It was a quiet night as DeepSeek was by far the topic du jour in the region, though Mainland China (closed until next Wednesday), Indonesia (closed until Thursday), Malaysia (closed until Friday), and Taiwan (closed until next Monday) were closed for Chinese New Year while South Korea is closed until Friday for Korean New Year.

This composite image, uploaded on the social media post of South Korean professor Seo Kyoung-duk, shows the social media posts of Real Madrid (left) and Paris Saint-Germain, referring to "Chinese New Year" instead of "Lunar New Year.

In Indonesia, the largest Chinese diaspora community, Lunar New Year festivities included Barongsai performance at Borobudur Temple.

The South Korean won and the Malaysian ringgit fell most among Asian currencies on Friday as investors assessed

Others include Kim Dong-bae, ambassador to Bulgaria; Kim Hyung-tae to Serbia; Kwak Tae-yeol to El Salvador; Park Ki-chang to Ukraine; Kim Choon-goo to Italy; Kang Hyung-shik to Kenya; and Han Byoung-jin to Panama.

Over 800 people from different ethnicities and religions gathered at See Hien Kiong Temple after dark to enjoy lion dances, dragon dances, line dances, wushu performances, and violin music.

Dick's Drive-In is celebrating the chain's 71st anniversary with 19-cent hamburgers and cheeseburgers at all nine of its locations.

Food is also symbolic for the Vietnamese Lunar New Year. In the North, Banh Chung, a sticky rice cake with banana leaves, is typically the most popular dish. In Central Vietnam, the savory Bánh Tét cake with rice and green beans is often used to celebrate the new year. Thịt Kho Tàu – a pork and egg dish – is very popular in South Vietnam.

Parents Diversity Council and the Bedford Free Public Library held a Lunar New Year event on Saturday to celebrate the Year of the Snake.

More than a billion people across the world, from China to the Philippines to diaspora communities in the United States, began celebrating the Lunar New Year on Tuesday with fireworks, family time and feasts. On Wednesday, the first new moon of the Year of the Snake will mark the imminent arrival of spring.

Firecrackers, parades and prayers are marking the start of the Year of the Snake around Asia and farther afield. Wednesday marks the start of the Year of the Snake, one

Firecrackers popped, incense was offered at temples and dancers and drummers paraded Wednesday in Asia and farther afield as millions around the world celebrated the Lunar New Year.