THE YEAR OF THE RABBIT!

The Chinese New Year provides all the traditions and rituals you need to clean away the bad luck of last year, be optimistic for the year ahead, cultivate friends and placate your enemies. Here’s all you have to do:

During the last few days of the last moon, clean the house, pay debts, cut your hair, and buy some new clothes. Decorate your doors with vertical scrolls of Chinese characters on red paper; the text seeks good luck and praises nature, and even keeps away evil spirits. For good measure, burn a little incense in your home; it’s a mark of respect to ancestors.

Light your house brightly on Chinese New Year’s Eve, February 2, and serve a large family dinner. On Chinese New Year’s morning, give the kids lucky money in red envelopes. Splash the color red everywhere; it’s the color of luck. Greet everyone you meet with your best wishes for a happy Chinese New Year. Get rid of your old grudges, and make up with anybody you need too; now is the time for goodwill and reconciliation.

Avoid housework on New Year’s Day; you run the risk of washing or sweeping away good luck. Don’t use anything sharp like scissors or knives or razors on New Year’s Day --- you don’t wish to cut the threads of good fortune brought in at New Year’s. Try hard not to break anything. And above all, avoid negative language. No arguments, no mentions of sickness or death. Follow these guidelines, and The Year of the Rabbit will be a good one for you.

Of course, Chinese New Year calls for special dishes to be served and eaten with gusto! Join us at one of the Bo Ling's restaurants throughout the Metro

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