Do you feel the mood?

I have a new CNY banner! I have temporarily replaced my tree of love (representative of Life of Lopsided 8 blog) with the colours and peach blossoms of Spring, filled with auspicious red packets, tangerines as well as fire crackers. I also added the Golden Boy and Jade Maiden 金童玉女 heralding the coming of Spring 春- the Lunar Chinese Year.

I know the banner looks a bit "busy" with so many auspicious items, but "busy" is good for the new year. Hehe...

Ang Pow
Ang Pow also known as "red packets", are considered extremely auspicious to receive as a gift and even more auspicious as they contain money inside, filled with the good wishes of the giver to the recipient.

Peach Blossoms
In Chinese culture, the peach is a symbol of longevity, and is believed to defend against evil. Historically, peach blossoms were placed above front doors to stop evil spirits from entering the house. Peach blossoms that bloom during the New Year period indicate good fortune for the ensuing twelve months.

Fire Crackers
Another belief is that the exploding noise of the firecrackers will scare away all evil spirits and misfortunes, preventing them from coming into the New Year. In the Chinese New Year Parade, it is customary to throw firecrackers at the feet of the dragons in the parade to keep them awake for the celebration. Around the dragon dance in the parade, lots and lots of firecrackers are set off to they drive away the evil spirits.

Fortune Boy & Jade Maiden
Fortune Boy and Fortune Girl in Chinese traditional folk custom represented by wearing brilliant dresses. The red banner on their top are inscribed with 福 "Fu", carrying the meaning of the coming of the happiness, and "Fu" means happiness, as well as 春 "Chun", meaning the arrival of Spring.

Tangerines
You will often find tangerines, oranges and kumquats in Chinese homes. This is because they are considered to be very fortunate. Tangerines and kumquats are symbolic of good luck, and oranges are symbolic of wealth. This has come about through a play on words in the Chinese language. The word for tangerine 橘 sounds same as "gold" in Chinese, and the word for orange sounds the same as "wealth".

So are you in the mood for the chinese new year yet?