Happy New Year! Yes, again! The Chinese New Year starts on 17th February this year and we are celebrating the year of the Fire Horse.
Chinese New Year is the most important traditional holiday in China and some Asian cultures as it marks the start of a new year according to the Lunar calendar. The holiday begins between January 21st and February 20th, depending on the year. Every year is associated with a different zodiac animal: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, Pig; and elements: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water. This year we celebrate the year of the Fire Horse, which indicates independence, energy and moving forward.
Watch our Lady B chatting about the Fire Horse a few episodes ago for more information!
In China it is a massive celebration, families travel miles to spend it together, fireworks are used to ‘scare’ bad luck away and colourful lions and dragons dances bring good luck. It finishes after 15 days with the Lantern festival, a grand end to the lunar celebration with dragon dances, displays of lanterns and family unity.
The Chinese New Year, also known as Spring Festival has taken Europe by storm. In Spain, although not a public holiday like in China, has adopted similar traditions especially in areas with large Asian communities, like Madrid and Barcelona.
The biggest Spanish lunar celebration is in Usera, the Chinatown in Madrid, which will have parades, performances and food markets which will last various days. This attracts thousands of visitors a year.
Others, like our very own Nicole, decide to time their New Year plans and resolutions with the Chinese New Year, as January has finally settled, Christmas has passed and we have had time to think and plan for a while. Could this be the answer to actually going through with our resolutions? Let us know your thoughts! We chatted about this on our recent episode.
