Chinese New Year Eve 2008

This year’s Chinese New Year was interestingly quieter than last year’s. I reckon, as the years go by, & as tradition is overtaken by commercialism, Chinese New Year will just be another time for a family reunion & more food.

The true meaning & warmth of the festival has been diluted with the interest of cash in the red packets received & the thought of banking out cash to give out to the children & those who are not married. *sigh* At times I wish that the festival will be celebrated with simplicity & excitement, rather than its current commercialized meaning.

My family still holds the Chinese New Year tradition quite strongly. Each year, all members of the family will gather at my grandpa’s house on Chinese New Year Eve for the reunion dinner (‘tuen nin fan’ in Cantonese). Without fail, there will be at least 8 dishes on the table, & many of which are ‘traditionally’ served only on the festival’s eve. This year, we had 10 dishes served (including ‘yee sang’ & soup)! *yum yum*

Yee Sang (Chinese 'salad')

Tossing the Yee Sang while saying well wishes is a tradition & culture of the Chinese

CNY Eve's dinner spread!! - chicken, prawns, veggie, duck, fish, etc...
Dessert- durian tarts (round ones) & rice flour pastry with lotus paste (carrot shapes)

Such dinners are surely something not to be missed. Although I didn’t really feel the atmosphere of Chinese New Year even on the week of the festival itself, coming back to the house for the reunion sure made an impact & gave me the much needed excitement for the season :)

- Ruth