EYE OF THE TIGER!

EYE OF THE TIGER!

✦ Celebrations for 2022 are not over yet… Not with Lunar New Year on its way!

Come 1st of February 2022, millions of people around the world will be celebrating a new year - the Lunar New Year.

Do you know?

• Lunar New Year dates from 2600 BC.

• A complete cycle takes 60 years, divided into 12 year elements which is a repeating 12-year cycle of animal signs and their ascribed attributes, based on the lunar calendar. In order, the zodiac animals are: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, Pig.

• Each of these 12 years is named after an animal favoured by the Buddha.

• The year you were born in is said to influence your personality.

This year’s animal in the Chinese zodiac will be the Tiger, an animal known for its power, fearlessness and passion. For those who are interested in knowing what the Tiger year may bring

Culture goes digital

Major banks in Singapore such as Citibank, DBS, OCBS, Maybank, Standard Chartered and UOB offer e-hong bao services. To show users how easy it is to send e-hong baos, banks such as DBS have created videos or guides for users.

Photo credit: DBS Bank

We're talking E-red packets, believe it or not!

In China, people use the payment mode of their messaging app, WeChat, to send these “hong baos” to friends and family.

In Singapore, there is a movement towards “e-hong baos” for various reasons. According to the Monetary Authority of Singapore, using e-hong baos in place of physical red packets and currency notes is “environmentally more sustainable as it reduces the printing and subsequent wastage of new notes that are returned by the public to banks after each Lunar New Year.”

Celebrate Lunar New Year with auspicious food

For longevity, My Blue Tea shares a Singapore Noodles Recipe with a boost of Sambal Tumis.

For good luck and wealth, toss some salad. “Yusheng" is a must-have element during Chinese New Year.

Common Chinese New Year greetings

Happy New Year 新年快乐Happy New Spring 新春快乐

Gong Xi Fa Cai / Kong Hee Fatt Choy (wishing you happiness and prosperity) 恭喜发财