Today (Jan 26 - the second new moon after the Winter Solstice) is the first day in the Lunar New Year - - the day we usher out the year of the Rat and welcome the year of the Ox. This is year 4706 in the Chinese calendar. The color red is very "auspicious" in Hong Kong and so you must have decorations befitting the Chinese New Year in order to get proper good luck for the new year. We found several shops along Queen's Road in Sheung Wan (an older part of town) that were jam packed with Chinese New Year (CNY) stuff.
Traditional favorite items include the things you see in the photo above, hanging charms, decorations that have long strands of fake fire-crackers hanging from them, and lots of red and gold tassels. The fireworks represent real life fireworks which are an important part of the celebration - - the noise frightens scary monsters away.(From http://www.infoplease.com/spot/chinesenewyear1.html:
Fireworks and Family Feasts
At Chinese New Year celebrations people wear red clothes, decorate with poems on red paper, and give children "lucky money" in red envelopes. Red symbolizes fire, which according to legend can drive away bad luck. The fireworks that shower the festivities are rooted in a similar ancient custom. Long ago, people in China lit bamboo stalks, believing that the crackling flames would frighten evil spirits.
Most of the decorations are make of cardboard, paper or fabric. There are tons of plain papers involved, too, but I can't get a straight (English) answer on what these do. I've seen people burn them in small metal pots on the streets - - when they burn, apparently the breezes carry messages up into the sky to the ancestors.
We bought 4 banners to decorate our house with.
Another important way to welcome the new year is to decorate your house with flowers...so I'm all over that one! In Victoria Park, they have a new year festival that has lots of local carnival type junk, but they also have rows and rows of flowers for sale. Jessica and Christina's school took a field trip to the flower markets and I got to come along.
Another important flower type is the small orange trees - mandarins. They are everywhere! But you can't eat the fruit. I think that's what some guy told me when I asked him - couldn't quite understand him. Another important one is a peach blossom tree. You see these quite often around town - we have a nice one in our building. If you walk clock-wise around the tree, you should have romance in the New Year!
This is Christina with her good friend, Jordan, from school.
We bought all sorts of giant flowers! The mums were enormous and dyed neon colors. I concentrated on lillies! Mmmmm, the whole apartment smells wonderful!
Another important part of Chinese New Year is "lai see." This is lucky money that comes in red or gold envelopes. Parents give their children lai see, bosses give their employees lai see, and we also give lai see to the people around our apartment complex (concierge, doorman, cleaning crew) to show them appreciation for the job they do. The more you appreciate someone, the more money you give (although generally not more than $100HKD, which is about $12.50 USD). The bills should be new, as this shows that you took time to make the extra effort to honor this person. Apparently the economic slow down has wrought havoc on the banking system...they were prepared with newly printed sums of years past, but this year everyone only seemed to want the $10HKD and $20HKD notes...not much demand for the $50s/$100s. The envelopes are printed in gold and red colors and given out by every business under the sun. It took us an entire evening to get our envelopes and monies together! We put different amounts in different style envelopes.
Here is a shot of some of the types of envelopes you see, and also the money. We will probably give the woman who helps us with house work the most. We are supposed to have many packets of $10 ($1.25 USD), $20 and $50 bills ready for people we meet on the street who we know, and children as well. We are also expected to give lai see to any adults we know who are not married. Since Mark and I are married and have children, we won't really receive lai see (we're already as lucky as they come :-).
Here's our apartment dining nook all dressed up with our banners and flowers!
A close-up of our flowers. I've never seen such perfect lilies. The whole apartment smells like a dream.More on the year of the Ox...From all the information I've read, if I had to characterize it in just a few words, the year should be patient, dependable, but stubborn (???).
:-)
Happy New Year! Now for you next year's planning - here are a few simple rules to follow:
1) Give your house a thorough cleaning before the new year so you can sweep out the old. But NEVER clean your house on New Year's day, or you may sweep out all the good luck!
2) Make sure to open your windows on New Year's day so the good luck can blow in.
3) A new look (aka hair-do) could be good for a new year, but NEVER get your hair cut on the New Year, or you'll cut off all the good luck.
Kung Hei Fat Choi, ALL!!!
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The year of the Ox: From http://www.123chinesenewyear.com/new-year-of-ox/
Chinese New Year of Ox
Preparations for the Chinese New Year of Ox, 2009 will begin months in advance so that the celebrations be observed in the highest magnitude and splendor. As the different years of the 12 year cycle are characterized by different animals, people born on the different years also feature different traits and characters and most often then not, they are believed to be influenced and inspired by the animals of the particular year they are born in. With this article on Chinese New Year of Ox, 2009 we strive to hold forth the interesting characteristics and features of the Ox and how babies born in this year can be expected to display similar traits.
All years ending in an odd number are Yin and the ones with an even number ending are considered to be the Yang forms according to the Chinese methods of the calender cycle. Therefore the Ox year 2009 will have Yin forms along with the character of the Ox. Ox characterizes a dependable, patient, methodical and calm, hardworking, materialistic as well as an ambitious character. The Ox years so far have been 1901, 1913, 1925, 1937, 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, 1997 and now 2009 followed by 2021 (according to the 12 year cycle).
People born in the Chinese New Year of Ox, 2009 will preponderantly have the below mentioned traits in their character: Leadership qualities, dependable, great organizers, loyal, patient as well as strong and responsible. They are also some of the best people one can have as colleagues in the work place as they are believed to posses strong work ethics and display their creative side as well, especially when it comes to decorating their home.
Since the people born in the Ox year are also trusted to be reliable and logical, people generally turn towards them for suggestions and guidance. Their honesty and eye for details also helps them to prove their worth both in the workplace as well as in their personal lives.
However there are a few negative traits associated with the character of the Ox that also is reflected through the people born in the ox years. Attributes like being narrow minded, stubborn, with low public relations skills and also very far from being emotional are generally associated with people born in this year.
With these and many more fascinating elements, Chinese New Year of Ox, 2009 is just about to arrive. So get set to welcome the year and have a very prosperous New Year ahead.
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