Lions and tigers, no bears - oh my!

The Year of the Tiger starts on 14 February but there are so many events taking place to celebrate the Chinese New Year here at National Museums Liverpool that we've had to spread them over several weekends.

The first major event was the opening of the blockbuster exhibition China through the lens of John Thomson 1868-1872 at Merseyside Maritime Museum, which is the first time that this incredible pioneering collection of photographs has been shown in England after touring China last year. It's a stunning exhibition but don't take my word for it - here's a review from The Times last week - just one of many great write ups that the exhibition has had so far.

To celebrate the opening of the exhibition the Liverpool Hung Gar Kung Fu friendship Association performed lion dances in Merseyside Maritime Museum last weekend. You can see more photos of their performance, which more than 800 visitors came to see, in our Chinese New Year 2010 set on Flickr.

There are lots more free events planned in Merseyside Maritime Museum, the Lady Lever Art Gallery and World Museum, including creative workshops, another oportunity to see the lion dances and a new talk about the 'Blue Flu' - or Blue Funnel Line. Full details are on our Chinese New Year events page.