--元宵節-Chap Goh Meh 2011--

Chap Goh Meh or Tzap Goh Mei (Chinese: 十五暝; pinyin: shí wǔ míng; literally "fifteen night") represents the fifteenth and final day of the Lunar New Year period as celebrated by Chinese migrant communities. The term is from the Hokkien dialect and refers to the fifteenth day of the first month, which is the occasion of the first full moon of the New Year.

The occasion is marked by feasting and various festivities, including the consumption of tangyuan and Kue Keranjang. In traditional Chinese culture, it is also celebrated as the Lantern Festival or the Shang Yuan Festival. In Southeast Asia, however, it coincides with the Chinese Valentine's Day. It is also when young unmarried women gather to toss tangerines into the sea, in a hope that their future spouse will pick it up – a custom that originated in Penang, Malaysia. In the past, this was also the only day that unmarried ladies could be seen with their partners.

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元宵節，亦稱為上元節、小正月、元夕、小年或燈節，日本稱上元（じょうげん）、小正月（こしょうがつ），朝鮮稱正月大滿月（정월대만월）、正月大보름（정월대보름，「보름」為固有詞，月圓、望日之意，或簡稱大보름）、上元（상원）、元宵（원소）、元夕（원석）、烏忌日（오기일），時間是每年的農曆正月十五。

元宵節是新年的第一個月圓之夜，象徵著春天的到來，人們吃元宵、賞燈、猜燈謎，以示祝賀。這是春節之後的第一個重要節日。中華明朝錢塘瞿佑《雙頭牡丹燈記》：「每歲元夕，於明州張燈五夜。傾城士女，皆得縱觀」。在這一天，人們要吃元宵，鬧燈會，猜燈謎，提燈籠，許多地方還有拉兔子燈，放天燈的習俗。是華人社會的盛大節日之一。

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~http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chap_Goh_Meh
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~http://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-tw/元宵節
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~http://www.nst.com.my/nst/articles/4chap/Article/
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~http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lantern_Festival
~
~

--红鸡蛋--

在中国民间流传着这样一首民谣：“红鸡蛋，满脸串，今年吃你的喜馍馍，明年吃你的红鸡蛋。”喜馍馍是一种婚庆吉祥的风俗食品，俗传：喜馍馍带回去，亲人吃了得吉利。因此，这句歌谣属于祝福的吉语， 再从字面上理解，此句开头和结尾的两处红鸡蛋代表的含义并不相同，前一个“红鸡蛋”是作为一种圣物出现，有祈子赐福之功；而后一个“红鸡蛋”则成为了孩子 降生的报喜标志，也是一种起宣告作用的物体。向亲友分发用颜料染红的鸡蛋，是通行于全国各地的一种表达喜庆的方式，常用于结婚、生育、做“满月”等各种喜 庆场合，以示庆贺并图吉祥。
~
~
~http://baike.baidu.com/view/10466.htm

--拜天公 2011--

福建人拜天公，除了感恩外，也祈求天公在新的一年，赐福给全家人，让合家大小平安，步步高升。 大年初九凌晨，成千上万的烧猪和鸡、鸭，将是祭拜天公的主要祭品，以祈求新春大吉大利。天公诞的祭拜仪式，是从大年初八深夜开始，一直持续到初九凌晨。 烧猪，是孝敬天公的重点祭品之一，一些经济不错的家庭，甚至订购大烧猪供 拜，而普通的家庭也以小金猪或烧肉祭拜，以祈求天公带来好运。 所以，拜天公这一天，烧猪的销量非常可观。当天祭拜天公的大小烧猪，超过数万只之多。 而早在大年初八，烧猪店推出的大、小烧猪，非常抢手，销量也可观，大家都赶早买烧猪及其它祭拜用品，为夜晚的祭拜天公作好准备。

