Families plan COVID-style New Year
Chinese Canadian Association of P.E.I. organizing virtual concert
Lunar New Year, also known as Spring Festival, is the grandest festival in China and includes a seven-day holiday.
As the most colourful annual event, the traditional celebration lasts longer, up to two weeks, and the climax arrives around the Lunar New Year's Eve.
This is a time to be home with family, chatting, drinking, cooking and enjoying a hearty meal together, says Paul Yin, president of the Chinese Canadian Association of P.E.I.
It's one of the most important festivals in Chinese culture, he says, comparable to Christmas or New Year's for Canadians.
It also signifies the start of a new year and is a time of
uniting. Kids will return to their parents’ or grandparents’ homes to get together to celebrate this new start, says Yin.
“China, during this period, is dominated by iconic red lanterns, loud fireworks, massive banquets, and parades, and the festival even triggers exuberant celebrations across the globe,” says Yin.
This year, it is celebrated on Feb. 12.
In Canada, the Lunar New Year is one of these celebrations that would typically be held locally, with festivities lasting two weeks. Celebrations traditionally start on New Year’s Eve, with a family meal that involves a gathering of multiple generations under one roof, with up to 15 dishes from appetizers to desserts, each with special meanings of good wishes and hopes.
The food traditions are different between northern China and southern China, explains Qiaodan Luo, who is originally from Henan but is now a student at Dalhousie University in Halifax.
COVID IMPACT
In non-COVID-19 times, the Chinese Association of P.E.I. would hold formal and informal gatherings of dinner, dance and performances at various venues suitable for all ages.
Yin says in P.E.I., the association has organized a Chinese New Year gala for 10 years. Last year, it was cancelled because of the outbreak of the pandemic, but this year, they plan to switch to hosting a virtual concert, allowing them to keep to small numbers for indoor parties.
Instead of attending an event this year, Luo will celebrate the Chinese New Year by watching a gala held either by the Chinese government or the Canadian-Chinese community. The gala usually lasts more than four hours, she says, and includes a countdown when it’s close to midnight. At this time, Yin says, many people light fireworks together.
Even in China, Luo says, most New Year celebrations will be virtual. Many of her friends are not going home this year as they usually would, noting the festival is equivalent to the Canadian Thanksgiving with people going home to spend time with families. Much like Christmas, this is a time reserved for making special, lasting memories with the closest family and friends.