Time is flying by so quickly if you are having fun and
enjoy every minute of it……. Manoj and Yong accompany me to Thor Piang Rosey
again and we did some needed medical outreaches. We stopped at Heang’s place
and lots of people came for their meds. It was good to see all the familiar
faces again and good to see that we are staying on top or in front of some of the
bad illnesses. We definitely could stop a few bad ear infections and help
some friends with their High Blood medication. Now I know people do not believe
in giving out High Bp meds due to the fact that there are so many medications
available but in this neck of the woods, there are not much to choose from and
going to a doctor, who does not even tell you your Bp count or explain it to you,
does not help a lot. So if I encounter a high blood person, we first start with
the lowest dose of meds and check it out next time when I come again.
Our ride the next day, in the jungle was sweet. We
could spend time with a few people on the road. In some locations, more people
come now as they know our bikes already and they are glad that we can help them
with some basic medicine. One thing that is a bit troublesome is that there are
so many really young girls with babies in the jungle. I am not so sure if that
is a good thing but that is up for discussion. We slept the night over at Som
Paom with our good friends. We visited till late around great food and a nice
fire. It was so nice to be in the heart of the jungle with no noise, just the
sounds of jungle creatures and perfect starry sky and nice and cold weather. Luckily
I had my jacket with me otherwise it would have been cold. We just had such a
fun time with this really nice family. I am so grateful for Manoj and Yong to
be with me as they are good in talking and building a relationship with these
guys. This is definitely how we can help each other to further the Kingdom of
God.
Please pray with us for the church in Kabal Domrey. My
friend John will be there on Sunday and they will decide what will happen in the
future. Pray for everyone involved to be of good spirit and pray for no
conflict. So quickly things can turn bad and when people get hurt, they do
things they do not really want to do. Pray for a good outcome for this church.
Pray for Heang’s brother. He had a bike accident and
dislocate/broke his right hand very bad. They are waiting till they finished
their harvest before he will check it out. I am a bit concerned about that but
you try and convince them otherwise.
We are very near to another New Year. Here in Cambodia, we celebrate 3 New Years. Chinese New Year officially begins on January 25th,
2020, and ends on February 4th.Chinese New Year is celebrated by more than 20%
of the world. It’s the most important holiday in China and to Chinese people
all over.
Thank you very much for praying for us. Your prayers
are making a difference for sure. If you do not want to read about the Chinese
New Year then it will be here where you stop. I just add this to the people
who do not know the meaning of it all. You can read on your own if you want. https://chinesenewyear.net/
Love
Rossouw-clan
Here are 21 interesting facts that you probably didn’t
know about Chinese New Year. Please help me out if this is not right please,
all my Chinese friends. What do I know, I am a Boer and only know Bruce Lee.
1. Chinese New Year is also known as the Spring
Festival. In China, you'll hear it being called chunjie (春节),
or the Spring Festival. It’s still very wintry, but the holiday marks the end
of the coldest days. People welcome spring and what it brings along: planting
and harvests, new beginnings and fresh starts. You can also call it the Lunar
New Year, because countries such as North and South Korea and Vietnam celebrate
it as well. And because the Spring Festival goes according to the lunar
calendar. Which means . . .
2. There's no set date for Chinese New Year: According
to the Lunar calendar, the Spring Festival is on January 1st and lasts until
the 15th (the full moon). Unlike western holidays such as Thanksgiving or
Christmas, when you try to calculate it with the solar (Gregorian) calendar,
the date is all over the place. Chinese New Year ranges from January 21 to
February 20. In 2019, it occurs on February 5th. The lunar calendar is still
really important in China, even though it has officially moved to the Gregorian
calendar like the rest of the world. All traditional holidays and days such as
the Winter Solstice are celebrated. Some people still calculate their birthdays
and ages according to the lunar calendar too!
3. It is a day for praying to gods: The Spring
Festival was originally a ceremonial day to pray to gods for a good planting
and harvest season. As an agrarian society, the harvest was everything. People
also prayed to their ancestors, as they were treated as gods (see Mulan for
reference).
4. and fighting off monsters : But the myths are much
more interesting. According to one legend, there was a monster named Nian (年). It would come about every New Year’s Eve. Most
people would hide in their homes. But one boy was brave enough to fight him off
using firecrackers. The next day, people celebrated their survival by setting
off even more firecrackers. And that practice became a crucial part of the
Spring Festival.