据乌美2道焱全烧腊中心老板卓照发说，今天大年初八，包括他已接到1000只烧猪的订单，估计可卖出超过1500只大小烧猪，销量不比去年差。往往在大年 初八，就像除夕一样，一清早巴刹就闹哄哄一片，不少人纷纷拥到巴刹购买鸡、鸭、大鱼、大肉和水果，扛着一棵棵的甘蔗回家。 忙碌烹煮一番后，深夜时辰一到，就摆好丰富祭品，安好天公座，点起香烛祭拜天公。祭拜天公的祭品，包括鸡鸭、鱼虾、甘蔗、水果、香烛、大金、小金、香烛、 龙香等等。 拜天公时，必须诚心膜拜，一点不能马虎，早年还要燃烧爆竹，彻夜响个不停，一直拜到大年初九凌晨时分，才圆满结束，这时全家人一起享用丰富年餐，才上床睡 觉。据卓照发说，从订单来看，今年的小金猪最抢手，大金猪销量也不错，他估计年初八从早到晚，会有更多人到店里买大小烧猪，门市估计可卖出数百只大小烧 猪。 卓照发说，农历新年的两个烧猪大旺日，是大年除夕与大年初八。除夕是祭拜神明、祖先的日子。大年初九拜天公，都少不了烧猪。到了大年十五的元宵节，烧猪的 销量也很可观。

拜天公源自明朝。
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~http://www.hudong.com/wiki/天公
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~http://www.praytothecreator.org/cn/cn_praying.html
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~http://baike.baidu.com/view/340720.htm

--Goodnight~Mr.Bean--

Mr. Bean is a British comedy television series of 14 half-hour episodes starring Rowan Atkinson as the title character. Different episodes were written by Atkinson, Robin Driscoll, Richard Curtis and one by Ben Elton. The first episode was broadcast on ITV on 1 January 1990, with the final episode, "Hair by Mr. Bean of London", on 15 November 1995. Based on a character developed by Atkinson at university, the series followed the exploits of Mr. Bean, described by Atkinson as "a child in a grown man's body", in solving various problems presented by everyday tasks and often causing disruption in the process. During its five-year run the series gained large UK audience figures, including 18.74 million for the 1992 episode "The Trouble With Mr. Bean". The series has been the recipient of a number of international awards, including Rose d'Or. The show has been sold in 200 territories worldwide, and has inspired two feature films and an animated cartoon spin-off.
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~http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mr.Bean
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~http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rowan_Atkinson
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~http://www.mrbean.co.uk/uk/
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~http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mr_Bean%27s_Holiday

--Malaysia 2 - 0 Hong Kong--

--年糕~Nián gāo--

年糕是東亞過年的一種傳統食品，年糕與「年高」諧音，有年年高的意思，象徵收入、職位或小孩子都一年比一年高。年糕早期是在年夜用來祭神及供奉祖先，其後漸漸成為一種春節食品。
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Nián gāo, Year cake or Chinese New Year's cake is a food prepared from glutinous rice and consumed in Chinese cuisine. It is available in Asian supermarkets and from health food stores. While it can be eaten all year round, traditionally it is most popular during Chinese New Year. It is considered good luck to eat nian gao during this time, because "nian gao" is a homonym for "higher year." The Chinese word 粘 (nián), meaning "sticky", is identical in sound to 年, meaning "year", and the word 糕 (gāo), meaning "cake" is identical in sound to 高, meaning "high". As such, eating nian gao has the symbolism of raising oneself higher in each coming year (年年高升 niánnián gāoshēng).
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~
~http://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-tw/年糕
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~http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nian_gao
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~http://taiwanpedia.culture.tw/web/content?ID=11658
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~http://chinesefood.about.com/od/chinesenewyear/r/niangao.htm

--人日 2011--

Renri (Chinese:人日, literally Human Day) refers specially to the 7th day of zhengyue (正月, the first month in the Chinese calendar). According to Chinese customs, renri was the day human beings were created. It is celebrated not only in China, but also other regions influenced by Chinese culture.
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“人日”亦称“人胜节”、“人庆节”、“人口日”、“人七日”等。传说女蜗初创世，在造出了鸡狗猪牛马等动物后，于第七天造出了人，所以这一天是人类的生 日。汉朝开始有人日节俗，魏晋后开始重视。古代人日有戴“人胜”的习俗，人胜是一种头饰，又叫彩胜，华胜，从晋朝开始有剪彩为花、剪彩为人，或镂金箔为人 来贴屏风，也戴在头发上。此外还有登高赋诗的习俗。唐代之后，更重视这个节日。每至人日，皇帝赐群臣彩缕人胜，又登高大宴群臣。如果正月初七天气晴朗，则 主一年人口平安，出入顺利。
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~http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renri
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~http://baike.baidu.com/view/6472.htm
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~http://news.xinhuanet.com/newscenter/2008-02/12/content_7592494.htm
~
~

