A child experiences Chinese sugar painting art at the 34th Phoenix Chinese Week Culture and Cuisine Festival in Phoenix, Arizona, the United States, on Feb. 4, 2024. Over 20,000 local residents experienced the sights, sounds, and tastes of the 34th Phoenix Chinese Week Culture and Cuisine Festival this weekend in the capital city of Arizona.(Photo: Xinhua)

 

Local students in Phoenix perform Chinese dragon dance at the 34th Phoenix Chinese Week Culture and Cuisine Festival in Phoenix, Arizona, the United States, on Feb. 4, 2024. Over 20,000 local residents experienced the sights, sounds, and tastes of the 34th Phoenix Chinese Week Culture and Cuisine Festival this weekend in the capital city of Arizona.(Photo: Xinhua)

 

An artist from China's Chengdu City performs at the 34th Phoenix Chinese Week Culture and Cuisine Festival in Phoenix, Arizona, the United States, on Feb. 4, 2024. Over 20,000 local residents experienced the sights, sounds, and tastes of the 34th Phoenix Chinese Week Culture and Cuisine Festival this weekend in the capital city of Arizona.(Photo: Xinhua)

 
Over 20,000 local residents experienced the sights, sounds, and tastes of the 34th Phoenix Chinese Week Culture and Cuisine Festival this weekend in the capital city of Arizona.

Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego dotted the lion's eyes, marking the official opening of the two-day traditional annual event to celebrate the Chinese Lunar New Year on Saturday. The lion was used for the lion dance.

The celebration has been held since January 1991.

"I am very honored to be invited to attend this event... and pay tribute to our sister city Chengdu, celebrating our deep relationship with Chengdu," she said. "Our friendship reflects the good cooperation over the years. Chinese culture is part of multiculturalism, which makes Phoenix a great global city."

The festival featured continuous live entertainment, including dragon and lion dances, folk dances, musical performances, tai chi, and martial arts demonstrations.

Staff of the Phoenix Sister City Committee, co-organizer of the annual event, told Xinhua on Sunday that nearly 200 artists from local art groups and Chengdu, China, showed up.

Thousands of local residents also enjoyed a variety of delicious Asian foods and participated in many hands-on activities at the event, such as taking part in a chopstick challenge, taking selfies in traditional Chinese costumes, playing mahjong and learning how to use an abacus.

Moreover, the annual event to kick off the Lunar New Year in Phoenix, a city with about 30,000 Chinese residents, has become an iconic cultural event for the Grand Canyon State.

"Phoenix Chinese Week continually strives to provide quality opportunities for cultural awareness, education, and exchange," the Arizona Office of Tourism said on its official website.