悉尼已经为中国龙年做好准备

The forthcoming 17-day celebration of the Chinese Lunar New Year in the largest city Down Under will not only mark the Year of Dragon but also feature Komodo dragons and giant pandas.

Clover Moore, Sydney's mayor, has launched the 2012 festival with event supporter Taronga Zoo and one of its permanent residents, a giant Komodo dragon.

"What the Chinese New Year does is celebrate traditional Chinese culture and, of course, cutting-edge arts and business events. We have some significant business forums. I think a very important part of our parade is the 'Twilight Parade' with acrobats, singers, dancers, community groups and live music that will be held on Sunday, the 29th of January."

Moore says the Chinese partner city of this year's festival is Chengdu in Sichuan Province, an area in southwest China famous for its deliciously spicy food and home of the giant panda.

She also says the celebration has already become a symbol of Sydney, a city that has incorporated different cultures.

"I think we all do (celebrations). That's the wonderful thing about a country like Australia with its various communities of different culture backgrounds. And the Chinese community is incredibly important to us. Ten percent of people living in Sydney (have a) Chinese background. Mandarin and Cantonese are the two languages most (frequently) spoken after English in Australian households."

The mayor says the Year of the Dragon is also an opportunity to raise awareness about the plight of the endangered Komodo dragon, a rare species of lizard. She joked about the Komodo dragon and the dragon in the Chinese culture having similar origins.

"Oh, their relationship is they are all part of the same family. 2012 is the Year of the Dragon, particularly symbolizing strength, power and ambition, doesn't it? I have chosen the Komodo dragon. There are only 3,000 adults in the world now, and we want to make sure they will continue."

The eye-catching celebration will start on January 20th, two days before the Chinese New Year. The highlight of the event will be the Twilight Parade, a dazzling performance by nearly 3,000 people.

For CRI, I'm Chen Xi.