--祖冲之--

The Han Dynasty lasted for 427 years from 206 BC to 220 AD. When it fell, the Three Kingdoms period took its place as local power centers established their own dynasties. They were reunited to form the Jin Dynasty (晋 264 to 420) which lasted 157 years in various forms. The Jin Dynasty was under constant attack from the north as the Xiongnu culture of the northern plains moved south followed by the Jie and the Xianbei. Each were distinct cultures that brought not only war and destruction but new ideas and practices.
~ During and after the Jin Dynasty there was a massive movement of population to the south of the Yangtse River for safety. The Jin Dynasty broke up into small kingdoms. This is called the Sixteen Kingdoms period (五 胡 十 六 国 (304 to 439) and overlaps the establishment of the five Northern and four Southern Dynasties (南 北 朝 386 to 589). The Southern Dynasties had their capitals south of the Yangtse River in Nanjing. The four Southern Dynasties were: Liú-Sòng 刘宋 420-479, Southern Qí 南齐 479-502, Liáng 南梁 502-557, and Chén 南陳 557-589.
~
~
~
~http://hua.umf.maine.edu/China/astronomy/tianpage/0014ZuChongzhi9296bw.html
~
~

--新年 2011--

新年指中国及其他汉字文化圈地区的农历一月一日，传统上称为元旦（与中国现行的公历元旦不同）、岁首、正旦，现在一般称为新年、大年，口头上亦称为过年、 度岁、庆新岁；是东亚许多国家和地区庆祝新年的主要节日。越南语称为“Tết Nguyên Đán”（節元旦）、日语称为“正月”（明治维新后改称旧正月）、韩语称为“설날”（此乃固有词，即新年之意）。
~
春节和年的概念，最初的含意来自农业，古时人们把谷的生长周期称 为“年”。《说文·禾部》：“年，谷熟也。”在夏商时代产生了夏历，以月亮圆缺的周期为月，一年划分为十二个月，每月以不见月亮的那天为朔，正月朔日的子 时称为岁首，即一年的开始，也叫年，年的名称是从周朝开始的，至了西汉才正式固定下来，一直延续到今天。但古时的正月初一被称为“元旦”，直到中国近代辛 亥革命胜利后，南京临时政府为了顺应农时和便于统计，规定在民间使用夏历，在政府机关、厂矿、学校和团体中实行公历。

1949年9月27日，在中国人民政治协商会议第一届全体会议上，通过了使用世界上通用的公历纪元，把公历的元月一日定为元旦，俗称阳历年；农历正月初一通常都在立春前后，因而把农历正月初一定为“春节”，俗称阴历年。

　　传统意义上的春节是指从腊月初八的腊祭或腊月二十三的祭灶，一直直到正月十五，其中以除夕和正月初一为高潮。在春节这一传统节日期间，我国的汉族和大多数少数民族都有要举行各种庆祝活动，这些活动大多以祭祀神佛、祭奠祖先、除旧布新、迎禧接福、祈求丰年为主要内容。活动形式丰富多彩，带有浓郁的民族特色。

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~
~http://www.hudong.com/wiki/新年
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~http://baike.baidu.com/view/67771.htm
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~http://www.qicaispace.com/count/newyear/
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~http://baike.soso.com/v173264.htm

