All-day parties and a parade today help usher in the Year of the Ox, which officially begins Monday.

The Night in Chinatown Festival, presented by the Chinatown Merchants Association, runs from 9 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. on Maunakea Street. Two stages feature martial arts, cultural demonstrations and Chinese lion and dragon dance.

The Night in Chinatown parade, with its 150-foot dragon, starts at 4 p.m. on Hotel Street at the state Capitol, ending at Maunakea.

The Chinatown Open House, presented by the Chinese Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. at the Chinese Cultural Plaza, features ethnic food, dance, arts, crafts, dragon and other cultural dances and martial arts performances. It's the place to go if you're craving jai, gin doi, gau or jook, or if you're looking for a lion dance for blessings in the new year.