Posted to Monash Weekly on 7/2/2012
Title: Chinese New Year Celebration 2012
Compare with previous years, the attendance was much lower. Even close to 1 pm, Kingsway was not packed. Some stalls were not open for business, and the queues at the food stalls were short and not as "deep". Conspicuously missing were the popular DVD stalls, but there were two "traders" selling DVDs in the pavement.
The very hot weather could have turned a lot of the people away. It could possibly due to this being the last Chinese New Year (CNY) celebration around Melbourne - CNY celebration fatigue.
Beads of sweat rolled down my face, and the day was hot! I played safe to have my lunch at a Grand Tofu cafe/restaurant, which I hoped the food hygiene standards were better observed.
The ground outside the Monash Library seemed to be the real cultural hub. Chinese Association of Victoria conducted several activities including lantern painting, origami making, calligraphy demonstration, and the good old tradition of solving the classical riddles written on strips of paper hung from the tent "ceiling". Other Chinese schools and associations were there as well. This patch was a lot more crowded than the food stalls.
I took a few photos of the non-Chinese dance performance on stage. The dancers wore red - the only thing that was close to Chinese tradition!
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2834859783541.2123412.1020578094&type=3&l=0f8b69dada
It was very difficult to "shoot" the lion in action because there was hardly any room to move about, let alone trying to get to the front of the crowd to capture the lion's movement close to the ground. I don't have a good camera, and cannot capture the action well at high speed.
The Lion went from shop-to-shop. It moved about on the ground, leapt in the air, lifted high to get the red packet containing money tied together with a complete lettuce to a beam above the pavement. The Lion "drank" a bottle of beer, and was likely exceeded .05. Its tail moved about like a real drunkard; it also rolled on the ground and "laughed" - well it did open its mouth flap wide.
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2834912664863.2123414.1020578094&type=3&l=8af6596af4
Suddenly, the Water Dragon arrived in the City of Monash in its true form, brought along buckets of rain. Astrologically speaking, Lunar New Year began on 23/1/2012, but the Year of the Dragon actually started on 4/2/2012. This year is the Year of the Water Dragon, and it is a Black Dragon.
http://www.facebook.com/notes/sin-fong-chan-the-teacher/lesson-on-chinese-new-year-and-the-year-of-dragon/196474710450530
By now, Kingsway was deserted, and one could roll a bowling ball down the street without knocking down any pedestrian. The street was wet, and the Dragon leader asked his team members to stay put in the pavement until the rain stopped.
There were activities in the Century Walk, including the Vietnamese spring roll demonstration. I got in just at the right time; I had the last piece of spring roll from the demonstrator!
Depressed sales drove some of the more “dynamic” stallholders go round taking orders from anyone and everyone they could approach, and delivered them freshly cooked from the stalls. Eat your heart out online ordering, this is human-base customer service.
I had enough for the afternoon, and left at 4:45 pm. The sun was still hiding behind the clouds, and for more than an hour. I wanted to return to Kingsway for more fun and action, but I suffered from CYN celebration constipation! And so, I leave the reporting to someone else who attended the later part of the celebration.
Until next time, have a wonderful year. May the Dragon bring you lots and lots of water or its equivalence – wealth!
Title: Chinese New Year Celebration 2012
Compare with previous years, the attendance was much lower. Even close to 1 pm, Kingsway was not packed. Some stalls were not open for business, and the queues at the food stalls were short and not as "deep". Conspicuously missing were the popular DVD stalls, but there were two "traders" selling DVDs in the pavement.
The very hot weather could have turned a lot of the people away. It could possibly due to this being the last Chinese New Year (CNY) celebration around Melbourne - CNY celebration fatigue.
Beads of sweat rolled down my face, and the day was hot! I played safe to have my lunch at a Grand Tofu cafe/restaurant, which I hoped the food hygiene standards were better observed.
The ground outside the Monash Library seemed to be the real cultural hub. Chinese Association of Victoria conducted several activities including lantern painting, origami making, calligraphy demonstration, and the good old tradition of solving the classical riddles written on strips of paper hung from the tent "ceiling". Other Chinese schools and associations were there as well. This patch was a lot more crowded than the food stalls.
I took a few photos of the non-Chinese dance performance on stage. The dancers wore red - the only thing that was close to Chinese tradition!
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2834859783541.2123412.1020578094&type=3&l=0f8b69dada
It was very difficult to "shoot" the lion in action because there was hardly any room to move about, let alone trying to get to the front of the crowd to capture the lion's movement close to the ground. I don't have a good camera, and cannot capture the action well at high speed.
The Lion went from shop-to-shop. It moved about on the ground, leapt in the air, lifted high to get the red packet containing money tied together with a complete lettuce to a beam above the pavement. The Lion "drank" a bottle of beer, and was likely exceeded .05. Its tail moved about like a real drunkard; it also rolled on the ground and "laughed" - well it did open its mouth flap wide.
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2834912664863.2123414.1020578094&type=3&l=8af6596af4
Suddenly, the Water Dragon arrived in the City of Monash in its true form, brought along buckets of rain. Astrologically speaking, Lunar New Year began on 23/1/2012, but the Year of the Dragon actually started on 4/2/2012. This year is the Year of the Water Dragon, and it is a Black Dragon.
http://www.facebook.com/notes/sin-fong-chan-the-teacher/lesson-on-chinese-new-year-and-the-year-of-dragon/196474710450530
By now, Kingsway was deserted, and one could roll a bowling ball down the street without knocking down any pedestrian. The street was wet, and the Dragon leader asked his team members to stay put in the pavement until the rain stopped.
There were activities in the Century Walk, including the Vietnamese spring roll demonstration. I got in just at the right time; I had the last piece of spring roll from the demonstrator!
Depressed sales drove some of the more “dynamic” stallholders go round taking orders from anyone and everyone they could approach, and delivered them freshly cooked from the stalls. Eat your heart out online ordering, this is human-base customer service.
I had enough for the afternoon, and left at 4:45 pm. The sun was still hiding behind the clouds, and for more than an hour. I wanted to return to Kingsway for more fun and action, but I suffered from CYN celebration constipation! And so, I leave the reporting to someone else who attended the later part of the celebration.
Until next time, have a wonderful year. May the Dragon bring you lots and lots of water or its equivalence – wealth!
