Taiwan's New Year celebration

TAIPEI, Taiwan -- Taiwan's leader celebrated the first day of the Chinese Lunar New Year on Saturday by handing out 15,000 red envelopes stuffed with cash to people in his hometown.

President Chen Shui-bian gave away the equivalent of $5.80 in every envelope, for a total of $86,705, in the southern farm village of Kuantien. He ran out of envelopes before he got to the end of a line that stretched about two miles.

It's an annual Lunar New Year tradition in Taiwan for the president to distribute red envelopes, or "hong bao" in Mandarin, to the public.

People traditionally begin lining up at dawn to get an envelope, which they believe brings them good luck.

People of all ages lined up and patiently shuffled past the sheds, machine shops and traditional low-slung farm houses with tile roofs in Kuantien.

On Friday night -- the eve of the Lunar New Year -- families gathered for large dinners, followed by an evening of igniting fireworks.

On Saturday, families went to their local temples, where they lit incense, bowed and prayed to Taoist, Buddhist or folk deities.

On the second day of the Lunar New Year, Taiwanese and other ethnic Chinese families traditionally visit their in-laws.