Happy Chinese New Year! My first CNY celebration away from family.

Happy Chinese New Year! Gong Xi Fa Cai!

May this new year of ox brings to you and your family abundance of wealth, luck, harmony, stability, success and above all, good health!

Due to the current pandemic and its severity over in Malaysia, this is the first time ever I’m celebrating CNY away from family and home. Of course there would be a little sadness in me (along with many other Malaysians stuck here in Singapore too), but I will try to make the most out of the current situation and stay positive and joyful all the time. Although far away from family, but I would still be having a simple reunion dinner with my housemates later this evening.

As for the coming long CNY weekend, I would be spending most the time to rest and recharge myself at home. Besides that, there are plans to head out with friends for meal, shopping and outing. I would also be visiting the ‘River Hongbao’ event at Gardens by the Bay next Monday. More details of that event in my next post after my visit. I will keep in touch with my family and will check how they are doing back in Malaysia soon. Staying connected despite being in a long distance apart is crucial. Family matters the most.

This is the time when there are a lot of flashback of good memories I had during CNY festival in the past years when I was a child. I do miss being called by my mom on the early morning of the first day of CNY to wear the one and only gold necklace with my family surname crafted on it (it’s a family inherited item passed down for generations). I do miss visiting my grandma’s house for vegetarian lunch on first day of CNY. I do miss going to my mom’s huge gathering of relatives on the second day of CNY at my eldest aunt’s large house where I can meet most if not all of my cousins in one go for catching up, games, fun gambling, etc. I miss seeing humorous classic CNY shows and movies from Hong Kong in front of the TV. That were all memories from nearly 2 decades ago…time flies. There’s a sweet smile on my face now thinking back of all those joyous moments.

Although Chinese New Year festival will be celebrated very differently this year with less fanfare and people around, but let’s not make that a hindrance to the true spirit and meaning of this celebration; togetherness as one especially throughout this difficult time. May the Covid-19 pandemic will be over very soon and that we can all celebrate CNY normally next year onward.

新年快乐，万事如意 ! (Happy New Year and may all go well with you!)

(Images in this post are from various online sources)

February comes and it’s all about the upcoming Chinese New Year celebration!

First month of 2019 is over and now we welcomes not only the arrival of the second month of the year but also the wonderful Chinese New Year celebration! This lunar new year festival doesn’t comes until next Tuesday, 5th February but everyone is already in the celebration and holiday mood by now. Time to fill the month with plenty of red colour (deemed as auspicious colour for the Chinese) starting with this post!

I will be taking my flight to Europe tomorrow to kickstart my 10 days trip during this long holiday. I am very excited to visit all the amazing places in Eastern Europe soon (but not excited for the two long-hour flights to reach Europe which would definitely caused me huge discomfort). Hence, my next blog post will be somewhere on mid February when I returned from the trip to note down all the wonderful experience I had from it and share some amazing photographs I have taken.

For now, I would like to take this opportunity to wish to my family, relative, Chinese friends and colleagues a wonderful and prosperous lunar new year! Gong Xi Fa Cai! May this new lunar year of pig brings you abundance of great health, wealth and happiness! Yeah, it’s the year of the pig. The last animal zodiac sign in the 12-year cycle.

(Images in this post are from various online sources)

Happy Chinese New Year! Let’s have a very ‘goat’ year!

There’s nothing more important right now than to wish all Chinese a wonderful Happy Lunar New Year! This greeting is particularly extended to my family, relatives, friends and neighbours eventhough it is very unlikely for them to see this. Gong Xi Fa Cai! May all be blessed with great joy, health, wealth, luck and prosperity in this new year of ‘goat’! Yes, this marked the end of the year of horse and the arrival for year of goat! And that’s my Chinese zodiac sign.

Today is already the Chinese New Year’s Eve! This day will be incomplete without a fulfilling reunion dinner this evening where all family members gather for the last dinner before the beginning of a lunar new year. If you haven’t return to your parents or to your hometown, better get it going now! Priority is on family reunion and celebrating the festival in harmonious and joyous mood together with your close ones. On those returning to hometown, I wish you a safe and relaxing ride home in the middle of inevitable traffic congestion in major highways now.

