Reunion time and welcoming the new year

It is important that all immediate members of the family be together during this time. As some live far away, the journey home for them begins a few days before Chinese New Year. The significance of the reunion and excitement of the big dinner to follow makes such trips back home an event in itself. No matter how tired one may be after the journey, all family members are present during the reunion dinner.

The dishes served, needless to say, are not things that are found on the table every day! All dishes have auspicious names or use ingredients that sound auspicious, for example fish, prawns, abalone, dried oysters, lettuce, black sea moss (fatt choy), long noodles, lotus seeds, ginkgo nuts, dried bean curd and bamboo shoots.

Must-have snacks include mandarin oranges, roasted pumpkin or melon seeds and peanuts. Eating eight types of such auspicious foods is believed to bring plenty of luck to the family.

To usher in the new year, family members young and old do not sleep. To keep awake, they will spend the night playing cards, mahjong, watching festive TV programmes, playing with fireworks or just have a good time chatting with one another.