Happy New Year of the "TIGER" !!!!

As most of you would assume or know, The Chinese do not celebrate Christmas, (they do put up god-awful decorations though, just cause I think they like the colors, and want to please the ex-pats : ) )))  and they do not celebrate the calendar New Year. Their celebration comes with the 'Lunar' cycle, so it is always celabrated at a different date every year . They call this " Chinese New Year ".
This year the event begins on Valentine's day and always officially lasts 2 weeks.
While westerners are lucky to have 1 or 2 days off, and europeans may have one whole week off, most businesses and factories in China close their doors for one whole week, for the exception of service businesses which operate with reduced hours, and celebrate "til the chop-sticks come home"!!!!!
So Chinese New Year is like Christmas to the west. In essence, it is spending time with family, gift giving, ( especially money in little red envelopes), and the all important food-fest!!!!
The Chinese have their own Zodiac calendar as well, which is very important to this superstitious society. It encompasses 12 different animals.
One of the many versions of this legend states  that Buddha invited the animals to participate in a race. The prize was a coveted position on the 'Chinese Zodiac Calendar'.
This year is the year of the "TIGER".
If your are born in one of these years, you have the characteristics of the tiger.
1914, 1926, 1938, 1950, 1962, 1974, 1986, 1998, 2010
And here are it's characteristics :

• Short-tempered
• Suspicious
• Adventurous
• Sensitive
• Emotional
• Risk-taking

Compatible With:

Horses, Dogs

Avoid:

Monkeys

Good Career Choices:

• Boss
• Explorer
• Race-car driver

I am a Rabbit!!!!!Harry is a Tiger....and if you ask me, Harry is definately not a typical tiger...

If you wish to find your animal, here is the link.. 

http://www.chinesezodiac.com/calculator.php

So, to get on with my story.. Harry and I were invited yesterday to celebrate the New Year with his company. What a "GRAND" affair!!!

It was like a Christmas party, but "A LA Chinese". 

So we dressed up, suit and tie for Harry, and evening wear for myself, making me a little nervous, as I didn't really know the "traditional dress code" to one of these events. And keep in mind, it is hard to get a straight answer on this topic...

A chauffeur picked us up at our home and dropped us off at a grand Hotel, where a hostess was waiting for us. She led us to a ballroom where all was set up, with a stage for shows and a  exaggerated colorful decor, (it kind of hurt my eyes). But what an experience it promised to be. There were thirty seven round tables with large lazy susans in the middle, each of which sat 12, of employees and their families, decorated with yellow tablecloths, red napkins, and chinese china... 

Then their were 2 tables of 12 for the companies management, which was situated at the front of the stage (Great view). These tables were decorated with beautiful centerpieces and yellow tablecloths and the usual china... Harry and I were sitting at one of these tables. What a thrill!!! 

There was the usual chit chat, and tea and appetizers was served... Then started the announcements of good fortune and Happy New Year.. we understood nothing, only a few words hear and there... but that was O.K .I was looking forward to the experience... 

For  1 1/2 hrs there was show after show, all made up of performers who had somewhat talent... Some were good and some were not so good.. But FUNNY!!!!! The costumes hurt the eyes they were so bright. The skits were tacky but funny.. and they seemed to be having fun!!! So that what counts the most... Grown men performed badly choreographed dances which were hilarious. And some sang their heart out.. Ohhhh!!! It hurt!!!! : ))))

But to be fair, the traditional dances were interesting, and a few had good voices.

 At the corners of the stage stood two giant screens, with videos and photos of the past year at work... They sure like their cameras those chinese!!! 

At the end of the show, the toasting began, toasting for this and that every bloody 1 1/2 minutes. Thank goodness it was only red wine, and the glasses were about 1/2 an ounce each. We often were craving our full glasses of wine... There were many service people to keep filling these tiny glasses...

Then came dinner... beautiful dishes kept coming.. fish and pork and seafood and beef and rice and mushroom dishes... all ornamented beautifully...followed by dessert... which was plates of carved fruit, cookies and tarts... all which were delicious...For the interested, I thought I'd share the menu                       

 Menu

• Appetizer: boiled peanut, cold cucumber, duck feet, cold beef (very good, but did not try the duck feet)
• Meat mixture: goose, pork, honeycomb tripe, jellyfish ( excellent, even the Jellyfish, but no tripe for this chichita!)
• Shrimp (probably just boiled) ( YEE YUMMY!!!)
• Stewed pigeon with mushroom (hericium erinaceus) ( Very Good )
• Veal rib with black pepper ( Don't remember seeing that one )
• Read bean with abalone ( So good, but you have to like fishy stuff )
• Goose feet with white mushroom ( Nope! )
• Spicy pork feet ( I tried one!  Not bad )
• Steamed scallop with mashed garlic and rice noodle ( Again YUMMY! )
• Garlic chicken ( Very good, like BBQ Chichen )
• Steamed grouper ( forgot to try it )
• Bean seedling cooked in soup (Very interesting!!! )
• Fried rice with dried scallop and egg white ( Rice is rice, but good )
• Desert: egg tart & crisp cake ( Good, Their desserts are sweetened very little )
• Fruits ( always yummy here, because they are picked daily... )

So there you have it, the feast... Are you Jealous???? I would be, but I like to try stuff....

You know there is a saying in China, " the only things they won't eat in China with legs are tables and chairs, and they only thing they won't eat that flies are airplanes and helicopters..."

AND IT'S TRUE!!!!!!

So back to the evening... During dinner they gave out pretty nice prizes, they would draw employee #'s and these employees would climb on stage to retrieve their prize... They gave away, movie players as the first prizes, probably 50 of them, the second prizes were assortments of boxed dried jellyfish, mushrooms and dried sausage??????  sounds weird, doesn't it???? and rice cookers... 

And then for people like us who didn't win anything, there was the consolation prize... ARE YOU READY FOR THIS???????

A GALLON OF PEANUT OIL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaaaaa!!!!!!!!!

Harry and I, after the evening we went to the bar with our western friends, just KILLING OURSELVES LAUGHING!!!!!!! Can you imagine, Harry in his suit and tie, and me in my long gown evening wear ( which I was totally overdressed, by the way), walking out of this grand hotel with a gallon of peanut oil in hand!!! You can't even make up a story like that!!!

The upper management was kind enough (and funny if you ask me) to offer us us its money's worth instead... ARE you kidding me??? I just wanted this gallon of peanut oil to take pictures!!! I think I'll keep it as a souvenir!!!!!

What a good time and experience it was... 

I'm telling you... life is never boring in China...

"xin nian quai le" To all...

That was your phrase of the day, Pronounced - tsin-nee-en- coo-I-la-   meaning Happy New Year!!!!!

Ta ta for now...

Love Pauline : )