Tips To Prepare For Chinese New Year
As Chinese New Year is actually just around the corner, all Chinese will certainly be busy running errands to ensure that the Chinese New Year celebration is organized.
Some might want to start around a month prior to the celebration which means the final month within the Lunar Calendar.
This way, they will be able to plan things they should have for your celebration and slowly distributing the tasks to family members after which carry them out.
Since Chinese New Year is an essential celebration among Chinese, the celebration is definitely a grand one where family gather at home to eat, chat and play.
Noises are certainly one thing which will not be missed throughout the celebration. If you happen to be thinking Chinese New Year is simply a day or two celebration or only over the weekend, then you are very wrong.
The Chinese celebrate Chinese New Year to get a full 15 days and 16 days if Chinese New Year Eve is counted.
But it can make no different since the mood may be felt when shops started selling Chinese New Year goods, restaurant started promoting their Chinese New Year menu, the stores started to have Chinese New Year performance.
It could be the festive season loved by everyone.
Let us get rolling on with the preparation required for Chinese New Year.
First within the list will be the spring cleaning.
Since Chinese New Year can be known as the Spring Festival, spring cleaning is usually used to indicate that this whole house has to be thoroughly clean to usher within the brand new year.
Every corner of your home will be clean and dust free.
Old good which are not of use anymore will probably be thrown away or provided as second-hand items.
Take can be as the yearly charity event for your family.
When cleaning is conducted, decorate your home with the Chinese New Year decoration, the auspicious home decoration to be able to bring your loved ones a prosperous and well-being year.
The decorations may include paper cut outs, cut outs from red packet, red lanterns, prosperous orange tree, Spring Festival couplets and much more.
The orange tree referred to as kum quat in Cantonese can be a favorite among many home decorations.
They are usually put in place front of your home.
Kum sounds much like gold through using it.
It sounds as if you are bearing gold whenever you grow this tree.
The decorations used are generally symbolic with prosperous and luck where red colors are everywhere within the house.
New curtains are generally used at the same time to refresh your home a little.
The reason to get all these decorations is primarily to wish for the better year ahead for everyone within the family and be blessed.
When you happen to be done with each of the decorations, the atmosphere for Chinese New Year gets thicker and slowly, you are going to hear people playing the Chinese New Year songs from your home.
Not only has the home needed to be new.
You need just a little change at the same time.
The Chinese will usually shop to get a few pairs of the latest clothes and shoes and bags and also accessories to select.
Checked shopping and now you might be on your way for the new hairdo.
Everyone needs to appear new and fresh to welcome within the New Year.
Children will certainly love it as they shop for firecrackers at the same time.
Then comes the peak preparation for the feast.
Some bake for your purpose of selling, some bake for your purpose of giving a great gift to family and friends.
Either way, they still bake. Cookies will always be a popular snack within the Chinese New Year besides candies, nuts and crackers.
Then, they stock in most important food ingredients to ensure they have a complete kitchen during the Chinese New Year.
Stacks of mandarin oranges and beverages will be the must have in every household.
They need to be ready to give the gift in return to their guests.
Then, the Chinese can also be preparing the meals list to have during the Chinese New Year Eve reunion dinner.
It could be the time where all the family members really gather together to dine.
It does sound like Western Thanksgiving dinner.
Dishes that symbolize prosperity will probably be prepared and this will all be fun if you manage to have everyone together to help you.
Last but not least, prepare the red packets.
It has been a tradition in Chinese New Year to provide red packets.
The amount of money inserted is not important but the meaning of the act is essential.
Red packet is generally known as Lai See in Cantonese and Ang Pow in Hokkien.
It means lucky money.
Usually married couples will prepare and distribute the red packets to single adults and children during the festive season as a blessing.
That is the whole preparation which should be done before ushering the opening day of the Lunar Calendar.
Though it sounds simple, there is actually much to be done.