video transcript

Ushering in the Year of the Snake with a prayer. On Sunday, people around the world celebrated the Lunar New Year - the most important festival on the Chinese calendar. Hundreds flocked to this 300-year-old temple in Beijing, braving freezing temperatures and hangovers. As is tradition, they burned incense and prayed for a prosperous year. (SOUNDBITE)(Mandarin) BEIJING RESIDENT LIU XUEMEI SAYING: "I hope that my child is healthy, safe and happy. I don't want to give my child too much pressure. All I want is for her to be safe, healthy and happy." In the Philippines, hundreds crowded into Manilla's Chinatown to mark the Lunar New Year - and bid farewell to the Year of the Dragon. Many, like this woman, hoped the year would bring smoother relations between China and its neighbours, which are locked in a series of territorial disputes. The Lunar Year celebrations will last for 15 days.