Year of the Horse

  Here in Singapore, we celebrate Chinese New Year every year. CNY is the most festive, most celebrated festival here. Various decorations are put up, new clothes are bought, refrigerators are stuffed with ingredients for steamboat, tables are crammed with snacks, all these are in preparation for the New Year. During CNY, we would visit our relatives' house to wish them a good year ahead, we would eat sumptuous reunion dinners and most importantly (for children like us), we get red packets from adults to wish us 快高长大，学业进步 etc.
  There are different expectations and feelings for CNY for everyone. So, let us tell you how we feel, what we thought, and what we experienced during CNY, with a colour, symbol and image!


WANG XUCHEN
  For me, nothing says "HAPPY NEW YEAR!" more than the colour GOLD! Gold is the colour of money, which is what's most enjoyable for me during CNY, getting lots of red packets with stacks of notes! ;) of course, I'm not as money-faced as it seemed. I could use these money I get from CNY to buy stationary and books for school, and maybe some treats for myself like a good meal with friend or some cool stuff that I've always wanted, not gonna take a cent from my parents for that, that's for sure (not counting the red packet they gave me :v)

  A symbol to explain my thought for CNY would be... 
THIS!---> $
same reason as above, no need to explain ;)

When you think of Chinese New Year, you think of... FOOD! Seriously, what's a good New Year without good food? The best CNY would be one when I can stuff myself to death with delicious snacks and treats, and also enjoy many many steamboats with for reunion dinner, served hot and fresh XD











(image from Google, mine's not so epic ;__;)





IRIS
  When i think of Chinese New year, since I am not a Chinese, I would think of white. It was because I just...feel blank when i think of it, though the sound of Ang Pao sounds awesome. hehe $$$$

  However, My country have a festival similar to Chinese News year s well! It happens during April 12-15, and is known as the Water Festival. When i think of this festival, I think of yellow. It is the time of the year where the leaves of most trees have dried and curled up,except one type of tree, that blooms yellow flowers.

  It is a festival just like Chinese News Year as families gather during this times of the year. People of all ages would get ready water by their side. They believe that during this 3-4 days, if you get "watered", you are purified of your past bad doings, but this does not mean that these bad doings would be forgotten.

  During this time, people would go to temples and such, to pray for their good health ahead, and also wishes luck for their family. If we meet these types of people that are going to the temples, we do not usually spray them water as they will get wet and they would end up praying in the soaked clothes.

  I wish i could tell you more and show you more pictures but this time of the year, I am having school, so i do not have the chance to go back. You can say i have not been purified for at least 7 years. LOL. However, i could still remember alll those fun i had. :) During this time, all of my family would go to the country side to stay with my maternal grandparents, and since my mother's family is pretty big, you could say i had lots of cousins, especially boys, to fool around and hang around with. For me, our relationships between my cousins and I are more like brothers and sisters. Even if i had not meet them for a long time, we could just start the conversation and talk about everything. Facebook and such made it even better as now, i was able to communicate with them even from Singapore. I really miss them. :'( Just in case some of you are wondering...... they are hot! hehe. but nah. They are my bros and sis.

  There was also one time when I was sick when i was young during that time, thus not being able to meet my cousins. That day, after the appointment with the doctor, we were going back home when suddenly, a person stepped in front of the car. Then he poured cold icy water on me. Some people use ice water instead of normal tap water. It was really freezing cold. However, the miracle that happened was, if sick people was poured with cold water,they would get even sicker, but the next day, i recovered. Another mystery about this festival is that a person could stay all wet and soaked throughout the whole 3 days but none of them would get sick. MIRACLES IN APRIL. KEKEKE. Thus, when i first came Singapore and heard that you can't play under the rain and such, i was stunned as i am usually among those that stays soaked for along time. If i could not spray anyone water, i would be spraying myself. ._. I realized how forever alone i was. LOL.
one picture that reminds me a lot of this festival is:

  This is the Golden Paduak flower that only blossom around the time of April. It is also the main symbol of this water festival. I'm not sure if this flower could be found in Singapore. In my country, there are tons of those trees, thus when they blossom, the whole street would look as if a yellow flower photo filter has been used. Imagine a road with Cherry Blossom trees at the sides just that instead of Cherry Blossom, it is Golden Paduak.

