Tag Archives: chinese new year

A Chinese Valentine

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Chap Goh Mei (or 15th Night in the Hokkien dialect) is the last day of Chinese New Year. After 15 days of non-stop blasting and feasting, the Chinese New Year celebrations come to an end, tonight.

In a peculiar tradition, maidens throw oranges into rivers hoping the guy who fished it out becomes her life match. As such, Chap Goh Mei is sometimes known as the Chinese Valentine’s Day.

In the old days, it was mostly spinsters throwing the bait. Nowadays, you see many teen girls writing their E-mail and Facebook addresses (with waterproof ink) on Mandarin oranges. Greedy guys would scoop up several oranges at one go and chuck those with names they don’t fancy.

Photographed tonight at Taman Jaya Lake, Petaling Jaya.

Olympus OM-D, ISO 4000, f3.5, 1/30 sec.

A Chinese Valentine

The Big Kampung

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In the old days, our newspapers would routinely feature a picture of a deserted Batu Road in front of Globe Silk Store. It was to show how deserted the city was during a major holiday and exodus.

Kuala Lumpur is no longer the ghost town it used to be during the Chinese New Year. Jalan Bukit Bintang (a.k.a. Jalan Urut Kaki), Jalan Alor and the Chinatown area were jam-packed with people and vehicles on the first night of Chinese New Year, last night. Millions were born here, grew up and have since made the city the only home they know.

Olympus OM-D, ISO 1000, f4.3, 1/40 sec.

Jalan Urut Kaki