Our first official Chinese New Year in all it’s authenticity is over. A bit of a bust. Crummy weather topped with Hub’s ‘this-is-why-I-try-not-to-breath-on-airplanes’ flu really put a damper on our cultural exploration.
FYI, HK is a ghost town during CNY. Many shops are closed for at least three days, while almost all of China travels to spend time with relatives. “No way,” and “are you kidding,” and “maaan,” were my replies to repeated media reports about the number of travelers and trains crossing China during the ten day holiday. Make no mistake, there are a lot of people in China my friends.
Meanwhile, HK’s Tourist Board lined up all sorts of city-wide festivities. Open-air gift markets–didn’t attend. Traditional lion dance parades–we snoozed and loosed. And an international New Year festival with dance and float entries from all over Asia–maybe next year. Our first and biggest Chinese holiday of the year, and we stayed home watching re-runs of the re-make of Battlestar Galactica.
Frack.
Thankfully our building ended the 10 day holiday with a party. Here’s the breakdown.
Waiting for the Lion Dance to begin (with a friend in the building).
We were thrilled with the traditional Lion Dance!
The building staff grilled Chinese treats for everyone.
Building maintenance helped hang the offering for the Lion.
The Lion dances in your apartment bringing good health and prosperity for the new year. He takes the veggie and Lai See offering and ‘eats’ it, while you’re supposed to catch any vegetables that fall from his mouth for additional good luck.
Drummers helped with the excitement, and then it was time for pics with our friends.
KUNG HAI FAT CHOI!
hella Hong Kong 