The Annual Riverside Lunar Festival, celebrating the Chinese lunar new year, returned to Mission Inn Avenue and Lemon Street on January 27th and 28th and saw throngs of people converge to the area for a celebration of Chinese culture with delicious foods, vendors, and performances.
Stephen Day
The event, put on by Panana Events, and sponsored by Yaamava Casinos, The City of Riverside, Inland Chinese American Alliance, IEHP, and OneLegacy, celebrated the year of the dragon. The dragon being the 5th of the 12 Chinese zodiac symbols represents any one born in 1952, 1964, 1976, 1988, 2000, or 2012.
The Lunar New Year celebration is a fifteen day holiday that is considered to be the most important of all Chinese holidays. It is also widely celebrated in South Korea, Vietnam, and many other countries that have a significant Chinese population, like the United States, and more specifically, Riverside!
Riverside saw an influx of Chinese immigrants in the late 19th century, due to work provided by the citrus industry. During citrus season, as many as 3,000 Chinese laborers would live and work in Riverside. Riverside's "Chinatown" was centered on Ninth street and included laundries, restaurants, and other shops serving the community. Fire destroyed most of the structures which led to the forming of a new Chinatown in 1885 on Tequesquite Ave. Due to a large portion of the community originating the village Gom-Benn in the southern region of China, the area was often referred to as "Little Gom-Benn."
While the Chinatown of the past is no more, the city is home to many Chinese Americans, and downtown Riverside's Chinese pavilion stands as a memorial to all the Chinese who once lived here.
Stephen Day
The Lunar Festival honors the traditions and culture of the Chinese people, and serves as a way for the community of Riverside to grow in understanding and experience the rich flavors and traditions of the Chinese people. Panana Events puts on Lunar Festivals throughout the IE and Orange County and if you missed Riverside's you can find upcoming events in Commerce and Rancho Mirage. Check out the Panana Events website for more details.
