MORE THAN ART SHOWS

In an interview with Xinhua, Vapaavuori said the celebration used to take place on only one street but the venue extended to the nearby squares this year. In the past 11 years, a temple fair was held and completed in one evening, but this year's celebration lasted half a month.

An event named "Happy Spring Festival - Beijing Week" took place in Helsinki in late January, focusing on startup competitions, technology seminars and business match-making.

For the first time in 12 years, the issues of business, technology and sports, among others, were put into the Spring Festival basket of Helsinki. "Chinese New Year celebration is getting bigger and bigger in Helsinki," said Vapaavuori.

In the Chinese zodiac system, the period of twelve years concludes a cycle. As the Year of Dog arrives, analysts believe that the Spring Festival, originating from China, has gone beyond borders and to some extent has become a cultural event shared by the world.

Ma Wen, deputy inspector of the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture, said that the celebration of Spring Festival particularly in Finland has developed in a natural way where the local partners play a key role and the event is broadly accepted by Finns.

"Beijing is the only sister city of Helsinki, and Finns regard Chinese people as friends," said Vapaavuori.