Glistening Sheen: Gong Hey Fat Choy!

Good Day Everyone,

Happy (Chinese) New Year and welcome to the year of the horse!

Whilst Christmas break has looong become a distant memory for family and friends back home in England, we in Singapore, are winding down for the main holiday of the year, Chinese New Year, with two public holidays making this a long weekend – woohoo!

As well as lots of horses decorating the streets in Chinatown, most buildings in Singapore have been decorated with the traditional red lanterns, red scrolls, mini trees bearing little Mandarin oranges, as well as red and yellow plants. The colour red represents good luck and is thought to ward off evil spirits and bad luck.

The little Mandarin oranges represent gold and prosperity because the Chinese word for this fruit sounds like the word luck in the way that it is pronounced and the fruit’s golden colour is closest to gold. As a result many people will gift these oranges to one another, in pairs. Even numbered tangerines are offered because odd numbered gifts are associated with funerals. However, since the pronunciation of the number four in Chinese is similar to the word death, you won’t find people giving each other four tangerines.

My hubby and I have been out and about taking lots of photos of the decorations to celebrate the year of the horse and share them with all of you :o) This is the one time of year when things really do wind down in Singapore, so much so that even building work on the numerous construction sites around the country come to a halt.

We will be having a nice long relaxing weekend spending time with friends, taking walks along the beach and chilling on our balcony, taking advantage of the temporary peace and quiet.