Community Center Shanghai

Weather: Sunny
Mood: Excited

Last Friday, I attended Coffee Connection at Community Center Shanghai. During the session, the volunteer, Valerie, share with us on the Chinese New Traditions. I must agree that it was a pretty enlightening session because being a Chinese, I am pretty amused to note that there are practices which I've heard for the first time. And followings are sharings that brought some laughters from the ground:

1. During the office re-union dinner, when the chicken is served, the staff who has the chicken head pointed at him/her will be fired.

2. People are encouraged to wear all red, including their underwear, since red signifies good luck.

3. In the Northern China, people eat dumplings or 饺子 so as to bear a son, since the chinese word 饺 sounds like sleeping while 子 means son.

4. If one is to give out red packet or 红包, he/she should make sure it contains money in doubles, meaning one can either give 20, 200 or 2000 RMB.

Anyway, for those foreigners who are going to celebrate with Chinese friends during Chinese New Year in China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia or Singapore, do take care to find out the do or don't. Otherwise, you might just discover yourself being the laughing stock among friends. ;)

Tomorrow, I'll be going back home (SINGAPORE) for my Chinese New Year celebration. So, I foresee I might stop blogging for a few days. Therefore, I like to take this chance to wish all of my readers a Prosperous Chinese New Year ahead.

NOTE: The Community Center Shanghai organizes Coffee Connection which are morning gatherings among the expatriates every month. It is usually on a Friday morning at Royal Gardens Clubhouse in Pudong. There are also a lot of other activities organized by Community Center Shanghai. To find out more, kindly visit their website.