Hong Kong - highlights and how the city of life celebrates Chinese New Year
Hong Kong is East Asia's most extraordinary city. Despite 150 years of British colonial rule and a cosmopolitan veneer, the vast majority of its people and customs are thoroughly Chinese. You can take English tea to the sound of a string quartet, there's cricket and pubs and cocktail lounges, but some 98 percent of the region's six million people are Chinese, eat only Chinese food and pray in Chinese temples.
For many first-time visitors there's a bizarre juxtaposition of the all-consuming noise and bustle of the East in one of the world's most ultra-modern cities.Hong Kong, now a Special Administrative Region (SAR) of China, comprises an irregularly shaped peninsula and a host of offshore islands. Surprisingly, the bulk of it is still farming land or protected country parks, while most of the population is crammed into Kowloon, on the peninsula's southern tip, and on Hong Kong Island.
Hong Kong Island offers not only traces of the old colony - from English place names to ancient trams - but also superb modern architecture and incredible cityscapes of towering buildings teetering up impossible slopes. It also offers unexpected opportunities for hiking and even swimming on the delightful beaches of its southern shore. Kowloon, though, and in particular its southernmost tip, Tsimshatsui, is the budget accommodation centre of Hong Kong and its most cosmopolitan district.
It also boasts more shops offering a greater variety of goods per square kilometre than anywhere in the world (not necessarily at reasonable prices, though).North of Tsimshatsui, Kowloon stretches away into the New Territories, an area of so-called New Towns, as well as ancient villages, secluded beaches and rural tranquillity. In addition, there are the offshore islands, notably Lamma and Lantau, which are well worth exploring for their fish restaurants, scenery and if, nothing else, the experience of chugging about on the inter-island ferries.
Chinese New Year Celebration in Hong Kong
Festive Feasts
Chinese New Year celebrations revolve around the family and food. At this time of year, eating is serious business, as the Chinese believe that food is not just something you eat. All the dishes served in Chinese New Year's Eve reunion dinner must be carefully chosen to attract special blessings for the family.
Rich rewards
In a traditional reunion dinner, chicken and fish must be included in the menu to signify prosperity and financial surplus. A stew of dried oyster and black seaweed is also indispensable, since black seaweed is pronounced "fa cai" in Chinese, which also means prosperity. In the northern regions in China, families usually have jiao zi, dumplings stuffed with meat and vegetables, instead of rice and meat dishes. Jiao zi signifies family reunion and wealth as its shape is similar to gold nuggets.
Sweet Unity
Everything round and sweet, from fruits like mandarin to dumplings, are considered symbols of unity and happiness. These foods are served as desserts and snacks throughout Chinese New Year. Steamed sweet rice cakes (nian gao) and steamed turnip cakes are also favourite treats to family guests. The word gao means ascension, which means the person will achieve higher status every year. Also there is a wide range of deep fried dumplings and sweet treats carrying different kinds of blessings. You are what you eat, so be prepared to spoil yourself with a stomach-full of yummy blessings!
Chinese New Year celebrations revolve around the family and food. At this time of year, eating is serious business, as the Chinese believe that food is not just something you eat. All the dishes served in Chinese New Year's Eve reunion dinner must be carefully chosen to attract special blessings for the family.
Great Bargains
Shoppers will be amazed by the fantastic bargains available at Chinese New Year. A long-held tradition of "out with the old, in with the new" dictates that everyone kicks off the New Year with a set of new clothes.
Fireworks Display
Hong Kong's New Year wish for a bright future is best summed up by its spectacular fireworks display. Launched from barges moored in Victoria Harbour, the fireworks create a sea of stars filling the night sky with "prosperous flames". This event attracts huge crowds that gather along the shore to marvel at the world-famous pyrotechnics. Watch the show from the waterfront of Central, Wan Chai North and Causeway Bay on Hong Kong Island, or from Tsim Sha Tsui East and Hung Hom Bay in Kowloon, or take a cruise for a closer look at the "City of Lights".
Flower Market
During Chinese New Year, huge markets sell colourful seasonal blooms, ranging from delicate potted varieties to immense flowering trees. Open a few days before Chinese New Year until the early hours of New Year's Day, these markets are a real treat for the senses.
Cheerful crowds shop for auspicious kumquat trees, narcissus and peonies, which all symbolise prosperity. Oranges signify good health, while tangerines with their leaves intact ring in long-lasting relationships and "fruitful" marriages. During Chinese New Year, huge markets sell colourful seasonal blooms, ranging from delicate potted varieties to immense flowering trees. Open a few days before Chinese New Year until the early hours of New Year's Day, these markets are a real treat for the senses.
Glittering City
A dazzling display of colour awaits visitors to Hong Kong during Chinese New Year. Many buildings around the city will be dressed up into skyscraper-high neon greeting cards. Along the waterfront on both sides of Victoria Harbour the view promises to be spectacular. Some of the best ways to enjoy this spectacular show will be to join a harbour cruise, hop on the Star Ferry or take a stroll along the waterfront . Whichever way you choose to see it, the Chinese New Year light displays are sure to dazzle your senses.
Horsebackriding
The "Sport of Kings" is Hong Kong's king of sports. And you can experience the incomparable excitement of one of the biggest events on the Hong Kong horseracing calendar at the Chinese New Year Meeting.
Race meetings are especially popular at this time of year, when those who succeed in wooing Lady Luck expect their good fortune to prevail for the next 12 months. You can chance your luck and at the same time you'll be able to enjoy the world-class facilities of the state-of-the-art Sha Tin Racecourse by joining the Come Horseracing Tour.
Hui Chun
Celebrate the Chinese New Year in traditional style and print your very own hui chun, lucky wall-hangings. Hui chun are four-character phrases written on pieces of red paper to express traditional sentiments for a rich and bountiful spring. Its origin can be traced back to antiquity, when people believed evil could be warded off by hanging a piece of peach wood painted in red on the wall.