February 12, 2021
Chinese New Year is the biggest and most spectacular celebration here in Hong Kong and other Chinese countries. It officially runs in three days, and sometimes four if the holiday coincides with Sunday, and unofficially lasts up to two weeks. It is celebrated according to the Chinese calendar that usually falls in January or February. This year, it falls on February 12-15, and since the 3rd day falls on Sunday, the holiday is extended to Monday. So basically, I have a four days holiday this week that will start today, a long weekend for me and other workers here in Hong Kong.
And in different parts of the world, Chinese communities come alive with color, fragrance, music, and celebrations and a time for immense festivities, family gatherings, temple rituals, fortune-telling, and the exchanging of gifts. It is also the time for giving 'lai si' or red pocket to family members and friends, this is the most exciting part for me and the kids.
Few weeks before the big celebration, people are already busy with the preparation, cleaning their houses, decorating Chinese lanterns, red papers, flowers, and other displays, and of course, the food preparation. These became their tradition and practice annually just like any other country.
Yesterday, the day before the Lunar New Year, I strolled in the market to buy some stuff and foods. The market was so crowded in all areas, vegetable and flower area, meat area and seafood area, and the poultry products area. What I like about the people here is, despite the crowd in the market, no one dares to pickpocket or steal anything from the stalls. Buyers can just grab what they want to buy and give the payment to the store owners. People are disciplined and don't take advantage of the crowd.
The flower market was also crowded with different kinds of flowers. Chinese likes decorating their houses with different flowers as it plays a huge role in the celebration of Chinese New Year. Fruits such as mandarins, tangerines, and pomelos are also in demand. And do you know that flowers and fruits displayed during Chinese New Year have symbolic meaning? That is what I have learned in my more than three years of living here. Just like for example,
Moth Orchid
This flower is in-demand during Chinese New Year and we even have it at home. They said that this flower symbolizes fertility, abundance, refinement, luxury, and innocence. Just make sure to roam around the flower market first before you decide to buy one as some stores offer an expensive price for this orchid.
Peach Blossoms
This is the second in-demand flower during Chinese New Year. During my first New Year experience here, I thought it is a cherry blossom flower just like the one from Japan. They said that this flower symbolizes romance, prosperity, and growth. You can simply place it on a big vase with water, and you will witness it blooms over time, and if planted on a pot with soil, this can even grow to a mighty size just like those at the markets. This flower is suitable for a single person who needs some love. You might be lucky once you set up some at home.
Lucky Bamboo
This plant is particularly popular during Chinese New Year and as the name suggests, it attracts all the good luck you need. So this is always present at home every Chinese New Year and even on regular days. The bamboo stalks are twisted and curled into interesting shapes and easy to take care of. You don't need some gardening skills to have this at home. You don't even need to water this plant every day. Just one stalk of this will make you lucky.
Mandarins and Tangerines
In our country, we are eating these fruits during New Year, but here in Hong Kong and other Chinese countries, mandarins and tangerines are just for display. I am not sure though if other people are eating their displayed mandarins and tangerines during Chinese New Year. These fruits are everywhere even on regular days. They are placed near doorways because as they have said, it will bring good luck and fortune when you are stepping into your home or workplace.
Pomelos
This fruit is always present on the table during the Chinese New Year. They said that this also brings good luck and symbolizes family unity. This comes into season before CNY and you will see them in ripe and unripe varieties.
People are also decorating their displayed flowers and other plants with ribbon and other Chinese decorations. And at home, every door has displayed door couplets or CNY red papers to make best wishes for the coming year.
©image source
The houses and establishments are decorated with the color red and lucky images. You will see red lanterns hang on the offices, doors, and even on trees as they believed that it will drive off bad luck.
The same with other countries, Chinese have beliefs as well during Chinese New Year. And as a worker in this country with full of beliefs, we also need to follow their beliefs as a respect to them. For example these beliefs I have learned from my boss.
You cannot wear clothes or give presents in black or white as they are often used during funerals so this is unlucky for them during CNY. The red color is their lucky color which is said to be a fortune color.
Avoid displaying things or giving gifts in a set of 4. They said this sounds like 'death'.
The fruit pears are also avoided during CNY because in Chinese, 'pears' sounds like 'parting or leaving'.
You cannot give a clock or a watch as a present as it is bad luck for them. In Chinese, 'giving a clock' sounds like 'attending a funeral ritual'.
You cannot give a mirror as a present as it attracts ghosts. Aside from it, mirrors are easily broken too which is a bad omen.
You cannot wash or cut your hair on the first day of CNY because they said it will wash your fortune away. The Chinese character of 'hair' is the same first character in the word 'prosper'. So they said that washing your hair is washing your fortune away.
And many more beliefs.
And of course, the same with other countries, they also have traditional foods that are lucky to serve every CNY.
Eating fish increases prosperity. In Chinese, the word 'fish' sounds like 'surplus' and the Chinese always have a surplus at the end of the year because they believe that they can have more in the next year.
Eating dumplings is lucky during CNY as it will bring you wealth. And once you serve it on the table, it should be arranged in circles so life will go round in the circles and not going everywhere.
Glutinous rice cake and turnip cake are my favorite food during CNY. They said that the Chinese characters of 'glutinous rice cake' sounds like 'getting higher year-on- by year'. So it's like it will bring you a higher income or position. And the turnip cake is associated with the phrase 'good luck'.
Sweet rice balls are another favorite food of mine during CNY. It is not only yummy but also symbolizes family togetherness. In Chinese, the pronunciation of 'round shape' (tangyuan) is associated with reunion and being together.
Longevity noodles are always part of the dishes on the table because it symbolizes a wish for longevity.
Eating tangerines, mandarins, and pomelos as I have mentioned above will bring good luck and fortune. The Chinese name of 'orange' sounds like 'success' and one way of writing 'tangerine' contains the Chinese character for 'luck'. And the Chinese character for 'pomelo' sounds like 'to have' and exactly like 'again'. So the more you eat pomelo, the more wealth it will bring.
The celebration this year may be different because of the pandemic. But people still find ways to reach out to their family relatives and celebrate CNY together in another way. For example,
Instead of going house to house, they have gatherings virtually. But some families still visited their relatives during CNY. And instead of having gatherings in restaurants, they just cook and celebrate at home.
The giving of lai si or red pockets can also be done digitally to avoid contacts with different people.
Celebrating Chinese New Year is the best experience I had here in Hong Kong as well as receiving red pockets. For other workers, they considered the money they received from red pockets as their annual bonus. It is also a good time to visit the Chinese temples to witness their rituals during CNY.
Here in Hong Kong, they have this wishing tree located near the Tin Hau temple. During CNY, people go there and write their name, date of birth, and wishes on yellow paper then throw their wishes to the tree. This is what I want to do the next day.
It is so fun to celebrate a different New Year in a different place and something that you can treasure in your memory. This year will be my last CNY here in Hong Kong as my contract will end in September. So I want to make this CNY memorable.
Thanks for reading and Kung Hei Fat Chui 😊
👍👍