The Chinese New Year is almost upon us! This year, Chinese New Year falls on February 8.
As you may already know, Chinese New Year is one of the most important holidays on the Chinese calendar. Rather than following the Gregorian calendar, the date of the New Year is determined by the Chinese lunar calendar. That’s why the actual day varies from year to year. This year, China will be celebrating the year of the fire monkey. People born in this year are expected to be ambitious and adventurous, but also a bit irritable.
If you’re traveling to China for New Year’s celebrations, you will be in for a great amount of fun and festivity. Most businesses close up for seven days following the New Year. Here in America, the Chinese consulates will just be closed on February 8th and 9th. So if you need a visa to China in the next week or two, you should act quickly.
The time off in China is spent celebrating with family, reflecting on the year past, and hoping for good fortune in the year to come. On New Year’s Eve, there is a dinner that is known as “reunion dinner.” This is thought to be the most special and important family meal of the year. It is a time when people will travel from all over the country, and even the world, to be together with their loved ones.
If you can’t make it to China this year, you can still enjoy celebrations of the Chinese New Year all around America. Cities with large Chinese populations regularly host parades and festivals that incorporate the most jovial and important Chinese New Year’s tradition. Big celebrations happen in cities like Seattle, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.
At a Chinese New Year celebration, you might enjoy traditional Chinese foods such as fish, dumplings, spring rolls, and sweet rice balls. You might also enjoy street and building decorations, or you might take part in a red envelope exchange. In many Chinese families, the elders give red envelopes to children that contain messages of good luck and some money for the New Year. As this is the year of the monkey, you’ll be likely to see red monkeys everywhere. Regardless of the year, red is always considered to be a very lucky color in Chinese culture.
If you plan to travel to China for any reason, remember that we can expedite your visa for you and make the entire process hassle free. Contact our team to learn more.
