A series of festival events, including Chinese New Year Fairs, Spring Festival receptions, and a promotional showcase of the Spring Festival Gala produced by China Media Group (CMG), were held in some foreign countries recently in the run-up to the much-anticipated traditional Chinese Spring Festival.
On Sunday, a second Chinese New Year Fair was held in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, attracting thousands of visitors. Compared with that of last year, this year's event is larger, with a 20 percent increase in the number of exhibitors.
At the fair, a variety of traditional cultural elements were introduced to local residents and overseas Chinese in Kenya, including woodblock printing, dough figurines, Chinese cuisine, martial arts, and traditional song and dance performances.
During the event, the promotional video for CMG's 2025 Spring Festival Gala was played, drawing widespread attention.
"We have seen many entertainments and exhibitions. Very happy to be here today to create that cultural diplomacy and relations between Kenya and also China. We are trying to walk around how we can have cooperations between ourselves so that we prosper together as friends. I would like to wish you a prosperous and a Happy New Year from Kenya to you," said Ummi Bashir, principal secretary of the State Department for Culture and Heritage under the Ministry of Gender, Culture, the Arts and Heritage in the Republic of Kenya.
In Bogota, the Chinese embassy in Colombia hosted a reception on Monday, marking the upcoming Spring Festival and also the 45th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Colombia.
The reception was attended by more than 400 guests, including Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development of Colombia Martha Carvajalino and other Colombian political dignitaries, diplomatic envoys to Colombia, and representatives of Chinese enterprises and academia in Colombia.
The reception featured a variety of activities, including exhibitions of intangible cultural heritage crafts, calligraphy writing, and captivating performances like singing, dancing, and acrobatics, delivered by an art troupe from east China's Zhejiang Province.
Additionally, the promotional video for the CMG's Spring Festival Gala was unveiled, drawing guests to watch and capture the moment with photos.
The promotional video was also played Sunday on Egypt's Iconic Tower, renowned as the tallest building in Africa, which is situated in the Central Business District (CBD) of Egypt's new administrative capital, east of Cairo.
On the same evening, a light show co-hosted by the Chinese embassy in Egypt and the Xi'an Municipal Government in northwest China's Shaanxi Province was also unveiled in the CBD, attracting a large number of overseas Chinese and locals to see and capture the memorable moments.
On Friday local time, the promotional video for the gala was screened at a cinema in London, marking the first time such a program has been featured in a UK cinema.
The screening brought the joyful and festive atmosphere of the Chinese Lunar New Year to local audiences, who also received heartfelt greetings from China through the big screen.
In recent months, China-UK relations have seen new progress, with both countries exploring the resumption of dialogue and cooperation in areas such as education, technological innovation, energy and climate change.
As one of the most significant traditional festivals in China, the Spring Festival provides an opportunity to deepen mutual understanding between the people of China and the UK, fostering closer ties and driving the development of bilateral relations.
The Spring Festival, marking the start of a new year on the lunar calendar, is China's grandest traditional festival when people return to their hometowns for Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations and family reunion. This year, it falls on Jan 29, ushering in the Year of the Snake.
The festival is now recognized in many parts of the world, with nearly one-fifth of the world's population celebrating it in various ways.

Cultural activities held in foreign countries in run-up to China's Spring Festival