Chinese New Year 春節

Every year around this time, it has to be the most important holiday in every Chinese communities! Chinese New Year: the new year celebration or the harvest celebration or the first day of spring celebration. Chinese New Year is the time where people wear their new clothes, clean their house (before the First day of CNY), get more spending money from the 'Ang Pow' or money from gambling with your relatives, and reunion dinner. I suppose it is similar to Christmas for the Western culture; instead of giving presents which might not be useful to the person, you give money to him/her. And only people who are married need to give out such thing. Hehehe.

Well, CNY definitely changed heaps since I was very young. Some people did say that the CNY will become less meaningful when you grow up by each year. When I was small, we (Malaysian) still could play fire crackers. I still remember, 1 weeks before CNY, I've already played about rm100 of fire-crackers. They consisted of Chicken, Bee, Dinosaur's Egg, etc etc. Those 80-ies babies from Malaysia will know what I mean. That was when I was still in primary school.

When I went into secondary school, the government had already banned fire crackers. Back then I still have the elders giving me thick-moneyful-ang-pow, and my Ang Pow money can go up to about rm500 everyyear. Not very much, but still a big amount for a kid. When elder started going (you know where I meant), and kid becoming more grown up, CNY was just another holiday.

Since the death of my granny, my family rarely go to Granny house for the First day of CNY. Although my uncle still staying in Granny house, we just don't see the point of going there. Instead, my past 2 years of CNY involved of us travelling to some other place. Less cousin and relatives are going to sit together and chat and play card games/mahjong. Even these years around, we guys don't buy that much new clothes anymore. It was used to be like 5 sets of new clothes (more for the gals), but now, it is just not practical to go hunt for 15 sets of clothes. I rather stay at home and play computer games. Hahaha.

This year is even worse. I won't be going back Penang for CNY because my semester going to start 1 week after CNY, and my summer project hasn't end until the Fifth day of CNY... I reckon I will be missing CNY next year as well. Oh well, change is inevitable.
Okay better go back to my 8k report... 恭喜發財 (Gong Xi Fa Chai/ Kung Hei Fatt Choi/ Keong Hee Huat Chai)