CLSC's 9th Annual Chinese New Year Festival made the front pages of all area papers for the 9th year in a row...huge thanks to Anita Lai, Dana Lupton, Terri Kung, Samantha Connell and the intrepid Chinese New Year Volunteer Committee for their stupendous efforts again this year!
From www.greenwichcitizen.com.
Photo: Julie Ruth / Greenwich Citizen
Greenwich resident Emanuel Lai, 8, gets to stay up really late one night each year: Chinese New Year's Eve. How late? "Till he passes out," said his mother Anita Lai, laughing. "Traditionally you let children stay up late that night because it's a way children wish longevity for their parents."
The Chinese New Year, also called Asian New Year, will be celebrated in Greenwich, as it is around the world, with plenty of ancient customs and family-centered dinners of dumplings and noodles, fish and other traditional dishes.
Cynthia Chang, a Greenwich resident who is Chinese but grew up in Taiwan, said the Chinese New Year celebrates multi-generational families and is a time when people pay respect to their elders and ancestors.
In China, people will pick up and travel for the Chinese New Year to the graves of their ancestors to pay their respects and thank them for what they have done for the current generations, said Chang.
It is also time to start fresh, and Chinese families in town will observe many customs that represent a new beginning. "For the New Year, you don't want your old clothes with you; you want new clothes," Lai explained. "We'll first clean the house in the morning to sweep out old spirits, and, when we're ready, we'll dress ourselves in new clothes. If you wear something red, that's even better, because it means very good luck in Chinese culture."
Though the Chinese New Year falls on Feb. 3 this year, the celebration officially began last Sunday for more than 30 Greenwich families with a festival in Stamford sponsored by the Greenwich-based Chinese Language School of Connecticut (CLSC), a non-profit school that teaches Mandarin Chinese as a second language along with lessons about Chinese culture.
The festival, which doubles as a fundraiser for CLCS, also drew children and parents around Westchester and Fairfield County. Some are Chinese and want their children to learn or retain the language and culture. Others have adopted children and want them to stay connected with their Chinese heritage, and still others simply want their children to learn about Chinese culture.
The Chinese Language School of Connecticut is relatively new; it has only offered the festival since the school opened in 2002, when parent Susan Serven and other area parents co-founded the school. But it has fast become the center of a vibrant and diverse community in Greenwich that wants its children to know and appreciate Chinese culture and language.
Greenwich resident Mary Murphy, who spent much of her childhood in Thailand, already had strong ties to Asian culture before she and her husband adopted daughter Robin, 5, from Southeast Asia. She enrolled her in the school because she feels it is very important for Robin to learn Mandarin. "It's her biological heritage and it will also be a huge advantage for her to speak Mandarin. It's a beautiful language," Murphy said.
English-born Anita Lai, who chaired the festival, felt it was important to teach her son, whose father is Chinese, about Asian culture, so he studies Mandarin and Chinese culture on Sundays year-round. "I didn't want Emanuel to lose that beautiful culture and those rich traditions: the art, singing styles, the instruments, the calligraphy, the beautiful characters, the traditions for everything," Lai said.
CLSC's New Year celebration this year featured the ancient Chinese dragon and lion dances, a musical performance by the Chinese Musical Ensemble, a martial arts demonstration, Chinese arts and crafts along with traditional Chinese New Year dishes, such as long noodles -- which are eaten uncut -- to symbolize a long life. "Almost every dish has a symbolic meaning or name that sounds like a Chinese character for fortune, happiness longevity and prosperity," explained Lai. "There're very traditional foods, like dumplings, which promise wealth and prosperity, fish prepared whole, special vegetables, jello with fruit, Hong Kong-style egg tarts -- you could go on and on about what they stand for."
For months CLCS children prepared to perform the Chinese dragon dance, a highlight of the festivities. The dragon, an emblem of the Chinese emperors, appears on Chinese New Year to wish everyone peace, prosperity and good luck. Another highlight came when several performers in a large multi-colored lion costume pranced around to the sound of drums, to ward off evil spirits. According to tradition, children, many in Mandarin garb, fed the lion red envelopes with money. "The lion's coming and he's hungry. He's getting rid of all of bad stuff that happened and bringing in the new year, and you give him the traditional red envelopes to thank him for doing his job," Lai explained.
Last week the Second Congregational Church also held a Chinese New Year celebration, which 100 peoople attended. The church also houses classrooms for the CLSC in its preschool building. "It's great; we get to teach the pre-schoolers about Chinese culture," said Chang.
Though the New Year will be a family-centered celebration, it will be observed differently by Greenwich residents. "We like to go down into Chinatown in the city and really get an authentic Chinese meal," Murphy said. "It's a lot of fun; you have banquet-style eating, with the family all sitting in a circle."
Lai will be cooking for family in her home, while Chang will follow a tradition that her family began in Taiwan. "We always have a group of family and close friends with us. We'll select a restaurant on the West side in Manhattan and have a big new year's dinner," she said.
After family dinner celebrations, the elders in the family traditionally give the children good luck money: red envelopes with crisp dollar bills. The amount in the envelope? It varies by family, but one thing, Chang says, is for sure: the amount will not contain a four, which is bad luck. Best to slip an amount in that has an eight in the total: it's the Chinese lucky number.
NOTE: The Chinese Language School of Connecticut will hold an open house for interested families on Sunday, April 17. Registration opens on Sunday, May 1.
For more details, visit www.chineselanguageschool.org. You can also contact the school by phone at 866-301-4906 or email: info@chineselanguageschool.org.
CLSC holds classes on Sundays at Eastern Middle School, 51 Hendrie Avenue, in Riverside, and on weekdays at the Second Congregational Church, Room 19, 139 E. Putnam Ave,, Greenwich, CT 06830.
Photo: Julie Ruth / Greenwich Citizen
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