Tens of thousands of worshippers and visitors yesterday packed Beijing's Islam-themed Niujie Street to celebrate Eid ul-Fitr, the end of the holy month of Ramadan.

Muslims celebrate Eid ul-Fitr in front of a mosque in Urumqi, capital of Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, yesterday.

To offer enough space for the people who thronged it, traffic control was temporarily implemented along the 670-m-long street, where vendors lined up, shops brimmed over with snacks and drinks, and folk artists from Xinjiang and Ningxia autonomous regions danced in traditional Islamic rhythm.

Ji Yingjun, a little boy in a small red cap, had been gorging kebabs on his father's shoulder. And this father and son were among a crowd of bystanders attracted by four dancers.

Ji, a pupil from Yanjiao of Hebei province, said he enjoyed the celebrations. People also gathered at other places on the street, especially near the Niujie Mosque, the largest and oldest Islamic place of worship in the capital.

"This year the Eid ul-Fitr comes across during the National Day holiday, and right after the successful launch of Shenzhou VII, so we estimated to receive more than 50,000 worshippers and visitors today, compared with around 40,000 in the previous years," said Wei Chunjie, director of the administration committee of the mosque.

Before 9:00 am, the mosque had been fully occupied by people who started to pop up by daybreak, sitting on the ground and waiting with patience for the service scheduled to start at 10:00 am.

Chang Jiang, one of the mosque administration staff, said this year a special area had been designated for women worshippers to offer the prayer.

Ramadan is the ninth month in Islam's lunar calendar, when the first verses of the Quran, Islam's holy book, were believed to have been revealed to the Prophet Muhammad in the 7th century.

In the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, China's westernmost area and home to the country's largest Muslim population, more than 10 million Muslims celebrated the event yesterday.

In Han Tangre Mosque at downtown Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang, hundreds of worshippers flocked into the mosque for the Morning Prayer, which formally started the whole day's celebration.

Soon after the prayer finished around 9:30 am, the square of the mosque turned into a place of joyous celebration. Uygur men, regardless of their age, formed a circle and performed the Daolang Maxi Laifu, a celebratory folk dance of the Xinjiang Uygur people.

"It is similar to Han people's Spring Festival," said Nuer Aili, an ethnic Uygur young man working in Urumqi as a Russian translator.

"On this occasion, Muslim people put on their best clothes and prepare delicious food for the visiting family members and friends", he says.

In Urumqi, the Eid ul-Fitr festival was not only enjoyed by Muslim population; people from all ethnic backgrounds found their own ways to join the celebration. Guo Ping, a retired community worker, sang and danced the Daolang Maxi Laifu in front of the Xinjiang International Grand Bazaar.

"Although I'm from the Han group, I find the Xinjiang ethnic music and dance extraordinarily intriguing, especially the Uygur ones", Guo said.

"I live in the Muslim community, and I find the Uygur people pristine and straight-forward; once you befriend with them, they will be your real friends."

(China Daily October 3, 2008)