  This water festival is different yet same as Chinese News Year. Both have their different type of food,both shows the reunion of families, though there is a big big big big difference. Water Festival does not involve Ang Pao while the Chinese New Year does.Chinese New Year does not involve splashing big pails of water on each other. XD


LING BO
  New year... New year... food.. food..calories..calories..  LOL. 
  This is the case for most of the people but, when we think about Chinese New Year, the first thing that pops up into our mind will be food and Ang Pao, also known as 红包 ( DUH XD )
That applies to me too :>
  During the period of Chinese New Year, I've had reunion dinner, of course, visited relatives and ate a lot. Oh by the way, did you know that the pineapple tarts have really high calories? /freaks out/ When the word "calories" is mentioned to my best friends ( the people in this blog xD ), the first person they would think of is... ME! Should I be happy or sad? Lmao. Yesh, I think a lot about calories and stuff. ( Am I a health freak now? :o ) Alright so, back to the topic of pineapple tarts containing high calories... I'm sure you guys find pineapple tarts delicious don't you? I mean, just look at it ; u ;

                                                               ( picture is not mine )

  Even the picture is so temping~ :3
  I myself personally love eating pineapple tarts and can actually finish a whole box of it within a day! OOPS xP
However, after finding out the shocking truth about pineapple tarts, I have decided to cut down on the number of pineapple tarts I've been taking in </3
                OH MY BELOVED PINEAPPLE TARTS ;A;
  So, what is so terrifying about pineapple tarts?
  Well... 1 tiny little pineapple tart might seem really harmless, taking 1 small little pineapple tart may seem harmless. BUT, if you take 3 pieces of pineapple tarts, THAT makes a great difference. Think about it, 3 pieces doesn't seem like a lot, does it? But the thing is, 3 pineapple tarts actually contain calories estimated to be 246! You might be wondering, how much exactly is that equivalent to? Hmm... 1 cup (195g) of brown. long-grain, cooked rice contains 216 calories!

  HAH. See the thing there? You eat 3 pineapple tarts during dinner and say bye bye to your bowl of rice. :<

  Another Chinese New Year must-have is definitely the irresistible Bak Kwa, also known as 肉干 in Chinese. I'm sure many of you find the taste of Bak Kwa so good that you just can't stop eating it right?

                                                                   (picture isn't mine)

 Well, like the pineapple tarts, they contain high calories too! 1 slice of pork Bak Kwa contains an estimated amount of 370 calories. T.T
  1.5 bowls of rice = 1 Bak Kwa.
  z z z z z z z z
  I ended up not eating many Bak Kwas this New Year... Chinese New Year is really a time for the Chinese to celebrate and eat a lot of Chinese New year goodies, but, eat everything in moderation and take care of your health! ^^

  On Chinese New Year's eve I went over to my cousin's house. Our age gap was quite big ( I have no idea why either ) and she's more than 10 years older than me. :3 hehe.
Besides the fact that it's Chinese New Year's eve, another great thing was that she was pregnant and giving birth really soon! I'm going to be an aunt soon. xD

  When I stepped into the house, I could feel a sense of belonging and warmth. Getting together with my family and spending time with them is a really great feeling. Moreover, it's New Year's eve. That adds on to the joy. The house was beautifully decorated by New Year decorations like

- 春联
- 福s
- 红包
and many more :>

  We had Lo Hei ( 鱼生) that night, kekeke. Although it has lots of calories too xD
#yolo. Everyone get fat together LOL.

                                                                     (picture is not mine)


  In a nutshell, I've really had lots of fun and made lots of wonderful memories this New Year. I hope 2014 will be a really wonderful and memorable year! ^^



LOO YAN HUI

  Whenever i think of Chinese New Year, i think of Red. Why red? Red stands for Happiness, red stands for Love, Red stands for Care, Red is Blood , Red is Fire, Red is a strong Feeling. Then you might ask again, Why happiness?Why Love? Why care? Why blood? Why fire? Why strong feeling? Let me tell you Why. RED is when we we visit and reunite with our relatives(BLOOD). Thats when we feel the LOVE and CARE because we will often ask about each other's life in the past year. This often gives a sense of belonging in the family. 
Now we are left with Fire and Strong feeling aren't we?
  Well, when i think of FIRE, i think of Steamboat. And Chinese New Year's eve is the one of the few days where my family would come together and have dinner together. As my family members are all busy with work and school, we seldom eat together. Even daily, where my mother would cook dinner for us , we would be having dinner at different timings due to our schedule. So when we actually have dinner together for the First and rare time in 2014, i feel an extremely STRONG FEELING in my heart.
  Now that i think of that scene, its actually rather heartwarming where we sit and eat together at the dining table and laugh about the many things in our lives.
  Other than these, have you realised that many things are red during Chinese New Year? When Chinese New Year comes, the decorations are in red, the AngPows(red packets) are red, the lid of New Year goodies are also red. You can also see any people wearing red clothes on the streets during Chinese New Year. Have you ever wondered why so many things are red during Chinese New Year? Well, let me tell you a story.

