Brisbane is seeing in the Year of the Rooster by celebrating not only Chinese culture, but all things Asian during its three-week BrisAsia Festival.
Lord Mayor Graham Quirk said the fifth BrisAsia Festival, launched at South Bank on Friday, would be the biggest yet, with 80 events across 20 Brisbane suburbs.
Fortitude Valley's Chinatown Mall would be the centre of activity this weekend, with lion dancers, markets and firecrackers on both Saturday and Sunday.
For many Brisbane residents, Cr Quirk said, the BrisAsia Festival would be like a little taste of home.
"We have 28 per cent of our population who were born overseas," Cr Quirk said.
"In addition to that, we have some 75,000 international students in our city and a lot of them come from the Asia-Pacific region.
"So the BrisAsia Festival is a great chance for our city to celebrate the Lunar New Year. It's a great opportunity to celebrate the diversity of our citizens and those who are participating in our city as international students."
Last year's BrisAsia Festival attracted 70,000 people and Cr Quirk said he expected a similar number in 2017, in line with the festival's growth since its first edition.
"It started out five years ago as eight events and this year we present 80 events," he said.
The effect of BrisAsia on the Brisbane economy was hard to quantify, Cr Quirk said.
"I would be pulling figures out of the air, but what I can say is this also helps to present Brisbane as a city that is lively," he said.
"So visitors who are coming to our city will have that opportunity to experience elements of the Lunar New Year, to get that taste of diversity, not only through food but through a range of entertainment that is provided through the BrisAsia festival."
Cultural events included an ao dai (Vietnamese costume) fashion parade, origami workshops, ikebana displays, Japanese storytelling and bamboo lantern workshops.
Cr Quirk said he expected the Taste of Asia (Friday, February 10 in King George Square, 12-7pm) and Neon Pop (next Friday at Sunnybank) to be the festival's two biggest drawcards.
"These are two events that have continued to grow and I think the people of Brisbane are more and more appreciating that opportunity to experiment with cuisine and they'll certainly get it through the BrisAsia Festival," he said.
For the full searchable BrisAsia program, visit the Brisbane City Council website.
The 2017 BrisAsia Festival will come to a close on Sunday, February 19.
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