5. The most fireworks are set off in the world that
night: As in the myth about Nian, firecrackers are supposed to scare off
monsters and bad luck. So people stay up on Chinese New Year’s Eve and set off
firecrackers at midnight. In the morning, firecrackers are used again to
welcome the new year and good luck. That
same night, families also burn fake paper money and printed gold bars in honor
of their deceased loved ones. Similar to the Korean Chuseok holiday or the
Mexican Day of the Dead traditions, they believe the offerings will bring
fortune and good luck to their ancestors in the afterlife.
6. (but sometimes it’s illegal): Due to safety reasons
and concerns for air pollution, many Chinese cities have banned fireworks. More
than 500 cities have restrictions too. But... many people don’t care and they
do it anyway. Beijing had banned fireworks for 13 years. The ban was lifted in
2006 because of the angry public. If you’re in China during this time, you’ll
probably be able to hear and see the explosions for at least 3 nights (and it
can go on for weeks).
7. It is the longest Chinese holiday : The Spring
Festival is technically 15 days. But celebrations start on New Year’s Eve
(making it 16 days). You can also say that the holiday season starts in (lunar)
December with the Laba Festival (腊八节—là bā jié). That’s
around 40 days of celebrations! During the holiday, Chinese people spend twice
as much on shopping and eating out than Americans spend on Thanksgiving. Traditionally,
you have to spend time with your family and can only go out after the 5th day.
It’s a national holiday. The large majority of stores are closed too. So in the
month before, people will buy nian huo (年货), or New Year’s
products. The Chinese stock up on cooking supplies, snacks, gifts, new clothes
and more.
8. The Spring Festival causes the largest human
migration in the world: The most important part of Chinese New Year is the
family reunion. Everyone should come back home for the New Year’s Eve dinner. But
since in modern China, most elderly parents live in rural villages while their
children work in the cities. The migration back home and to go on vacation is
called chunyun (春运),
or Spring Migration. Even on normal days, subways to work are jammed pack with
people just barely squishing past the door. You can imagine the intensity of
the chunyun. Plus, the earliest you can buy train tickets is 60 days before. It
leads to a mad rush of literally fighting for tickets. In 2015, statistics
showed that around 1,000 tickets were sold each second.
9. Singles hire fake boy/girlfriends to take home : You
know those nosy relatives during Thanksgiving? It's even worse in China.
Especially since having children and passing down the family name is one of the
most important parts in Chinese culture. Some desperate singles resort to hire
a fake boyfriend or girlfriend to take home. Those who can’t (or don’t want to)
go home can rent themselves out. For some of the other questions though, such
as your salary, career or when you want to have kids, can’t be helped.
10. No showering, sweeping or throwing out garbage
allowed! : Showering isn’t allowed New Year’s Day. Sweeping and throwing out
garbage isn’t allowed before the 5th. This is to make sure you don’t wash away
the good luck! On the other hand, there’s a day before the Spring Festival
dedicated to cleaning. This day is to sweep the bad luck away and make room for
the good. Most hair salons are closed during the entirety of Chinese New Year
because hair cutting is taboo.
What else is taboo during Chinese New Year?
Hair cutting (before February 2)
Using scissors, knives and other sharp things
Arguing, swearing
Saying unlucky words (such as “death” and “sickness”)
Breaking things
11. Children receive lucky money in red envelopes : In
other cultures, children receive gifts for holidays. Gifts are also exchanged
during the Spring Festival. But Chinese children receive something else too—red
envelopes. Depending on the family, the children can get up 1000 CNY (around
$150) per envelope. Also called red packets or pockets, they include money.
This money is supposed to help transfer fortune from the elders to the kids.
They can also be given between bosses and employees, co-workers, and friends. With
the development of technology, digital red pockets are the trend now. People
like to send one into group chats and watch the others fight for the money.
This is called qiang hongbao (抢红包), or literally “snatching red pockets”.
12. You eat dumplings for every meal, every day: Well,
technically you’re supposed to. But not many people do that anymore because you
can have too much of even the most delicious foods. So most people will eat
dumplings during the New Year’s Eve dinner. Others will eat them for the first
breakfast. Contrary to popular belief though, dumplings aren't popular
everywhere in China. It's more of a northern thing. In the South, people would
rather eat spring rolls (egg rolls) and balls of glutinous rice in soup called
tangyuan (汤圆).
13. Chinese New Year desserts have special meanings: A
lot cultures have symbolic foods, such as the Yule Log cake. But so many
Chinese New Year desserts have special meanings behind them. And it’s mostly
puns in the name.
Take the tangyuan for example. It literally means
“soup balls.” But it sounds like tuanyuan (团圆), which means reunion. So it’s no surprise
it’s a popular dessert during Chinese New Year.
