square on Monday night.
Ripon City Council has organised a special gathering to mark the occasion, as all three members of the hornblowing team will be on duty for the city’s 9pm ritual.
Council leader Andrew Williams told the Stray Ferret:
“We believe that the ceremony, which dates back to 886AD, is the world’s longest unbroken daily tradition.
“It has been a continuous feature of Ripon life since then and is a key element of the city’s proud history.”
The ceremony is carried out around the four corners of the Obelisk on Ripon Market Square
He added:
“To ensure that the return of the hornblowers is properly celebrated, all of them will play a part in the ceremony at the obelisk.
“We said that we would have them back as soon as covid restrictions allow and the city council is keeping that promise.”
Social distancing requirements announced by the government in March 2020 meant that Wayne Cobbett, Alison Clark and Richard Midgley could not perform the ceremony in public.
Instead, the hornblowers, who are employed by the city council and work on a rota basis, kept the tradition alive behind closed doors.
The ‘setting the watch’ ceremony was conducted at their respective homes and was live-streamed on Facebook every evening.
Before the covid lockdown, the nightly event involved them blasting the horn at the four corners of the obelisk and giving a brief talk on the history of Ripon.
Read more:
The city council welcomes public attendance at Monday’s event, but attendees will be required to observe social distancing during the ceremony and subsequent history talk.
During summer months in particular, the ceremony attracts large crowds.