A Chinese New Year Celebration
The streets are hung with red and gold lanterns brightening the grey skies of a cold winter. Jangly Chinese music streams out from restaurants and shops. Potted plants and flowers are everywhere, ushering in good luck. Dancing lions with gongs walk the streets. Winter in Lantau is all about celebration, and hot on the heels of Christmas comes Chinese New Year (CNY).
What with the annual fireworks display over Victoria Harbour and the iconic parade in Tsim Sha Tsui both cancelled due to social distancing restrictions, there’s no doubt that this Lunar New Year is going to be quieter than most. But if we learnt anything in 2020 it’s that quiet doesn’t have to mean dull. This year’s holidays (February 12 to 15) provide us with an opportunity to get back to the true spirit of CNY, and to celebrate it in the traditional way – at home with family and close friends.
In this guide, we’ve aimed to provide the lowdown on just such a celebration. The restaurants will, of course, be open and we’ve listed some of the best places on the island to eat dim sum (and more) (To see the Lantau Dining destinations article Click here . But for those of you who are planning on feasting at home – an auspicious thing to do particularly on Lunar New Year’s Eve – we’ve detailed exactly what you need to serve. Find out why eating a whole fish, dumplings and spring rolls will set you up for a prosperous 2021 Click here.
At CNY, there are 101 time-honoured customs worth keeping, many of which you’ll discover in the following pages. Did you know, for instance, that a flower that blooms on Lunar New Year’s Day brings 12 months of prosperity to the family that homes it. As with almost all activities at CNY, there is enormous symbolism in the use of flowers and plants. In fact, the most popular blooms are deliberately chosen for their ‘special powers.’ To find out which flowers will help you get what you want (be that love, money or a promotion) in 2021 (Click Here).
While the Lunar New Year Flower Market at Tat Tung Road Garden, Tung Chung is the perfect place to purchase auspicious blooms of every variety, you’ll also want to pick up some auspicious red and gold homeware items – a couple of red paper scrolls to hang on your front door at the very least. Click Here for some essential and inexpensive CNY home decorating tips, and click here for a great selection of products, all available here in Lantau.
Last but not least, we’re about to ring in the Year of the Metal Ox. You can take a refresher course in Chinese astrology and find out what the new year has in store by clicking here. The good news is that the Ox is one of the strongest and healthiest animals in the Chinese zodiac, so we can hope to see the back of COVID-19 by year’s end. Kung Hei Fat Choy!
