Chinese New Year Jan 29, 2025

The streets come alive today with a symphony of firecrackers, red lanterns and cheerful chatter—it"s Chinese New Year. Steeped in thousands of years of tradition, this holiday marks the start of the lunisolar Chinese calendar. One of the most captivating images associated with this festival is the dragon dance, pictured here. This is a mesmerising performance where skilled dancers manipulate a long, flexible dragon puppet, bringing it to life with sinuous, undulating movements. The dragon, a symbol of power, dignity and good fortune, is believed to bring luck to the community, with longer dragons bringing even more prosperity.

© Miao Jian/Wuhan Morning Post/Visual China Group via Getty Images

palette

Today in History

Why are blackbirds tied to winter?
Jan 29, 2024Gollinger Waterfalls, Salzburg, Austria
Jan 29, 2026Milwaukee City Hall, Wisconsin, United States

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Stealthy pollinators
An island made from a vow
Dec 25, 2025Merry Christmas!
Jan 4, 2026Kings Mountain, Chugach Mountains, Alaska, United States
Jul 2, 2024Italica, an old Roman city in Santiponce, Andalusia, Spain
A road not for the faint of heart
Oct 31, 2025Bran Castle in Bran, Brașov, Romania
Stunning symmetry
Feb 4, 2026Red kite in snow
Jan 19, 2024Plitvice Lakes National Park, Croatia
Aug 19, 2025Spotted eagle rays
Dec 22, 2024Christmas tree at Crystal Pier, San Diego, California, United States
Mar 14, 2025Lathmar Holi
Jul 27, 2025Barracudas at Shark Reef, Ras Mohammed National Park, Sinai Peninsula, Egypt
Dec 11, 2025International Mountain Day
Jan 27, 2025Zoroaster Temple, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, United States
Feb 28, 2025Tibetan New Year
Nov 16, 2023World Philosophy Day
Spring is coming
Where are these prickly pears?
May 19, 2024Vernazza, Cinque Terre, Liguria, Italy
One giant leap for mankind
Feb 3, 2024Grand Canal with Santa Maria della Salute Basilica, Venice, Italy
Sep 13, 2024Point Reyes National Seashore, California, USA
Feb 6, 2025Scottish Blackface sheep, Aberdeenshire, Scotland
Warm light through an ancient forest
Dec 3, 2023Vermilion Cliffs National Monument
Dec 1, 2024Antarctica Day
Nov 5, 2024Ranakpur Jain temple, Ranakpur, Rajasthan
Oct 20, 2025Hoffmanns two-toed sloth, Ecuador