Monday, January 24, 2011
Chinese New Year in Singapore
Chinese New Year in Singapore marks the debut of the Year of the Rabbit in style, with a fantastic celebration spanning the whole island. The celebrations begin on January 15 with the Street Light-up, with Chinese New Year proper beginning on the evening of February 2 and continuing till the Chinatown Yuan Xiao Jie on February 12.
Chinese New Year in Singapore kicks off in the ethnic enclave of Chinatown, particularly along Eu Tong Sen Street and New Bridge Road. Beginning on January 15, the Chinatown Chinese New Year Celebrations transform the island-state's traditional Chinese enclave into a riot of lanterns, street stalls, and performing arts, with celebrations extending as far as Marina Bay. (Find out more about Shopping in Chinatown, Singapore.)
Look forward to a few key events of the season: a Street Light-Up, a Festive Street Bazaar, Nightly Stage Shows, and Chinatown Yuan Xiao Jie. The festivities can be very easily reached by MRT, simply alight at Chinatown MRT Station (NE4/DT19).
Street Light-Up. Key streets in Chinatown - Eu Tong Sen Street, New Bridge Road, South Bridge Road, and Garden Bridge - will be lit up with traditional Chinese lanterns and colorful street lights while street performers and acrobats (not to mention the inevitable lion dancers) liven up the lanes. Local Singaporean celebrities will also show up to get the party going. The Light-Up Ceremony happens on January 15, 2011, from 6pm- 10pm.
Festive Street Bazaar. Chinatown will host more than five hundred stalls selling traditional foods, flowers, Chinese handicrafts, and customary New Year decorations. Have a go at barbecued sweetmeats, waxed duck, and cookies served fresh on the street, or pick up some traditional Chinese New Year decorations to remember the day by.
The 2011 Bazaar will last run from January 14 to February 2, covering Pagoda Street, Smith Street, Sago Street, Temple and Trengganu Streets, and People’s Park Complex.
Chinese New Year Countdown. Ring in the Chinese New Year in Singapore's Chinatown on February 2, as you join the locals and local celebrities alike with firecrackers and fireworks going off all through the evening. From 9:30pm to 12:30am, along Eu Tong Sen Street & New Bridge Road.
Chinatown Yuan Xiao Jie. The last day of Chinese New Year 2011 (February 12) serves as the high point of the celebrations. This day's celebrations will center around Eu Tong Sen Street and New Bridge Road, from 7pm to 10pm.
Nightly Stage Shows. Local and overseas cultural performance troupes take the stage, exhibiting traditional Chinese performances like martial arts, lion dances, and Chinese opera. Come to the Kreta Ayer Square, next to the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple, to see acts unfolding every night from January 15 to February 2, from 8pm to 10.30pm.
Moving on to the Singapore riverside, The Float @ Marina Bay hosts the yearly Singapore River Hong Bao carnival from February 1 to 13. The "Hong Bao" derives its name from the traditional red packets of money given by older Chinese to unmarried younger relatives during Chinese New Year.
Nightly cultural performances and traditional Chinese artwork can be enjoyed outdoors, and giant lanterns fashioned after popular Singapore landmarks loom larger-than-life. This year also features a Marina Barrage lantern made out of recycled plastic bottles.
Watch Chinese acrobats perform on the street. Have your name written in Chinese calligraphy. Get a Chinese zodiac reading of your birth date. If you want to get into the swing of Chinese culture for the duration of the festival, the Hong Bao is the place to be.
This year, a special Nanjing Pavilion will be set up for the Hong Bao - Nanjing will be the host city for the Youth Olympic Games last hosted by Singapore. Performers from Nanjing and speciality food and handicrafts from the city will share the spotlight in this year's Hong Bao.
Other Hong Bao highlights include concerts by the Singapore Chinese Orchestra, a calligraphy competition, and a local short film showcase.
"Chingay", in its Hokkien equivalent, translates to "costume and masquerade". The normally staid Singaporeans take Chingay to its more colorful and musical extreme every year during the Chingay Parade, a two-night street party and parade that marks the climax of the Chinese New Year celebration. The Chingay parade will be staged on Friday and Saturday, February 11 and 12, beginning at 8pm.
The parade is now proudly international, growing from its purely Chinese traditional roots to embrace more than 80 local organizations, 7,400 performers and 1,800 volunteers, with international performing groups from China, Denmark, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Taiwan.
The Chingay 2011 parade route takes place in front of the Pit Building against the backdrop of the Marina Bay. Parade participants will ride on floats, or walk in the procession, offering a riot of color and noise that few other Singapore festivals can equal.
Chingay tickets can be purchased from SISTIC (sistic.com.sg) beginning at SGD 25. Tickets are also available at Singapore Visitors Centre at Orchard Road and Singapore Pools Outlets. For more information, visit the Chingay website: chingay.org.sg.
Who said Singapore doesn't know how to party? Join Singapore’s biggest street dance party on February 12, beginning at 10:30pm at the Pit Building. Partygoers will find the Pit Building track transformed into an outdoor dance floor with space for 8,000 revellers, and dance to the rhythm of beats selected by international DJs.
View the original article here
