Bow Wow

Wow! I know some of you believe every year is the day, week, month and year of the dog, but according to the Chinese New Year Calendar, this year occurs only every 12 years but the earth dog occurs in only 2018 (and years 1946, 1958, 1970, 1982, 1994, 2006, and 2030). But no matter, the Nelson-Atkins Art Museum will celebrate the Chinese holiday new year on January 28 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and this year is especially special. 

Bo Ling's Chinese Restaurant is going to be there (rooms 4 and 5) to help by serving some of their fine cuisine like dan dan noodles with pork, Sichuan dumplings, roasted chicken, vegetable fried rice, and rangoon dip with crispy noodles. Besides trying some unusual dishes, you and your family can enjoy several different dance groups, a traditional Chinese dress show, even a yo-yo demonstration along with special Asian influenced menu items in the Rozzelle Court Restaurant. There’s so much going on – and it will help you learn about a different culture, too. Go here for times and events. 

 The new year celebration is actually February 16 this year but the celebration begins on the new moon between January 21 and February 20. The Lunar New Year is celebrated in other Asian countries and is a major holiday – Chinese families typically gather for an annual reunion dinner – and also it’s traditional to clean house thoroughly to sweep away bad fortune and welcome in good luck. Red decorations, firecrackers, and monetary tokens in red envelopes are also common. So this year, go ahead and celebrate two new years. I’m definitely going to do a bit of that cleaning thing! 


P.S. The symbols say “Spring Festival,” the new year’s other name, in both traditional and simplified the bottom two characters) Chinese. Or so Wikipedia told me.

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