--Gong Xi Fa Cai

Chinese New Year – often called Chinese Lunar New Year although it actually is lunisolar – is the most important of the traditional Chinese holidays. Despite its winter occurrence, in China it is known as "Spring Festival," the literal translation of the Chinese name 春节 (Pinyin: Chūn Jié), owing to the difference between Western and traditional Chinese methods for computing the seasons. The festival begins on the first day of the first month (Chinese: 正月; pinyin: Zhēng Yuè) in the traditional Chinese calendar and ends with Lantern Festival which is on the 15th day. Chinese New Year's Eve, a day where Chinese families gather for their annual reunion dinner, is known as Chú Xī (除夕) or "Eve of the Passing Year."
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~http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gong_Xi_Fa_Cai#Greetings
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~http://goodcharacters.com/newsletters/gong-xi-fa-cai.html
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~http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Gong+Xi+Fa+Chai&defid=441970
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~http://mangaweekend.wordpress.com/2011/02/03/%E6%81%AD%E7%A6%A7%E5%8F%91%E8%B4%A2-gong-xi-fa-cai/

--除夕夜--

除夕：读作chú xī ；英文： Chinese New Year's Eve，又称Lunar New Year's Eve。除夕是我国传统节日中最重大的节日之一。指农历一年最后一天的晚上，即春节前一天晚，因常在夏历腊月三十或二十九，故又称该日为年三十。一年的最后一天叫“岁除”，那天晚上叫“除夕”。除夕人们往往通宵不眠，叫守岁。苏轼有《守岁》：“儿童强不睡，相守夜欢哗。”除夕这一天，家里家外不但要打扫得干干净净，还要贴门神、贴春联、贴年画、挂门笼，人们则换上带喜庆色彩和带图案的新衣。
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Chinese New Year - often called Chinese Lunar New Year although it actually is lunisolar - is the most important of the traditional Chinese holidays. Despite its winter occurrence, in China it is known as "Spring Festival," the literal translation of the Chinese name 春节 (Pinyin: Chūn Jié), owing to the difference between Western and traditional Chinese methods for computing the seasons. The festival begins on the first day of the first month (Chinese: 正月; pinyin: Zhēng Yuè) in the traditional Chinese calendar and ends with Lantern Festival which is on the 15th day. Chinese New Year's Eve, a day where Chinese families gather for their annual reunion dinner, is known as Chú Xī (除夕) or "Eve of the Passing Year."
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~
~http://baike.baidu.com/view/2562.htm
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~http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_New_Year

--团圆饭~Reunion Dinner--

团圆饭（family reunion dinner） 。中国的春节，“吃”往往会成为大部分人节日期间的主要活动，一家人围坐在热气腾腾的饭桌旁，就是透着那么一股喜庆热闹劲儿，这可以算是中国民间过年的最大特点了。“民以食为天”这句话似乎在春节这个传统佳节更加显得入情入理。
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~http://baike.baidu.com/view/776810.htm
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~http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reunion_Dinner
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~http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_New_Year

--The Year Of Rabbit 2011--

Why not have a look below to get a free forecast of what 2011, the Year of the Rabbit, holds for you! You’ll also find out what personal traits you need to let shine through the coming year!
~

The history of the Chinese Zodiac is very interesting! It is said that Buddha invited all of the animals in the world to join him for the New Year celebrations, but only 12 animals bothered to turn up. As a great reward, Buddha named a year after each one of them and they actually run in the order that the animals arrived to celebrate with Buddha, starting with the rat and ending with the last guest, the pig.

The Chinese believe that those born during a year of a particular animal would inherit some of the good and bad personality traits of that animal.

Also, each Chinese year is influenced by whatever animal it falls in. The Year of The Rabbit begins on February 3rd 2011. Most Rabbit years are quiet, positive and inspiring and 2011 looks to be heading in this direction – a refreshing change after the fast-moving and quite dramatic Year of the Tiger. Family, diplomacy and personal development will all be highlighted in 2011. Once again alternative sources of energy and green living will be under the spotlight. The arts and culture sector of society will very busy producing amazing works of art and staging important exhibitions throughout the year. Love, romance and family life are well-starred, with a renewed appreciation of loved ones and friends. Overall, it should be a fun and relatively peaceful year. Even though aggression, violence and war zones will still be in evidence, the Chinese Rabbit year favours peaceful solutions and diplomacy, so there will be a feeling that all is not lost and that hope is still very much alive.

