LUNAR NEW YEAR
新春快樂
At the heart of many fables, is often a battle between good and evil and Chinese New Year - beginning on the new moon on February 1st, 2022, and ending on January 31st, 2023, is a rich, colourful, and global celebration, laden with optimism and superstition.

The Chinese Zodiac, or Shengxiao depicts 12 symbolic animals over a 12-year repeating cycle - Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig – each with its own unique characteristics and meanings.

This Chinese New Year, celebrates the year of the Tiger. Known as the king of all beasts, the sign is believed to symbolise strength, bravery and have the ability to exorcize evil. Much like the ancient Greeks who we believe first recorded the twelve signs of the Zodiac, Chinese culture believes that people born in a given year have the personality of that year’s animal.

Having lived in Hong Kong for three years as a young woman, Annoushka has always found Chinese culture and tradition inspiring and magical.
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“
Hong Kong holds an incredibly special place in my heart - not only did I meet my husband John there, but so many lifelong friends. I love the city’s energy and the feeling that everything is possible – I have wonderful memories of Chinese New Year in Hong Kong – when the whole city is emblazoned in red – dressed for the celebration.

There isn’t a time when you can feel the energy and nature of the Chinese people more than at Chinese New Year - there is so much generosity and optimism – time is spent intricately dressing every window and wall, traditional food is lovingly cooked, families gather, and gifts are exchanged - all to welcome in the year with good fortune!
“
Hong Kong holds an incredibly special place in my heart - not only did I meet my husband John there, but so many lifelong friends. I love the city’s energy and the feeling that everything is possible – I have wonderful memories of Chinese New Year in Hong Kong – when the whole city is emblazoned in red – dressed for the celebration.

There isn’t a time when you can feel the energy and nature of the Chinese people more than at Chinese New Year - there is so much generosity and optimism – time is spent intricately dressing every window and wall, traditional food is lovingly cooked, families gather, and gifts are exchanged - all to welcome in the year with good fortune!
Synonymous with prosperity, luck, energy and happiness, red is undeniably the colour of Chinese New Year. According to folklore, a demon would appear on the eve of the festival - its intention to spread sickness among sleeping children. To stay awake and deter the demon, parents would wrap bright copper coins in red paper for their children to play with. If a child fell asleep, the sheen of the coins would scare the monster away.

Today, this sentiment is translated in the tradition of red packets. Known in Cantonese as Lai See or Hongbao in Mandarin, these red paper envelopes, sometimes containing money, are gifted between friends and family as a token of prosperity for the year ahead - but their significance lies in their colour, not just the money enclosed.
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