Chinese New Year

What is the Chinese New Year all about?

The Chinese New Year, or the Spring Festival, is the longest and most important festival in the Chinese Culture. Legend has it that in ancient times, Buddha asked 12 animals to come and meet him on Chinese New Year. He said that the people born in each animals year would have similar qualities to that of that animal. A few of the animals are the pig, rat, and most importantly the dragon. Red is the most symbolic color of the festival because it is said to drive away bad luck. Chinese New Year began on January 23rd this year because that is when the new moon was and ended 15 days later on the day of the full moon. Also, 2012 was the year of the mighty Dragon. This holiday was originally celebrated to honor ancestors and while it still honors past relatives, Chinese New Year is also an important time when families get together and have feasts.

The picture above shows a traditional Chinese Parade through San Francisco. Even in America, there are parades during the Chinese New Year. On this day people were shouting out, "Cong Xi Fa Ca!" meaning "wishing you prosperity!" The Chinese New Year ends with the Latern Festival where millions of lanterns are released into the sky, fireworks are shot off and giant zodiac animals like the chicken are created using laterns. Dragons are a symbol of strength and prosperity to the Chinese so they create giant puppets to honor the dragon. Other important parts of the New Year are gift exchanges in red envelopes, taking a family portrait of all of your relatives, and wearing red clothing. The largest celebrations of the Chinese New Year, other than in China, take place in Malysia, London, Singapore, and San Francisco.

What to do During Chinese New Year:

1) Serve Chinese Dumplings to your family, and hide a coin in one of the dumplings. Whoever gets that dumpling shall have good fortune for the rest of the year

2) Serve oranges and tangerines because they symbolize wealth and good luck

3) Decorate windowpanes and doors with paper cuts

4) Give out money packets in red envelopes

Friday, September 14, 2012