BEIJING, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- As a six-year-old girl drew a flying dove of peace on her painting plate under the national flagon Tian'anmen Square, the second chapter of a grand gala in Beijing Thursday evening marking the 60th founding anniversary of New China unfolded.
The chapter is designed as an ode to the motherland of the Chinese and is considered the most romantic episode themed with peace and wishes for a bright future. It opened to the tune played by pianist Lang Lang and against the background of a gigantic "light cube".
More than 4,000 performers manipulated computer-controlled light-emitting diode (LED) electronic trees to form a "light cube".
The light cube displayed seven different colors and served as a background for the celebration most of the time.
The performers alternatively held up 8,056 properties in the shape of flying dove.
The "light cube" served as a "paper" with the national flag in the center designed as the "painting brush."
A gigantic children's painting was formed after the little girl, whose birthday coincides with the National Day, let go her painting plate stringed to a heart-shaped balloon and subsequently fireworks flashed through the night.
Chinese leaders join crowd at National Day gala
BEIJING, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- President Hu Jintao and other Chinese leaders joined tens of thousands of people Thursday evening at a grand gala celebrating New China's 60th birthday.
Amid applause, cheers and fireworks, they walked into the joyous crowd after watching the evening gala that turned Tian'anmen Square a sea of festivity. Full story
Fireworks portrays Qinghai-Tibet Railway, Shenzhou space shuttle
BEIJING, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- Amid applauses and excited exclamations from the audience, a firework drawing portraying a train running on the Qinghai-Tibet Railway lighted the Tian'anmen Square and dazzled all on the scene.
The firework drawing was displayed on a screen-like installation on the Square. Gunpowder was fixed on thousands of spots on the screen and were lighted in a preset order to "draw" pictures. Full storyFireworks dragons at National Day evening gala
BEIJING, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- Golden dragons formed by fireworks rose above the Tian'anmen Square about half an hour after the National Day evening gala began Thursday in Beijing.
The vivid fireworks dragons flew over about 60,000 people cheering and dancing on the square. Full story
Ethnic unity highlighted at China's National Day evening gala
BEIJING, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- Ethnic unity became a major theme of a grand gala in Beijing Thursday evening marking the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China.
Dressed in traditional festive costumes of different ethnic groups, tens of thousands of performers danced joyously to the rhythm of famous folk songs of different ethnic groups on Tian'anmen Square in downtown Beijing.Full story
National Day evening gala warms up with song "I Love China"
BEIJING, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- The grand National Day evening gala on Tian'anmen Square warmed up when about 60,000 people began dancing to the popular song "I Love China" Thursday evening.
At the center of the square, about 4,000 performers in a huge formation waved large peony bouquets and formed Chinese knots. When music changed, flowers and knots were suddenly replaced by an ocean of red ribbons. Full story
Civilian pageant highlights China's 60-year rise to world stage
BEIJING, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- Civilian formations marched in Tian'anmen Square as another centerpiece of the National Day fete marking the 60th birthday of the People's Republic of China.
Leading the mass pageant was the formation presenting the national flag and national emblem. A total of 1,949 young men held up and escorted the flag, the largest-yet displayed during China's national day parades in Tian'anmen. The flag weighs about 150 kilograms and covers nearly 600 square meters, bigger than a basketball court. Full story
Civilian parade begins on Tian'anmen Square
BEIJING, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- Civilian paraders marched through Tian'anmen Square Thursday morning as another centerpiece of the National Day fete to mark the 60th anniversary of the People's Republic of China.
Leading the mass pageant was the formations presenting the national flag and national emblem. Full story
Chinese wish for national unity, reunification in festive parade
BEIJING, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- Chinese people expressed their desire for national unity and reunification Thursday morning in a mass procession celebrating the 60th founding anniversary of the People's Republic of China.
Following a grand military parade, the mass procession, in 35 formations with different themes, began at around 11:20 a.m. in front of the famous Tian'anmen Rostrum at the heart of Beijing. Full story
Final children parade looks into better future
BEIJING, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- A parade of about 5,000 children with colored balloons and wreaths in hand walked by Tian'anmen Rostrum in central Beijing Thursday, along with a float in the shape of a giant basket filled with flowers, in celebration of the60th founding anniversary of New China.
The square formation called "Tomorrow will be better" was the largest and final one in the mass pageant. The float named "Flourishing flowers" was also the final of 60 running through the mass pageant. Full story
Foreigners take part in China's National Day parade
BEIJING, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- China, for the first time, had a formation composed of foreigners for its National Day celebration parade since the founding of New China in 1949, a sign of its increased openness to the outside world.
A total of 181 foreigners from 53 countries participated in the parade. Dozens of foreigners wore Chinese-style dresses or their national costumes on the float themed "One World", and others marched in T-shirts with "I love China" on them and waving China's national flags. Full story
Dazzling Taiwan float joins "Splendid China" formation
BEIJING, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- Applause and cheers engulfed Tian'anmen Square Thursday morning when a float featuring the scale model of Taiwan's landmark 101 Tower and colorful local fruits appeared at the celebrations of New China's 60th founding anniversary.
The dazzling float of the "Treasure Island" was the last one of the "Splendid China" formation to pull into the square at the heart of Beijing, following 33 others representing China's 31 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities, and Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions. Full story
Overseas Chinese show love of China
BEIJING, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- Overseas Chinese attended the parade on Thursday morning for China's 60th National Day celebration to show their attachment to the country where they were originated from.
The formations, passing Tian'anmen Square, featured two huge red Chinese knots, decorative handicraft which began as a form of art in the Tang and Song dynasties in China. The handicraft is normally used to convey "unity" and "harmony". Full story
Float demonstrates Chinese cultural prosperity
BEIJING, Oct.1 (Xinhua) -- A float with a shining fan-shaped picture of traditional Peking opera performer on a civilian parade formation showcased Chinese cultural prosperity since the founding of the People's Republic of China six decades ago.
Paraders dressed in long-sleeved shirts and white pants marched past the Tian'anmen Rostrum. A banner on the float reads "promoting the socialist cultural development and prosperity". Full story
Float depicts China's rural transformation at National Day parade
BEIJING, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- Jubilant Chinese farmers performed folk dance on a float moving past Tian'anmen Square Thursday morning, revealing their rejoice at New China's grandest National Day parade.
With a theme of "Constructing the socialist new countryside", the float was surrounded by farmer representatives wearing colorful folk clothes and waving wheatears. Full story
Special Report: 60th Anniversary of Founding of PRC
