Celebrations vary from culture to culture, but typically on the first day of Lunar New Year people visit the senior members of their extended family. One of the most recognizable celebrations is lion dance troupes, a dramatic tradition meant to usher in the New Year and expel evil spirits.

Lunar New Year Festival helped ring in the Year of the Snake on Saturday at the Fountain Valley Recreation Center.

Now in its 15th year, the festival started with the neighborhood’s Vietnamese population but has spread to include much of the wider San Diego community. The Lunar New Year, sometimes called the Chinese New Year, will be celebrated by billions of people this Wednesday.