Yesterday on my last day of work before my lengthy CNY break, I told my colleague that my happiest CNY memory is during the time when I was still a small kid, particularly excited on the second day of CNY when we spent almost the whole day at my eldest aunt’s home with all my aunties, uncles and cousins. It’s a very happening scene with everyone gathered in a huge home chatting, enjoying all CNY snacks, watching TV, playing video games, gambling, playing fireworks and dinner together. I am very fond of those times in the past, which will never be observed again now as people gets older and went on their own way away.

Nevertheless, I’m now filled with very positive CNY mood, and I’m ready to collect angpow, ready to visit my relatives, ready to enjoy all the CNY snacks, and ready for my upcoming oversea trip to Jogjakarta, Indonesia with my family beginning this Friday till next week. Hoping for a very great and happy Lunar New Year time ahead, and hope that you will enjoy your CNY too! For others who are not celebrating, Happy Holiday too!

Last but not least, I would like to wish again to all Chinese across the world who are reading this, a Happy Chinese New Year! Happy Spring Festival and Gong Xi Fa Cai! Let’s have a very ‘goat’ (sounds similar to ‘good’) year!!!

 

(Images in this post are from various sources throughout the world wide web)

 

Happy Chinese New Year! Wishing you the best in this Year of Horse.

Happy Chinese New Year! I’m taking this opportunity to wish to myself, my family, my relatives, my friends, my neighbours and to whoever celebrating it a wonderful and prosperous new lunar year! May this Year of Horse brings perfect health, joy, happiness, prosperity and luck to all of us! Gong Xi Fa Cai!

It’s the time of the year again to visit relatives, friends or neighbours, exchanging gifts and getting angpows (red packets), eat a lot of new year biscuits and mandarin oranges, family reunion, going back hometown, play fireworks or firecrackers, having small gambles, tossing ‘yee-sang’ (traditional CNY food serving), out for Chinese New Year movies, and wear beautiful new clothes. Just put aside school or job matters, forget about it, and have fun on this wonderful new year celebration. Enjoy the festival with all that fun CNY practices to do and happy holiday!

For me, I have been celebrating Chinese New Year (or commonly known as Spring Festival in China) in my own way, quite different from the most others. As usual on this period of time annually, I would be flying oversea for a family trip. And this year, we will be heading to Yunnan, China. But the trip this time only commenced tomorrow, and hence, it has been quite some time ago since I last spending the first day of CNY still in Malaysia. And for that reason, I will be not available to update my blog here from tomorrow onwards till 9th February as I will be away enjoying my vacation. Once I’m back, I will update my blog with a post of my trip as expected every year. Will be plenty of beautiful photos from the trip soon.

CNY mood all around! Have a blast and a joyful CNY celebration! Goodbye to Year of Snake, and see you twelve years later. Now is Year of Horse! Happy Chinese New Year once again, and Gong Xi Fa Cai!

(Images in this post are from various sources throughout the world wide web)

CNY Eve already! And my holiday begins…

Oh no…not in a good condition as soon as I wake up in this morning on the day of Chinese New Year’s Eve. My throat is not feeling well! I haven’t even eat a lot of CNY biscuits, and now my throat isn’t comfortable already. Not good. Not good. Tomorrow comes the Chinese’s biggest festival, and the day after, I’m going on a trip. Hope everything would be fine by tomorrow. Luckily, the leave I took from my work began today and I had time for a bit of rest and also for…

… My room’s cleaning. Since it is the traditional belief of prohibiting the Chinese from cleaning up their houses on the first day of lunar new year, the last-minute task has to be done today. My room is small, but still, I spent several hours cleaning it alone. Those things I have not touched for a long time had been in very dusty conditions, and I managed to throw off a lot of unused stuff, which all ended up in four rubbish bags. Now my room is neat and clean, ready to usher in the lunar new year. I also managed to put up a bit of CNY decorations in my room, just to bring up the festive atmosphere.

Well, today is already the Chinese New Year’s Eve. And it’s a very nice sunny day. Time to say goodbye to the year of snake, and welcome to the year of horse. Me, who is born in year of goat would be doing quite great this year according to Chinese’s horoscope forecast. Hope it will be. Have you reach your hometown yet in time to gather for family reunion dinner tonight? Or are you still stuck in traffic congestion while on the way? Stay calm, and drive safely! Wishing everyone a safe trip! For me, I already had early reunion dinner together with yee-sang’s tossing last week. Hence, tonight, we are going to go for normal dinner only. Even this is a hard task to us as most of the shops and restaurants out there are closed already.

