Chinese Lantern Festival
By John Beamish
14 Jan 2008
The moment I see the entrance I knew it would be an unforgettable experience. Listing all the fantastic exhibits would be too long, so I will just give you my four highlights.
The entrance a four story red pagoda gateway made of painted silk and lights.
Two 50' dragons sitting tail to tail on top of the footbridge, ablaze in yellow and red guard the island exhibits.
Directly off the bridge was a 120' blue animatronic (head only) dragon made with (of course) china plates, cups, saucers, platters and lights. This was truly amazing.
Around the next bend was the wall of masks, frightfully beautiful. Near the end of this incredible journey is a structure in the centre of the main lagoon. Four dragons affixed to the supports near the top, four smaller ones circling beneath it and four large ones surrounding it. This either represents the four winds or four seasons I think. Near this is a smaller pagoda with a dragon that swims beneath it and has water issuing from its mouth.
All in all a fantastic experience.
