Chinese New Year Eve, the Reunion of the Year

Today is the eve of the Chinese New Year. This evening will see the much anticipated event, the most important reunion dinner of the year. This is the reason why families make the long journey home, from all over the country and from other countries too, either driving, flying or catching the train or bus. In countries where there are Chinese people, they will all make their way home, no matter where they work.

Kuala Lumpur, the busy metropolis, whose roads are usually clogged with heavy traffic is unusually quiet. Almost deserted roads make it a pleasure to drive, especially for a person who is no longer familiar with the roads.

A week before, families would have spring cleaned their homes, inside out, in readiness for the new year. For those believers, they would have sent off the Kitchen God with offerings, among which is the nien gao or sticky glutinous cake, so that his mouth will not be able to give adverse reports of the family.

Red is the prominent color, for it signifies prosperity. Most people would dress in red especially the children. House decorations are also in red, red paper cuttings of auspicious characters, red lanterns, red packets dangling from plants. Ang pows or red packets containing money are readied, to be given out to children and the unmarried ones when they offer you greetings for a Happy and Prosperous New Year. The married ones will give ang pows to the singles and to children.

The reunion dinner these days is held in restaurants rather than at home as it is deemed to be more convenient. The mothers will not have to slave over hot stoves to prepare the special dishes to welcome home their brood and grandchildren. Everyone will enjoy the evening in comfort and partake of the scrumptious food prepared by the chefs that strive to outdo one another.

Hotels and restaurants advertise set menus for tables of ten guests each at different prices, depending on the type of dishes they are offering. These are very special dishes that have expensive ingredients and delicacies that are not usually offered at any other time of the year.

However in my family, it is the tradition that our members bring a dish or two to my youngest brother's house where the ancestral tablets are and prayers are offered to our ancestors. After the prayers, we then sit down to our reunion dinner and the evening is spent in familial bonding.

Special Salad for Prosperity, Yee Sang

The Malaysians of Chinese ethnicity love this special dish which is ubiquitous when the Chinese Lunar Year is approaching. A couple of weeks before the new year, most hotels and restaurants will offer this on their menu.

This "Yee Sang" as it is called, is actually a special salad that is very colorful. There are white radish strips complemented by the orange carrot strips and green cucumber strips. These are arranged on a dish and scattered on top of it are crushed crackers, coarsely pounded peanuts, fragrant sesame seeds, shredded coriander leaves as well as pomelo. Some oil and sweet sauce are poured into this salad to which is added fresh raw salmon. Some people use abalone or jelly fish, depending on their preferences.

Yee Sang is a dish that is to be shared by many people. You can't eat it by yourself. Chopsticks are provided and everyone stands up to toss this salad into the air, mixing up all the ingredients and pronouncing their desires for good health,good luck, wealth, longetivity, etc., etc.... The higher you toss, the better your luck.

This dish is usually a starter which is then followed by other dishes ordered ala carte or in a set menu comprising special dishes to usher in a new and prosperous year. It is readily available throughout the Chinese New Year season and one can also buy it as a takeaway to be enjoyed at home with old and young in the family.

Malaysia, Land of Plenty

Indeed Malaysia is a land of plenty if not milk and honey. Just witness the type of fare we enjoyed during my niece's wedding dinner hosted at a swanky hotel in Kuala Lumpur. This is the menu that shows the different courses served that evening. Oops, I didn't get the top of the menu in this photograph!

The first dish was the cold dish comprising 5 different types of hors d'oeurves

. This was followed by a very special tasty soup which the waitress served to us in individual bowls. I forgot to take a picture of it! The following are some of the various courses that we enjoyed.

The following are the two types of dessert which were rather unusual.

It was a very substantial dinner served along with Chinese tea, soft drinks, red wine and hard liquor. Everyone went home replete after a very enjoyable evening,listening to the medley of lovely songs rendered by a well-known band and catching up with friends and relatives in between the courses.

Deborah's Wedding

My youngest brother Allen gave away his daughter's hand in marriage this morning. Deborah married the man she has chosen to spend the rest of her life with. Here is the proud father, walking his beloved daughter Deborah down the aisle to where the groom was anxiously waiting.

Family members congregated in the church waiting for the arrival of the bride much earlier, some having come from as far as Australia and Canada.

The wedding ceremony was conducted by the priest, followed by Holy Communion.

Here are the newly-weds, Deborah and John.

We wish them a happy married life, and in Chinese we say, "Pak Thau Toh Loh" ( something that sounds like white haired into old age )