Let’s take a look at each animal, their major personality traits and what the prospects are for 2011, the Year of the Rabbit.

~

~http://www.moonslipper.com/chinese.html

--Nian~~年獸--

In Chinese mythology, a Nian (simplified Chinese: 年兽; traditional Chinese: 年獸; pinyin: nián shòu) is a beast that lives under the sea or in the mountains. Once each spring, on or around Chinese New Year, it comes out of hiding to attack people, especially children. The Nian is sensitive to loud noises and is afraid of the color red. The Chinese Lion Dance is known to have originated from the legend of the Nian. The tradition began when a Nian attacked a village. After the attack, the villagers discussed how to make the Nian leave them alone. Eventually they came up with a plan where drums, plates and empty bowls were hit, red robes were worn, and firecrackers were thrown, causing loud banging sounds that would scare off the Nian. This scared the Nian, and since that time, the Nian has not appeared in the village again. The Nian is still believed to exist, but that it is scattered about the jungle and mountains, never to appear in front of a human again.
~
年獸是一種傳說生物。相傳在遠古時代，有一種頭如獅子身如壯牛的兇惡怪獸叫「年」，一年四季都在深海裡，但逢新舊歲之交，便出來糟蹋莊稼，傷害人畜，百姓叫苦連天。有一次它又跑到村莊裡為非作歹，被一家門口晾的大紅衣服嚇跑了。到了另一處，又被燈光嚇得抱頭鼠竄。於是人們掌握了「年」怕聲音、怕紅色、怕火光的弱點。每至年末歲首，人們就在家門口貼紅聯、放鞭炮、掛紅燈，院子里燒柴禾、攏旺火，用菜刀剁菜肉，發出聲音，把「年」嚇得逃回海裡，不再危害人們。人們得以安全。
~
據說被鴻鈞老祖收服，成為其坐騎。
~
~http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nian
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~http://www.monstropedia.org/index.php?title=Nian
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~http://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-tw/年獸

--虎去兔来--

虎年将尽，新世纪的第一个兔年在下星期后便会到来，虎年中、港、美股表现并不算弱，先挫后升，在去年年底时也差不多收复全年失地。兔年股汇市走势如何，市 场意见分歧。主流意见认为股市会升，主要是美元贬值，而人民币和商品货币会继续升值。无论如何，希望不是脱缰野兔，到处狂奔乱闯，造成破坏。个人仍偏向认 为，如以一年为限，上半年整体金融市场，应会出现大幅波动的调整，但会是伺低吸纳之机会。笔者自一月初便重复指出巿场内里暗涌不减，不要被四方唱好的气氛 降低警觉性，中国连串政策带来之连锁收缩效应，极可能在第二季便开始陆续浮现。但在这之前，上调准备金率、减慢信贷等将陆续有来，一定会在出现实质效果时 才会停止，但可能在发觉「落药过重」之时，已经迟了一步，到时想再重新加速便有难度。希望中国能从外国央行过去之错误中领会，「微调」经济结果往往出人意 表，不要操之过急，要预留多一些空间让经济和市场自行调节疗伤复原，否则后遗症会更严重。其实通胀不是头号大敌，今年经济的头号大敌是「没有适当及有效之 方法」去「微调达到平衡」！
~
~
~http://www.cnforex.com/person/033cc68409ea7747.aspx

--農曆新年 香港 舞獅 1999 ~ 12years ago...same Rabbit year in Hong Kong--

--Japanese New Year Song--

The Japanese celebrate New Year's Day on January 1 each year on the Gregorian Calendar. Before 1873, the date of the Japanese New Year (正月, shōgatsu?) was based on the Chinese lunar calendar, just as the contemporary Chinese, Korean and Vietnamese New Years are celebrated to this day. However, in 1873, five years after the Meiji Restoration, Japan adopted the Gregorian calendar, so the first day of January is the official New Year's Day in modern Japan. It is considered by most Japanese to be one of the most important annual festivals and has been celebrated for centuries with its own unique customs. Due to the importance of the holiday and the preparations required, the preceding days are quite busy, particularly New Year's Eve, known as Ōmisoka.
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~http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_New_Year