A new year begins

The festive spirit is everywhere in Lhasa, as Tibetans celebrate their biggest festival of the year that began on Saturday. Photos by Wang Jing / China Daily

Residents, of all ages, all dress up their newest best to celebrate the new year.

Song, dance, and fireworks as Tibetans celebrate Losar. Wang Yan reports.

Their homes smelling of fresh paint, Tibetan families dressed in their newest best, welcomed their New Year, or Losar, with food, wine, dancing, singing - and fireworks. The biggest festival of the year for Tibetans, which began on Saturday, will last for about two weeks.

Like most of his fellow Tibetans in Lhasa, Tenzin Dawa and his family are up at the crack of dawn on the first day of the new year.

While Tse Drup, Tenzin Dawa's wife, and her mother-in-law Chonda, help everyone with their traditional attire, Tamdrin Phuntsog, their 11-year-old son, is making sure he understands his video camera, with which he plans to record all the exciting moments of the day.

After breakfast, the family sit in the living room, watching TV, with their front door open - it is time for the guests.

The first one drops in at 9:30 am, bearing qiema boxes made of wood and filled with wheat and a type of bread called tsamba, besides colorful ears of wheat and butter sculptures.

Holding the qiema box in front of Tenzin Dawa, the visitor expresses his good wishes for the new year.

Tenzin Dawa first picks several ears of wheat and hurls them in the air, before sampling some of the tsamba. The guest then presents a small glass of highland barley wine for the host to drink up.

Besides qiema boxes, visitors also present the hada, a white scarf symbolizing purity and good luck, to the host family.

After exchanging greetings, everyone gathers around the food table. Then it's time for the wine and music - Tse Drup and Chonda sing songs before serving wine to the guests.

Through all this, Tamdrin Phuntsog is excitedly recording the celebrations and proudly sharing the footage with guests. His younger sister, Dandron, 6, is rather shy and hides behind him.

The festive spirit is everywhere on the "roof of the world".

In front of the Potala Palace, red and yellow silk flowers form the Chinese characters for "Happy Tibetan Losar New Year", as Buddhists make a beeline to the palace, and other temples, to celebrate the festival.

The celebrations include the traditional ritual of "beating the ghost" and the eating of gutu pastries, which are believed to keep the bad things of the past from encroaching into the new year.

Tamdrin Phuntsog, 11, shares his video coverage of the celebrations in his home with guests.

The traditional ritual of "beating the ghost" is believed to keep the bad things of the past from encroaching into the new year.

The owner of a handicraft stall in Lhasa does brisk business during the Tibetan New Year.

Tibetans exchange qiema boxes, filled with wheat, tsamba bread and butter sculptures, with friends and neighbors.

Chonda serves highland barley wine for the guests after singing songs with other women.

Buddhists flock to the Potala Palace during the festival.

(China Daily 03/07/2011 page22)