Nian gao (年糕)
is a type of rice cake. It symbolizes success each and every year.
Fa gao (发糕)
is a the hybrid of sponge cakes and muffins. People dye it festive colors. The
fa is the same as in fa cai (发财),
which means “to get rich.” And everyone wants that!
Isn’t it nice to have a better reason to get seconds?
14. There's wine specifically for the Spring Festival:
Chinese people love drinking. There’s a saying that there’s no manners and/or
etiquette without wine. This means that you need to have wine for every
ceremony, festival or important dinner. There’s wine for engagement dinners,
weddings, birthdays... and of course, the Spring Festival. With such a rich
wine culture, it’s no surprise that there is a bunch of drinking games you
play. However, it’s not all fun and games. When you’re eating with someone
older than you, as is the case with New Year’s dinners, you need to follow
strict toasting etiquette rules. They include the order of toasts, seating, how
you hold the wine glass etc. etc. To learn more read our post on Chinese New
Year's drinks and etiquette.
15. The Chinese decorate everything red for Chinese
New Year: Every family will deck their homes in this color. Do you remember the
story about Nian? Firecrackers aren’t the only thing that scared the monster
away. Red is also an invaluable weapon, and used in nearly all Chinese New Year
decorations. The Chinese will hang up red lanterns and strings of (real or
fake) chili peppers, paste red paper onto doors and windows, and more! New
clothes are also believed to bring good luck and start over fresh. People will
add new red clothing to their Spring Festival wardrobe too.
16. Every year has a zodiac animal : Western
horoscopes include 12 zodiacs, one for each month. There are 12 Chinese zodiacs
as well, but the animal is for the entire year. They are: Rat, Ox, Tiger,
Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog and Pig. 2020 is the
Year of the Rat. Some of the animals (such as Rat, Snake, Dog and Pig) aren’t
normally well-liked in Chinese culture. But as a zodiac, their positive traits
are bestowed on people born that year. They play a much bigger role than in
Western cultures. Your animal can decide your career, health and relationship
success. Make sure you find out what zodiac animal you are!
17. Your zodiac year is bad luck: Your benming year (本命年—běn mìng nián) is the year of your zodiac
animal. And of the 12 year cycle, it is the unluckiest for you. There are
multiple explanations for this. The Chinese believe that children can easily be
taken by demons. And your benming year is your rebirth year. There’s also a
mythological creature named Pi Xiu (貔貅)
that you can wear as an accessory for good luck. During this year, your weapon
of defense is the color red. Just as you can decorate your home in red for
protection and fortune, you can also wear red clothing. Many people will wear
red underwear every day of the year. Others add on red shirts, pants, jewelry,
insoles and more!
18. You grow 1 year older on the Spring Festival : In
China, you have a “real” age (实岁—shí
suì) and a “fake” nominal age (虚岁—xū suì). The real age is
the one we all know about. You grow one year older on your birthday. The
nominal age though, increases with the Spring Festival. This was the age most
people went with until recent times. But it’s still common nowadays, or used
interchangeably. If you’re particular about it, make sure you ask!
19. The New Year greeting in Chinese is “xin nian kuai
le”: The phrase literally means “Happy New Year.” But in Hong Kong and other
Cantonese-speaking regions, it's more common to say “gong hei fat choy.” In
Mandarin Chinese, it's “gong xi fa cai” (恭喜发财). It means “congratulations
on the fortune.”
If you check out other greetings or blessings, you’ll
see that most are about:
Plentiful harvests
Wealth and fortune
Health and longevity
Having children and large families
Food, money and health are things that everyone wants.
Passing down the family name is of utmost importance. That’s one of the reasons
why China has such a large population.
20. Chinese New Year ends with the Lantern Festival: The
first full moon of the (lunar) year is the Yuanxiao Festival (元宵节—yuán
xiāo jié) or Lantern Festival (灯节—dēng jié). Though family
is still important, it’s still a night of partying and freedom. In ancient
times, girls weren’t allowed to venture outside by themselves. But on this
night, they were able to walk around, moon-gaze and look at the beautiful
lanterns. Because of this, it’s also known as Valentine’s Day in China.
21. Chinese New Year is celebrated all around the
world: One out of every 5 people in the world is Chinese. But that stat doesn’t
include the millions of overseas Chinese and people of Chinese descent. London,
England; San Francisco, USA; Sydney, Australia; all claim to have the biggest
Spring Festival celebrations outside of Asia. We’re can’t say if that’s true or
not. But if you have a Chinatown nearby, you can definitely get a feel of what
the celebrations are like.
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