CBU is getting ready to usher in the Year of the Monkey by gathering to celebrate Chinese New year on February 4, 2016. With cultural displays, authentic Chinese cuisine, traditional entertainment, the event will serve to educate non-Chinese members of both the CBU and CBRM community about the cultural significance of the holiday.
Also known as Spring Festival, Chinese New Year is the most important holiday celebrated in China. CBU’s event will showcase traditional Chinese culture and allow student guides to share their heritage with their new community members. Guests will have the pleasure of participating in and learning about knot tying, zodiac signs, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese art and traditional dress, among others.
Students from the Bachelor of Hospitality and Tourism Management program will prepare and serve the authentic cuisine of dumplings and other Chinese dishes and a traditional dragon dance will serve as the kick-off.
To top-off the celebration and set the tone for a prosperous winter and New Year, a community fireworks display will erupt at 7:30 p.m. Community members are invited to attend and watch from the warmth of campus, where viewing areas will be set-up inside.
Tickets for Chinese New Year are limited due to space, but are free to students and the community! Anyone wishing to attend can email ChineseNewYear@cbu.ca to RSVP and secure tickets.
About the Year of the Monkey
The Chinese New Year of the Fire Monkey will start on February 8, 2016 – the second New Moon after the Solstice. Following 12 months of the dignified and surefooted Goat, the New Year of the Red Monkey is going shake, rattle and roll!
In the traditional Chinese mind, which is echoed in the annually-reprinted ancient almanac, the Monkey is very intelligent, hyperactive and strong-minded. He represents the unfettered mind freed from inhibitions and guilt. Relieving him from the heavy burdens of a touchy conscience, the Monkey type will not hesitate to test his theories, experiment and think the unthinkable. In his domain, everything is possible. What is difficult, he could do right away; what is impossible may take a little longer.
The monkey is one of the symbolical animals corresponding to or having affinity with the ninth of the Twelve Terrestrial Branches, called the “Shen” Branch, and symbolizes irrepressible curiosity and creative energy. Though worshiped to some extent by the Buddhists, the Monkey is commonly regarded as the emblem of trickery.
• Lucky Signs for Monkey:
• Lucky Numbers: 1, 7, 8
• Lucky Colors: white, gold, blue
• Lucky Flowers: chrysanthemum, alliums
• Lucky Directions: north, northwest, west