In this year the day of Chinese New Year Eve is at January 28, and now it's the first hour of the new dog year. In this day Chinese people will go back to their hometown and have a dinner with their family members around a round table to talk about what they did in last year and the wishes in the upcoming new year. Before midnight the elders will gather all the young people in the family and give them some red packet money for wishing them to have lucky in the new year. Before the young man get the red packet money, he or she must say something good to make the elders happy then he or she can get the money. In the tradition it becomes a happy time just like Christmas in the western world.
In the Chinese tradition, if a man or woman is married, then he or she cannot get red packet money anymore. Instead, he or she will become the one who give the red packet money to the young family members and to the elders. So, now I'm the one to give the red packet money in my family because I'm already married. But fortunately, I do not need to give the red packet money to many people because there are not too many family members.
The day after the Chinese New Year is a day that a wife should go back to her parents' family. I'm not sure the reason why all Chinese wifes should go back to their parents' family on that day, but we've been following the tradition for so many years to make it an ancient tradition. So on January 30 I will go to Tai-Chung county of Taiwan with Rebecca to visit her mother. I can predict that the traffic will be a jam, but we still have to go back because it's been some time Rebecca does not see her mother.
I have introduced 2 Chinese traditions in the Chinese new year period here. If you are interested in more, just let me know.
Happy Chinese New Year! Wish you to have a good day.
