Dragons awaken in Times Square

The magic of dragon boat racing came to life at a spectacular awakening ceremony of the Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival in New York in the heart of New York’s Times Square on July 11. Tourists and New Yorkers alike had front-row seats to the “eye-dotting” ceremony to awaken the dragon boats for this year’s festival to be held on Aug 3 – 4 in Flushing Meadows Corona Park. First introduced to New York by the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in New York (HKETONY) in 1990, the festival is now one of the largest multicultural event in New York and one of the largest dragon boat festivals in the US. Director of HKETONY Maisie Ho was among the special guests and dignitaries participating in the ceremony. She hopes the festival continues to strengthen the friendship, as well as the cultural and sporting ties between Hong Kong and New York.