One of the most beautiful festivals of Asia is the Sky Lantern Festival of Taiwan. The Chinese New Year starts with the first full-moon night of the year and this festival is celebrated for 15 days. The festival usually starts around the 3rd of February and finishes around the 17th February these festive days make Taiwan one of the most beautiful places to visit in the world. The best part of the festival is the eco-friendly decorative candles, these candles are made up of oiled rice paper on a bamboo frame and it is lit with the help of a small candle or a fuel cell filled with waxy inflammable substance. The candle is up in the air till the candle is lit, the moment the flame goes off the candle falls on the ground.
A large sky lantern at the festival
Lit up lanterns released in the air
Wishes painted on the sky lantern
A ritual at the festival
Lanterns available in various colors
People coming for the festival
Festival streets during day
Famous festive food during the festival:
The famous, mouthwatering traditional festival food here is called Tangyuan or the Yuansiao. They are rice dumplings filled with sweet or sour fillings. Their traditional flavors are, sesame, the red bean paste, peanuts and also minced poke. They also have latest flavors as additions to dish they are taro, green tea and sweet osmanthus.
Must see at the festival:
• A variety of lanterns of different shapes and sizes, the decoration of the huge lanterns are worth a watch.
• Live folk performances are very famous at a few places.
How to get to Taiwan:
Taiwan is well connected to the major cities of China and Asia. The Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport is one of the largest and the busiest international airport in China. The Airport is located with the Taipei City limits.