February is on its way too. The blog’s header stays as it is (as seen above and also at top of my blog’s page) for another 15 days till the CNY celebration ends. Once the festival is over and when I’m back from my family trip, it would be almost middle of the month already, and then only it’s time to put up a new blog’s header. Would like to wish everyone a Happy Chinese New Year and Happy Holiday! Gong Xi Fa Cai! Expected to hear a lot of ‘bang’ or ‘boom’ noise tonight as fireworks lit up the sky everywhere including my neighbourhood to welcome the lunar new year of horse! Okay…time to pack my luggage. Bye…

Happy Chinese New Year!!!It’s the year of rabbit!

Yes…it’s the first day of Chinese New Year! Let’s welcome the Year of Rabbit with full of happiness and luck! I’m here wishing every Chinese around the world, Happy Chinese New Year!

Gong Xi Fa Cai! All the best for this brand new lunar year!

In Malaysia, the first two days of CNY are given public holiday. The third day for this will be on Saturday, and I believed many will not go for work too. Then, comes Sunday on the fourth day, holiday for everyone. Only till the fifth day which falls on Monday, that everyone will be back to work or school, unless some extending their holiday further if it’s their own business like my dad…so we are still on our trip till 10th February 2011, which is the ninth day of CNY…will be back home on that night, and the next day would be writing up a post on my trip like what I did to my previous trips…

For me, my wish for this new lunar year is for being successfully graduated for my bachelor study in architecture at the end of this year. I also wished that everything works out fine and smooth for me. Hopes everyday is a great day with good health and luck. Opps…beginning today, I’m official 21 years old based on lunar calendar…oh my god…actually, I’m just 19…

Anyway, have fun and great time with your family, relatives and friends! This first day would be a busy day for visiting relatives and getting angpows! Not for me….I’m currently busy taking pictures in Italy rather than taking angpows… Cherish the moments together not only during Chinese New Year but also everyday onwards! Happy Chinese New Year to all once again!

Happy Chinese New Year, and Happy Valentine’s Day!!!

Happy Chinese New Year to all the Chinese around the world, especially to myself, my family, my relatives, my friends and to all Chinese readers of my blog…Gong Xi Fa Cai!

It’s Year of Tiger, wishing everyone to have a roaring success in future! Blessing everyone with prosperous and lucky years ahead!!!

Today is the first day of CNY, a bright summer day in Malaysia! Nice for visiting relatives and friends, and of course, receive angpow is the best thing! Remember, no sweeping floors or cleaning house today, it’s not a good day to clean house already, your house should be neat and clean by yesterday….Wear red shirts! Red symbolises prosperity and is an auspicious colour for Chinese…

Tonight, I will be flying to South Korea for the annual CNY trip oversea. Last check to my luggage to see whether i have bring all the stuff needed for the trip….I only spend the first day of CNY here, before I’m coming back home on 21st February 2010. Wait….CNY is actually celebrated in 15 days period…when I come back, I can still celebrate it and get as much angpow as I can…haha (sorry, I’m poor recently, so I’m kinda excited by angpow money this time).

         

As a notice, I will be not around for 8 days. Hence, no update to my blog, but keep it as happening as Chinese New Year atmosphere! When I’m back, will quickly update my blog with my journey at South Korea including pictures and videos…that will be my next post probably after 21st February 2010.

One more thing, wishing every couples around the world Happy Valentine’s Day too! Have you brought rose to your girlfriend? Or are you giving a surprise for your partner, like a memorable presents, dinner, or even a wedding ring for proposal? I’m not in all these…haha, still single…nevermind, I’m just 19 this year (still 18), still got a long long way to go…

This is my 308th post of my blog, such a lucky number on such a prosperous day!!! 308! Gong Xi Fa Cai!

Wow…two important festivals in the same day….Chinese New Year, among the most celebrated festival in the world, and Valentine’s Day, the most memorable festival for all couples! Last but not least, …

May you all be successful in the year of tiger (2010) with best of luck, health, prosperity and most important of all, HARMONY!!! (notice there are 8 pictures in this post, number ‘8‘ is a lucky number too)