Lunar New Year prayers, robots and festivities usher in the Year of the Horse

Lunar New Year prayers, robots and festivities usher in the Year of the Horse 1 of 6 | Crowds packed markets around Hong Kong on Monday, shopping for flowers amid unseasonably warm temperatures in preparation for the Lunar New Year. (AP video shot by Alice Fung) 2 of 6 | People hold incense sticks as they pray during the celebration of the Lunar New Year of the Horse at Satya Dharma Temple in Denpasar, Indonesia, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Firdia Lisnawati) 3 of 6 | Chinese people pray at a temple during Lunar New Year celebrations at Chinatown in Yangon, Myanmar, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Thein Zaw) 4 of 6 | A worshiper wears a horse head decoration at Wong Tai Sin Temple to welcome the Lunar New Year of the Horse in Hong Kong, Monday, Feb. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei) 5 of 6 | Monks pray on the eve of the Lunar New Year celebrations in Taipei, Taiwan, Monday, Feb. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Chiang Ying-ying) 6 of 6 | Worshippers pray at the Longshan temple early morning on the first day of the Lunar New Year celebrations in Taipei, Taiwan, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Chiang Ying-ying) 1 of 6 Crowds packed markets around Hong Kong on Monday, shopping for flowers amid unseasonably warm temperatures in preparation for the Lunar New Year. (AP video shot by Alice Fung) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. 2 of 6 People hold incense sticks as they pray during the celebration of the Lunar New Year of the Horse at Satya Dharma Temple in Denpasar, Indonesia, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Firdia Lisnawati) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. 3 of 6 Chinese people pray at a temple during Lunar New Year celebrations at Chinatown in Yangon, Myanmar, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Thein Zaw) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. 4 of 6 A worshiper wears a horse head decoration at Wong Tai Sin Temple to welcome the Lunar New Year of the Horse in Hong Kong, Monday, Feb. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. 5 of 6 Monks pray on the eve of the Lunar New Year celebrations in Taipei, Taiwan, Monday, Feb. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Chiang Ying-ying) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. 6 of 6 Worshippers pray at the Longshan temple early morning on the first day of the Lunar New Year celebrations in Taipei, Taiwan, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Chiang Ying-ying) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Updated [hour]:[minute] [AMPM] [timezone], [monthFull] [day], [year] BEIJING (AP) — People are marking the Lunar New Year on Tuesday with prayers, fireworks and festivities. The activities ushered in the Year of the Horse, one of 12 animals in the Chinese zodiac, succeeding the Year of the Snake.The Lunar New Year is the most important annual holiday in China and some other East Asian nations and is celebrated outside the region, too.Robots take the stage of an annual TV show in ChinaAs every year, China celebrated the Lunar New Year with a TV show and once again the humanoid robots were a central part of the performance Monday night.One of the highlights of the CCTV Spring Festival gala was a martial arts performance by children and robots. For several minutes, humanoids from Unitree Robotics showed different sequences and even brandished swords.The performance shows China’s push to develop more advanced robots powered by improved AI capabilities. Temple crowds at midnight in Hong KongIncense smoke wafted into the air at a temple in Hong Kong where people line up every year to make wishes for the new year at midnight.Holding up a cluster of incense sticks, many bowed their heads several times before planting the sticks in containers placed in front of a temple hall. Fireworks light up skies in VietnamEntertainers in Vietnam sang at an outdoor countdown event before multiple fireworks shows at several cities in the Southeast Asian nation, where the festival is called Tet.Light shows lit up bridges and skyscrapers as the fireworks went off and crowds clapped in rhythm to live pop music performances. Chinese street fairs in MoscowPeople sampled Chinese cuisine from stalls and strolled along snowy streets decorated with red lanterns and dragons as two weeks of events got underway Monday at various venues in the Russian capital.The third annual Lunar New Year celebration comes at at time of warming relations between China and Russia — ties that have frustrated many European governments because of the war in Ukraine.A temple bell rings 108 times in TaiwanThe solemn peal of a temple bell rang out 108 times — an auspicious number — as people flocked to the Baoan Temple in Taipei on Tuesday morning.They lit incense sticks, bowed their heads and left offerings of colorful flower bouquets on outdoor tables on the temple grounds in Taiwan’s capital city. Thousands of Argentines gathered in Buenos Aires’ Chinatown to celebrate the Lunar New Year and enjoyed dragon and lion dances on the main stage, alongside martial arts demonstrations.The Chinese immigrant community is among Argentina’s most dynamic, accounting for more than 180,000 people in the South American country.