Celebrate Chinese New Year’s with a BANG!

Each year, the annual Chinese New Year (year 4709) begins when the new moon rises in February and ends 15 days later with the  next full moon.   So on February 6th, Washington DC will celebrate the start of the year of the rabbit. The Lunar New Year will be celebrated with an exciting parade through DC’s Chinatown, complete with musicians, dancers, and marching bands. The highlights of the parade include the colorful dancing dragon, a symbol of prosperity, good luck and fortune, the powerful drummers and the lighting of thousand of noisy firecrackers intended to drive away evil spirits. The festival’s programs also include live music and dance performances, traditional Chinese craft demonstrations, films and poetry readings, martial arts demonstrations, as well as art and photo exhibits. Area restaurants are also offering special menus to celebrate the holiday.  Some of the traditional foods to eat over the New Year include egg rolls and bamboo shoots to promote wealth, oranges and tangerines which symbolize an of abundance happiness for the next year, and peanuts and long (uncut) noodles to promote a long life. Other Chinese New Year’s traditions include:

• Giving your home a through cleaning before New Year’s to sweep away all the misfortune of the last year.
• Not cleaning your home or washing your hair on New Year’s which might wash away good luck.
• Giving of “hong bao” (red envelopes) containing gifts of cash.
• Not using use knives or scissors which may cut off good fortune.
• Not using the word “four” (Ssu), which is a homonym of the word “death.”
• Children getting a pass on severe discipline since if they cry on New Year’s day, they are thought that they will cry all year long.
• Paying all debts before the new year for shame will descend on a debtor and his family if left unpaid.

Chinese New Year Festival and Parade - Chinatown, along H Street, NW, between 6th and 8th Streets, NW, Washington, DC. (map it)

• Festival & Cultural events location – Chinatown Community Cultural Center, 616 H Street (map it)

Date and Time – Sunday, Feb. 6, 2011 (aka 4708). Parade kicks-off at 2:00 p.m. and concludes around 5:00.  The giant firecracker will be set off at 3:45. Admission - Free. Parade Seating – No parade route seating is available, so bring a folding chair for curb-side viewing. Nearest Metro Subway Station – Gallery Place/Chinatown, Green, Yellow and Red lines, then a 1-block walk or use the DC Circulator. Parking – Street and paid garage parking is available in the area. Image – Flickr – dragons   Oriental rug Cleaning