What is Chinese New Year?
Chinese New Year is the festival that celebrates the begining of a new year in traditional Chinese Calendar.
Chinese New Year is one of the most important holidays in China and of China’s neighbouring cultures including Singapore, Indonesia, Malasia, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Mauritius, and the Philippines, as well as North American and Europe.
The New Year’s Day is frequently regarded as an occasion for Chinese families to gather for the annual reunion dinner.
It is also traditional for every family to thoroughly clean their house, in order to sweep away any ill-fortune and to make way for incoming good luck.
When is Chinese New Year?
The lunisolar Chinese calendar determines the date of Chinese New Year. The calendar is also used in countries that have been influenced by, or have relations with, China – such as Korea, Japan and Vietnam.
The first day of Chinese New Year begins on the new moon that appears between 21 January and 20 February. Lunar New Year is a public holiday in several countries in East Asia.
This means the New Year can begin anytime from January 21st through to February 21st.
The first day of the Chinese New Year will be on Friday, 12 February, which is the year of the Metal Ox.
What is the Chinese zodiac animal for 2021?
There are 12 animals that make up the Chinese zodiac.
Each year in the Chinese calendar is represented by one of twelve animals in the Chinese Zodiac. 2021 will be the year of the Ox. The Ox is the second of the 12 animal signs of the Chinese zodiac.
The zodiac also cycles through five inanimate elements: wood, fire, earth, metal, water; so 2021 will specifically be the Year of the Metal Ox.
According to the Chinese zodiac, people born in a Year of the Ox are diligent, dependable, strong, and determined. However, they can also be stubborn, and might not have the best communication skills.
People all over the world have their own Chinese zodiac animal based on the year of their birth.
How Chinese New Year is Celebrated around the World?
Chinese New Year celebrations are not limited just to mainland China and those countries that observe it as a public holiday.
Chinese communities to the more recent Chinatowns such as Sydney, London, San Francisco, Vancouver, Los Angeles will mark Chinese New Year, with parades and lion dances attracting large crowds.
Iconic landmarks around the world such as the Tokyo Tower and the London Eye will turn red to mark the new year.
Chinese new year is also celebrated in the Philippines.
Is Chinese New Year a Holiday in the Philippines?
In the Philippines, holidays are grouped into two categories: Regular Holidays and Special Non-Working Days. In Salarium, these are categorized as Regular Holidays and Special Holidays.
For Regular Holidays, every employee covered by the Holiday Pay Rule is entitled to the minimum wage rate(daily basic wage and COLA). This means that the employee is entitled to at least 100% of their minimum wage rate even if they did not report for work.
For Special Holidays, the “No work, No pay” principle applies and on such other Special Holidays as may be proclaimed by the President or by Congress.
Chinese New Year is a special non-working holiday, which means that it is not a paid holiday, but if employees do work on the day then they are entitled to 30 percent extra pay for the hours worked.
Chinese New Year and Your Home
In China, celebrations focus on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day, much like in Western cultures … but the Chinese start getting ready for the New Year weeks in advance by giving their homes a Feng Shui makeover.
The Chinese believe that bad energy can get stuck in spaces that are messy, dirty, or too cluttered, so the first step in any Feng Shui makeover is to make room for good energy by giving your home a thorough cleaning.
Blooming plants are also considered to bring good luck, you can replant them outside your homes. These items also make good Chinese New Year gifts.
Celebrating Chinese New Year at Lipa City
No Chinese New Year celebration would be complete without the entertaining Chinese Dragon Dance to chase away negative energies and bring in success for the new year. Chinese Dragon Dance is a tradition at SM City Lipa. To welcome the year with wealth and abundance, celebrate Chinese New Year.
Lipa City during this time enjoys a colder climate because of its high altitude with 1,225 ft above sea level which is next to Baguio and Tagaytay cities of Luzon.
Lipa is also famous for its thick noodle soup known as “Lomi”. Lomi of Lipa originated in 1968 from To Kim Eng from China who came to live in Lipa. Everywhere you go in Lipa, there will always be a Lomi store to eat.
There’s a lot to do on this day – Make a lantern, party hard and enjoy the Chinese New Year like never before.
