Happy Chinese New Year everyone.

This year, according to the Chinese calendar, the Spring Festival or the Year of the Fire Monkey began yesterday and continues until the Lantern festival, on the 15th day of the New Year.

Spring Festival celebrations are happening around the world while local celebrations have started. Some are waiting until the weekend to begin their festivities.

Some may ask why the Year of the Fire Monkey? Well each year is associated with a Chinese zodiac animal sign. This also includes the five important elements: Gold, Water, Wood, Fire or Earth.

In China, Chinese New Year is very important because it is the time for family reunion.

Family members gather together to celebrate it, just like the Christmas Season in the western countries. No matter how far away from home they may be.

Except for some Chinese diplomats who are away from home and cannot make it back home but send their well wishes.

People born in the Year of the Monkey are said to be smart, clever and intelligent, especially in their career and wealth. But it is also believed to be one of the most unlucky years in the Chinese calendar.

For some monkey is a symbol of flexibility and wisdom. So for this New Year, many hope for a flexible and wise way of co-operatively working closely with the people of different cultures and backgrounds.

China is one of the powerhouses of the world.  Last year marked the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relationship between China and Fiji. It continues to grow stronger.

The next Year of the Monkey will be in 2028.

In Chinese astrology, the 12 animal zodiac signs each have unique characteristics:

Some believe that the following activities are among those that should be avoided on the first day of the Chinese New Year:

1. Medicine: Taking medicine on the first day of the lunar year means one will get ill for a whole year.
2. New Year’s breakfast: Porridge should not be eaten, because it is considered that only poor people have porridge for breakfast, and people don’t want to start the year “poor” as this is a bad omen.
3. Laundry: People do not wash clothes on the first and second day, because these two days are celebrated as the birthday of Shuishen ( the Water God).
4. Washing hair: Hair must not be washed on the first day of the lunar year. In the Chinese language, hair has the same pronunciation and character as ‘fa’ in facai), which means ’to become wealthy’. Therefore, it is seen as not a good thing to “wash one’s fortune away” at the beginning of the New Year.

The Fijian Chinese community has been growing steadily in strength over the years. The Chinese New Year celebrations add to the richness of our cultural diversity.