Hello
Panda Festival
waves
to Citi Field
this winter
JANUARY 2 0 2 0 I BOROMAG.COM 51
Photos: Yelena Dzhanova/BORO
Photos courtesy of Festival Media Group
One of the brightest festivals in the
city will keep you warm at Citi
Field this winter.
The city’s inaugural Hello Panda Festival,
which landed in Queens in early December,
will be sticking around through Jan. 26.
More than 120 massively illuminated and
handcrafted lanterns are on display, and
guests can enjoy great food provided by 30
magnificent vendors at the festival organized
by CPAA North America and The World’s Fare.
The displays feature more than 300,000
brightly colored LED lights and several interactive
elements. Visitors can explore six different
lantern theme parks, each of which deliver
distinct, immersive experiences.
The never-before-seen exhibits will be
spread throughout the festival grounds:
Dream World, Holiday Wonderland, Discovery
Zone, Interactive Music Zoe, Sports World
and Community Interactive Zone.
Display highlights include the world’s tallest
Christmas tree lantern, life-sized dinosaurs
and safari animals, a huge fairytale castle and
a 98-foot-long light tunnel.
“Hello Panda’s mission is to bring the epic
scope and scale of China’s best and brightest
lantern festivals to North America,” said
Winston Wang, general manager of CPAA
North America. “We want to transport visitors
into a magical world filled with sights
and sounds they’ve never experienced or
even imagined."
The World Fare, which has delighted tens of
thousands of visitors to Citi Field the past two
springs, is providing not just great food vendors,
but also live performances, modern art
exhibits, a holiday market and traditional crafts
across six giant heated tent areas.
This is the first time that Hello Panda is coming
to New York City, a feat that brings pride to
the organizers.
“We are thrilled to be a part of The Hello
Panda Festival, which is No. 1 winter destination
in Queens and throughout New York
City,” said Elizabeth Aloni, president of The
World’s Fare. The World’s Fare has a fantastic
lineup of the best international food vendors
from bao to baked goods plus a full bar serving
seasonal cocktails, beer and wine.
So of course, the most delicious parts of
Hello Panda will be handled by many of the
city’s well-known food vendors: Bolivian Llama
Party, Brooklyn Dumpling, C-Bao Ca’Pisci,
Cambodia Now, Chef Jimmy Creole Vicious
Cycle, Chori & Chimi, Dilena’s Dolcini, Don
Ceviche, Dough Donuts, Down East Lobstah,
Empanada Papa, Four The Hard Way Jianbing
Company and Joey Bats Café.
Also, Knot Of This World, La Braza NYC,
Made From Scratch, NYC Mac Truck, Pete’s
Hot Cider & Tea, Pickle Me Pete, Shaking
Crab, Snow Show Flushing, Spoonable
Spirits, T-Swirl Crepes, The Wasted Baker,
ToastieLand, What’s The Dillaz, Wings Lovers
and Zonarica Churros will be cooking
up during the festival.
Meanwhile, some of those cultural points
that the World’s Fare President Joshua
Schneps referenced will be done by the
way of nightly music from local and international
acts from different genres including
dance, Latin, pop and hip-hop, along
with festive artwork.
Hello Panda is open seven days a week from
5 to 10 p.m. until Jan. 26, 2020.
Ticket prices range from $22 to $28
plus tax and service fees. For more information,
visit www.hellopandafest.com
or follow @hellopandafest on Instagram,
Twitter and Facebook.
BY ALEX MITCHELL
EXPLORE YOUR BORO
/www.hellopandafest.com
/BOROMAG.COM
/www.hellopandafest.com
