Photo by Susan Wang
Yesterday marked the start of a new lunar year, and my favorite Chinese holiday. For those of you who don’t know, the Spring Festival is the biggest and best in the Chinese holiday calendar. Think of Thanksgiving, Christmas, the Forth of July, and your birthday rolled up into two weeks of vacation. Everyone travels back to their hometown for the festivities, making this the world’s largest annual human migration. Traditionally, you set off massive amounts of fireworks, eat all sorts of delicious foods like dumplings and fish, exchange red envelopes (with money inside!) to younger relatives, and wear red clothes for good luck.
This year is the year of the snake, the sixth animal in the Chinese zodiac. It’s a good year for people born in 2013, 2001, 1989, 1977, and 1965. (Basically, if your age can be divided cleanly by 12, it’s your year to shine.) I’m a Snake, so that means I’m in for a stellar year. Supposedly, this is the year of steady progress and attention to detail.
Wishing you all a very prosperous Chinese New Year: Gong Xi Fa Cai!
Tags: Chinese holidays, Chinese New Year, Year of the Snake