Today is the first day of the Lunar New Year. Lunar New Year is a major holiday in China and Taiwan, and also in countries that have a big Chinese community. It falls on the second new moon after the winter solstice.
The Lunar New Year is also called the Spring Festival. This is because, in China this marks the beginning of Spring, and a new year! This is the most important celebration for families.
Before the new year, households will usually have a Spring Cleaning, where every corner of the household is given a sweep or wipe. It signifies ridding the house of old useless stuff, and negative energies, so that there can be new, better things and positive energies. Baking of cookies and preparing of food is another activity to prepare for the new year. During this period, families, and relatives exchange gifts – good neighbours too. Households will also put up decorations, usually red in colour. Red symbolises prosperity and good luck. And we all would love some of both, won’t we?
Something simple like this.
The highlight of the New Year is the reunion dinner. Chinese from all corners of the world will make their way home to be reunited with the family, and to celebrate the welcoming of the new year. The dinner will be elaborate and sumptuous. Many families have ‘steamboat’ or ‘hot pot’ dinner. This is where you add broth into a hot pot, and you cook your food at the table. A very practical thing. Families can exchange stories and catch up with each other while their food is being cooked, and it also keeps the room and everyone warm. You can spend hours dining and the food will still be warm. And if it isn’t just dip them into the hot pot again and they will be warm in no time.
A steamboat, or hot pot dinner.
On the day itself, children will pay respects to their elders, and the elders will give the children red packets The red packets signify prosperity and good luck for the new year. There will be some cash in red packets. How much is in there is up to the giver.
On this day gambling is allowed. People with play cards, mahjong, or whatever they can think of.
Once upon a time, one hears a lot of firecrackers during the Chinese New Year. Children, especially looked forward to playing with fire crackers. But, firecrackers now are impractical, because people now live in high rise buildings. It is dangerous to be throwing crackers from high buildings, plus which it is not environmentally friendly.
The Chinese New Year officially last for 15 days. However, only the first two days are public holidays – first three in some countries. During this period, relatives will visit, and catch up with each other. There will be plenty of eating, drinking and merry-making.
That is basically all the activities on and before the Lunar New Year. Of course, there are slight variations of them - depending which country you are from.
Each Lunar year is represented by an animal in a twelve years’ cycle. The twelve Chinese Zodiac animals, in order are: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, Pig. Last year, was the Year of the Pig, this year is the Year of the Rat. It is believed that people born in a given year have the personality of that year’s animal.
Here wishing all celebrating the Lunar New Year a happy, healthy and great year in the Year of the Rat!
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