Couplets, hanging lanterns, preparing New Year goods ... so far so good, the usual preoccupations for this time of year but this is different. Spring Festival meets the Winter Olympics and the Chinese Lunar New Year gives this sporting event greater significance. The festive celebration will see the final countdown to the Beijing Winter Olympics.

At landmarks along Chang'an Street, including Tian'anmen Square, 10 festive Winter Olympics-themed flower beds have appeared one after another, adding a dash of color to the streets of Beijing in winter. The Beijing Landscaping Bureau says this is the first time Beijing has arranged garden flower beds in winter.