An insightful article on Chinese legends!

Lantern Festival, also called Shangyuan Festival, is celebrated on January 15 of Chinese lunar calendar. It is the first full moon night in the Chinese lunar year, symbolizing the coming back of the spring. Lantern Festival may be regarded as the last day of Spring Festival, the new-year festival of China, in other words, the Spring Festival does not end until the Lantern Festival has passed. WOW! An interesting article on the lantern festival!

Given the importance of food in Chinese culture, it is not surprising that food plays a major role in Chinese New Year celebrations. "Lucky" foods are served through the two week Chinese New Year celebration, also called the Spring festival. What gives a certain food symbolic significance? Sometimes it is based on appearance. New year foods that are considered lucky!

"The tradition of the Red Envelope began many centuries ago in China. In Feng Shui, red envelopes, ("ang pow" pronounced hong boa or lisee- lay see), are used in Black Sect Tibetan Tantric Buddhism as an honorable tradition, affording payment to the Feng Shui practitioner." An interesting article on the red envelopes given to children during the new year.

"The Chinese New Year is indisputably China's biggest holiday. The one in 2011 marked the beginning of the Chinese year 4708. Chinese New Year shifts somewhat over January and February. In 2011 it started on February 3. The entire holiday period is called chunjie , or spring festival (Chinese consider spring to be the beginning of the new year)." Basic Information on Chinese New Year