Harmony in Blossom: 20 Years of Cultivating Filipino-Chinese Unity

February 10, 2024 marks the Lunar New Year. It is also the start of the Year of the Dragon.

In Chinese culture, the Dragon, the only mythical creature among the 12 animal signs, holds a significant place as an auspicious and extraordinary creature, unparalleled in talent and excellence.

In an article written by Maggie Hiufu Wong in CNN Travel, she explained that every year, a heavenly stem (one of five elements—wood, fire, earth, metal, and water—which fall into the yin or yang category) is paired with an earthly branch (one of the Chinese zodiac animals).

This year, the heavenly stem “Jia,” or yang wood, is paired with the earthly branch “Chen,” or the Dragon. That makes 2024 the Year of the Wood Dragon.

Among the famous personalities born in the Year of the Dragon are Charles Darwin (Feb. 12, 1809), Bruce Lee (Nov. 27, 1940), John Lennon (Oct. 9, 1940), and Vladimir Putin (Oct. 7, 1952).

Meanwhile, Iloilo City’s Chinese New Year celebration in 2024 is poised to be the biggest celebration outside Metro Manila.

The metropolis is home to some 13,000 strong Chinese Filipinos as of 2021, and the long-running friendship between the Chinese and Filipino communities helped create a better Iloilo City.

Among the highlights of this year’s celebration are: the grand parade from Iloilo Provincial Capitol to Iloilo Chinatown, followed by a grand cultural show and fireworks display at the FilipinoChinese Friendship Arc at the Plazoleta Gay on Iznart Street on Feb. 9, the showing of the Quanzhou string puppetry on Feb. 10 to 11 at the West Visayas State University Cultural Center, the Chinese New Year Mall Shows by Iloilo Scholastic Academy, Hua Siong College of Iloilo, and Sun Yat Sen High School Iloilo at SM City Iloilo, and a Thanksgiving Mass at Sta. Maria ChineseFilipino Parish at 8 a.m. on Feb. 11 and the Chinese New Year closing ceremony at Park Square, Festive Walk Parade at 5 a.m. on the same day./PN