Chinese New Year of the Horse

Are you always rushing around to get things done quickly? Are you flexible but stubborn? Is your lucky number 2,3 or 7? Is your colour brown and flower jasmine? You are typical of people born in the year of the Horse which starts on the 31st January this year and is celebrated for two weeks. The New Year is the most important part of the Chinese calendar and is called the “Spring Festival”.

While in the western world we celebrate Christmas mainly by eating, in China the meaning of the celebration of New Year is slightly different. They celebrate good luck and good health and as such the food on the table is different.  The Chinese eat long noodles for longevity in the coming year, dumplings typically wrapped in the shape of an ancient boat-shaped coin, and for good luck the food on the table should be red as it scares away evil spirits, so red spices are added to the food.

Preparations for the Spring Festival start seven days before the New Year when the house is cleaned from top to bottom in order to sweep away any bad luck accumulated in the past year.  Then the clean house is decorated with red lanterns, lots of flowers, especially lotus as it’s considered the flower of rebirth. Fruit bowls are dotted around the house, but there must be an even number for luck. When visiting relatives or friends you give red envelopes with money inside to encourage saving in the coming year.

It’s not a good idea to try to travel around China during the Spring Festival, it’s difficult to get seats on trains as it seems as if the whole country is on the move back home to celebrate with the family. But if you are planning a visit to China over the coming months, do check www.ReadyClickAndGo.com for a great range of private day trips and sightseeing tours in China!

Happy Chinese New Year of the Horse!

 Gong Hei Fat Choi!

HAPPY NEW YEAR OF THE SNAKE!

Last week I received an email with the subject line Happy New Year, but under strict instructions to delete any suspicious email I hesitated for a few seconds then my cautious mind and fat finger clicked on the mouse and I opened it. A smiling snake, the brightest colour I have ever seen, jumped onto my screen and I could just see my P45 in my hand after our IT jerk filed another complaint about my misuse of company property.

After few scrolls down I read “Gong Xi Fa Cai from George.”

After so much preparation for the 25^th December and New Year we travelled to a different part of the world to celebrate another Christmas on the 7^th January and another New Year on the 14^th January. In between we squeezed one belated 80^th birthday and a post-Christmas engagement party.  And when we were was just about to settle down for a quiet January I get a fancy red snake smiling at me so friendly it reminded me that tomorrow is Chinese New Year’s Eve and the start of the Year of the Snake.

Personally I am scared of snakes (I am expecting lots of Fjord’s comments) even though I was born in another year of the snake. According to the Chinese Horoscope people born in the year of the snake are intuitive, introspective and basically all the traits my husband disliked.

I totally agree with Chinese wisdom which says a Snake in the house is a good sign because it means your family will not starve.  My husband’s Buddha Belly is proof of that.

Snakes’ favourite colour is red and I do love red. I wouldn’t agree on the typical snake choice of jewel- topaz. I prefer a bit of diamond, nicely polished.  The biggest hobby of the typical snake is touring and photography which are definitely my hobbies too. And according to Chinese astrology when Snakes go on holiday, they really go on holiday. I am sure every hard working Snake would agree with me that when you are on holiday there is no money to be spared. And I am sure my bank manager would agree!

A Snake hates being interrupted and I am sure my mother-in-law could vouch for the truth of that but that could just be a mother-in-law thing and nothing to do with me being a Snake.

A Snake’s mortal enemy is a pig and I do love a good pork chop with some apple sauce and nice roast potatoes. Not keen on greenery.

We Snakes get easily stressed and when stressed we hisssss….I do…Recently a lot….

This weekend I am celebrating the Chinese New Year of the Snake. I had to wait for it for 12 years to come around again and I am going to celebrate it with a vengeance.

To all of you out there, Snake, Pig, Horse and the rest of the Chinese Zodiac Kingdom Gong Xi Fa Cai!

Chinese New Year in London




  We went through Christmas here, then New Year here and there with a time difference of one hour, then Christmas there, the one called Orthodox, and now to round the celebrations off we will finish it with Chinese New Year, here in the UK. If you can’t celebrate it in China the best place to experience Chinese New Year is in London and I do apologise to all people in Singapore, Toronto, Sydney who claim their celebration of Chinese New Year is the best. It is not!

My friend, Jenny Chen, a girl from Beijing, is excited as she is flying home on Friday to spend the holidays with her elderly parents who she hasn’t seen for the last two years. She is in a shopping mood and austerity measures brought on by Mr Osborne don’t apply during Chinese New Year. And why should they? I never thought about spending less on my parents when I was getting them a present for Christmas. And with my background they get two presents for the two Christmasses as well! Jenny’s credit card is redder then the lantern in our office that she put up to mark her contribution to the celebration of the Chinese New Year in London. She is sorry that she is not going to be here but also happy at the prospect of seeing her parents.

This year celebrations in London are the biggest since they began in London. Apart from celebrations at Trafalgar and Leicester Squares, where colorful Chinese dragons, lions and acrobats will dance followed by loud music, you can mark the Chinese New Year at different establishments around London.

The Victoria and Albert Museum set the exhibition of Imperial Chinese Robes to coincide with Chinese New Year in London. Among the many garments on show are gowns designed for everyday life as well as rituals, banquets, travelling, hunting and official royal visits. The Imperial Chinese Robes exhibition takes place from 10am – 6pm, Tuesday 7th December 2010 – Sunday 27th February 2011 at Victoria and Albert Museum. Tickets are £5.00 or £3.00 concessions. For more information please click here.

You can celebrate Chinese New Year at the National Maritime Museum with a spectacular evening of stargazing which takes place from 5.25pm, on Saturday 12th February 2011. Tickets cost £16.00 per person. For more information and to book tickets, click on the link below. For more information please click here.

The Wallace Collection contributed to the celebration of the Chinese New Year by arranging a special silk painting workshop hosted by artist Caroline Dorset.

The silk painting workshop for Chinese New Year at the Wallace Collection runs from 11am – 4pm, Saturday 5th February 2011. Tickets cost £25.00. For more information and to book tickets, call the gallery on 0207 563 9500 0207 563 9500. Fo rmore information please click here.

Find out more about Chinese culture through arts and craft activities as part of the Chinese New Year at the Museum in Docklands celebrations which will take place on the 5th and 6th February 2011. For daily activities please click here. The Grand finale to end the Chinese New Year London celebrations will take place at Leicester Square with a huge (and free!) fireworks display.

Gong Xi Fa Cai

恭禧發財

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