  Legend has it that the beginning of Chinese New Year started with the fight against a mythical beast called the Nian. Nian would come on the first day of New Year to eat livestock, crops, and even villagers, especially children. To protect themselves, the villagers would put food in front of their doors at the beginning of every year. It was believed that after the Nian ate the food they prepared, it wouldn't attack any more people. One day people saw that the Nian was scared away by a little child wearing red. The villagers then understood that the Nian was afraid of the color red. Time when the New Year was about to come, the villagers would hang red lanterns and red spring scrolls on windows and doors. People also used firecrackers to frighten away the Nian. From then on, Nian never came to the village again.

  Have you also heard people wishing others 鸿运当头 during Chinese new year? It means luck and prosperity. Doesn't the 鸿 sounds like 红(red). Isn't it really interesting that many things are related to Red during Chinese New Year.

A symbol i chose to represent Chinese New Year

  Whenever i think of Chinese New Year, i would also think of food, lots and lots of food. Why? Maybe because I'm always hungry?

  Have you noticed that whenever you visit your relatives, their table would be filled with all sorts of New Year Goodies. As the modern days come and all things get more advance, the type of new year goodies increases. But have you ever eaten the traditional ones? Some of which are the 发糕 and 饺子. 

  I remember that my mother would buy pineapple tarts every year. Dont you just love the delicate buttery crust and the sumptious pineapple jam fillings? Do you know that the tarts also hold an auspicious meaning? The pineapple,Ong Lai(旺来 ) in hokkien literally means "fortune or prosperity comes". Thus it is believed that pineapple is a lucky fruit that makes one prosperous.

Reunion photo( My family weren't inside because be were late)

  This is my family photo. Every Chinese New Year, when my family and i goes to visit our relatives, will take a photo together. "A picture speaks a thousand words" This might seem like just another group photo, but to me, this is more than just a photo. There are memories just in one photo and has high significance to me because me only see each other once or twice every year, only on special occasions. I really treasure my moments with them.

  To summarise my Chinese New Year, i feel that it is not just an occasion where we get lots of red packets from our relatives, but an occasion where we get together and stay updated on each other's life. Its an occasion where we feel a sense of belonging. Its an occasion where we feel happy and lucky. Its an occasion where we get fat from eating alot,probably because our relatives are very caring. Chinese New Year, Its where...WE, REUNITE AS ONE FAMILY.

YI HUI

  What would you think of when you see the word Chinese New Year? For me, it is impossible to resist the temptation of FOOD. Chinese New Year goodies are the children's love. There are all types of Chinese biscuits like the pineapple tarts, egg rolls and many more.

Take the egg rolls for example, it resembles gold or silver bullion and symbolizes wealth. Many people would also eat Jiaozi for Chinese New Year. These round dumplings signify family reunion. In northern China, families traditionally spend New Year's Eve together preparing the dumplings, which are eaten at midnight. One lucky person may find a gold coin inside! Crescent-shaped Jiaozi are a symbol of wealth and prosperity because of their resemblance to ancient Chinese money (silver ingots).

  Since so many things eaten during Chinese New Year are related to money, the symbol I chose will be meant money too! The symbol is made up of four words combined together.

  The four words are 招财进宝，which means ushering in wealth and prosperity. Many believed that if you find money on Chinese New Year, money will come flowing in your pocket the whole year round. Similarly, if bad luck falls on one during the Chinese New Year, you will be out of luck for the whole of 365 days.  

  If I am to choose a colour for Chinese New Year, it would be orange. Orange consists of red and yellow. 

--> Red, corresponding with fire, symbolizes good fortune and joy. Red is found everywhere during Chinese New Year and other holidays and family gatherings. A red envelope is a monetary gift which is given in Chinese society during holiday or special occasions. The red color of the packet symbolizes good luck. 

--> Yellow, corresponding with earth, is considered the most beautiful and prestigious color. The Chinese saying, yellow generates Yin and Yang, implies that yellow is the center of everything. Associated with but ranked above brown, yellow signifies neutrality and good luck. Yellow is sometimes paired with red in place of gold.Yellow often decorates royal palaces, altars and temples, and the color was used in the robes and attire of the emperors. Yellow also represents freedom from worldly cares. 

  Now, let's talk about my Chinese New Year this year. I cannot say that it is the best, but I still loved the way it is. This year's Chinese New Year was spent in a more relaxing way compared to the previous year. Though I never went to Chinatown for the celebration, I was in Malaysia enjoying fireworks. It is a wonderful experience to have fireworks just above your head for almost an hour, in celebration of the new year. It is just too exciting to have such a close view of the fireworks. Off course. I have been screaming throughout.

  The next thing I enjoy most is definitely the receiving of red packets^^ Honestly saying, there will always be a sadness in every red packet I receive, as there are unforgettable sad memories that I can still remember vividly. Overall, it is still a very fun occasion!