It's the year of the Dragon.
Went Chinese grocery shopping today. Bad idea...
Everyone Asian (and interested non-Asian) were at the Chinese market.
All the specialty food items were on displayed. Dry fruits and candies from childhood, special sweets and sticky "new year cake" were all lined up and calling on people's memory.
When we were children, Chinese New Year celebration lasted 16 days. Each of those days has specification on the food to eat and things to do. I recalled having to do "Spring cleaning" before the 1st day of Chinese New Year. Eating a crazy feast of a dozen dishes on New Year's Eve and then having to eat only vegetarian dishes on the day of New Year.
Then there were specific date on visiting friends and families. The 3rd day was call "Blazing Wrath" day, so we were never supposed to visit people. People also exchanged small gifts, mainly sweets and food items which were deemed lucky for the New Year.
Nowadays, for my kiddies, the only thing they are concerned about during Chinese New Year is the "Red Envelope." This is when older and married people give red envelope filled with money to children and unmarried younger generation. As kids, that literally was like winning the lottery. The closer the relationship, the more money you usually get.
The Chinese New Year parade is also another thing that my kiddies love to do. The lion and dragon dance are always the highlight for them. When they were younger, they would get dressed up in their traditional Chinese costumes. It's really the only time the Chinese in the Chinese-American heritage kicks in for them.
A Brief History of Chinese New Year
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