Lunar New Year

The Chinese Lunar New Year, also known as the Spring Festival is the most important of the traditional Chinese holidays. This year at Trinity University, the Chinese club hosted a celebratory event in honor of the New Year of the Ox. The festival for the new year traditionally begins on the first day of the month in the Chinese calendar and ends on the 15th. It does not always fall on the same day even though it is always in the month of January or February. This event is celebrated all over the world.

Legend tells of a village in China, thousands of years ago, that was ravaged by an evil monster one winter's eve. The following year the monster returned and again ravaged the village. Before it could happen a third time, the villagers devised a plan to scare the monster away. Red banners were hung everywhere; the color red has long been believed to protect against evil. Firecrackers, drums and gongs were used to create loud noises to scare the beast away. The plan worked and the celebration lasted several days during which people visited with each other, exchanged gifts, danced and ate tasty comestibles. Celebrations today are both literal and symbolic. Spring cleaning is started about a month prior to the new year and must be completed before the celebrations begin.Typically red packets called Lai See Hong Bao (or Hongbao) with money tucked inside are given out as a symbol of good luck. The amount is usually an even number as odd numbers are regarded as unlucky. Lions are considered to be good omens. The lion dance is believed to repel demons. Each lion has two dancers, one to maneuver the head, the other the back.During the New Year celebrations people do not fight or be mean to each other, as this would bring a bad, unlucky year. Everyone celebrates their birthday this day as well and turning one year older. Foods during the holiday hold symbolism as well. Typically red meat is not served and one is careful not to serve or eat from a chipped or cracked plate. Fish is eaten to ensure long life and good fortune. Red dates bring the hope for prosperity, melon seeds for proliferation and lotus seeds means the family will prosper through time. Oranges and tangerines symbolize wealth and good fortune. Nian gao, the New Year's Cake is always served. It is believed that the higher the cake rises the better the year will be. When company stops by a "prosperity tray" is served.

At Trinity's celebration if this, all kinds of food and beverages were served and many performances, including from different cultures were performed. Gifts were given out to each person who attended including Chinese fans, bracelets, gifts packets with key chains and coins in it, along with other goodies.

1. Lunar New Year Festival: Year of the Ox Performance Schedule:Gong Xi, Gong Xi- First Year Chinese Students.
2. Filipino Fan Dance;Awaiting Spring- VSA Members= Jade Martinez, Kim Pang, Carmel Tajonera, Chelsea Wagnon, Chantale Wilson, Lauren Wolfson
3. Umbrella Dance-Megan Chang, Danielle Foster, Leila Ling, Lu Song, Helen Zhang, Choreographer- Dr. Jinli He
4. Song of Love- Minh-Thi Pham
5. Green Rose Hula- Jesselyn Dizon and Brandyn Dunn
6. Will You Marry Me Today?- Raul Erazo, Leila Ling, Xin Ma, Anran Xu, Arnold Yang
7. Like Yesterday- Meerin Cho, Sunghwi Kim
8. Vietnamese Fan Dance- Vy 'Tina' Huynh, Minh-Thi Pham, Teresa Nguyen, Thuy Anh Ngo, Tiffany Pham, Jaimie Pham
9. Chinese Hip-Hop- Megan Chang, Krystal Everett, Carmel Tajonera, Lauren Wolfson
10. Lion Dancers- San Antonio Lion Dancers Association

I performed in the Hip Hop dance for the Lunar New Year and it was one of the greatest and most interesting experiences. I love learning about cultures and this was definitely a culture I knew nothing about and didn't really understand. After going through the whole process of spending time with the people and learning why they did certain things for the celebration was a great experience.