Hello from Amsterdam!

Today, I set out to capture the magic of Lunar New Year! I read about a Lion & Dragon Dance performance starting at Nieuwmarkt at 2 pm on January 29th, 2025, so I grabbed the bus just in time. When I arrived, the dancers had already left Amazing Oriental and were heading to the Fo Guang Shan He Hua Temple for their 3 pm performance.

The temple itself is stunning, a hidden gem in Amsterdam’s Chinatown, free to visit and worth seeing! Though photography inside wasn’t allowed, I waited outside the door.

Then, the moment arrived, the musicians started playing, the beats of the drums echoed, and the Lion Dance began. I knew I had to get to the street and find a place to photograph it after having a clip of the lion dance captured on 2x to the inside of the temple. It was hard to leave the stairs, it was crowded but luckily managed it before the dancers started to go outside.

They danced in front of Nam Kee Amsterdam Take this event into account in the case your trip next year coincides with the Lunar New Year celebration in Amsterdam! The celebration was at Zeedijk, where you can find a vast number of Asian shops.

Would you like to experience this event? I am going to the second date on February 1st and tell you all about it soon.

See you in Amsterdam!

Joanna, your Amsterdam photographer

Vacation photographer and local expert based in Amsterdam