Chinese New Year 2012 has a 15-day open house period and i always make an effort to catch up with some old friends during this festive season which made it one great celebration worth to remember this year. My this group of friends always try to make it as fun as possible meeting each other to revive those friendships we have built up over the years. And I am really happy of course for everything that has planned. I hope next year's CNY celebration will be even better than this year's, though we just entered into a new lunar new year. :-) All of us enjoyed this day tea party yesterday with so much laughter and smile created throughout the whole session. The whole group is very satisfied with what we have accomplished. Tea parties are a fun way to catch up with friends or a great way to celebrate most occasions! It is a really fun way to get together and if you get everyone to bring a little something with them in the form of cake, pantry, cookies and biscuits etc.
0 Comments
River Hongbao takes place every year, in line with Chinese New Year, where it brings out the highlights of a traditional Chinese Festival. River Hongbao 2012 lights up the modern cityscape of Marina Bay in a customary celebration of Chinese New Year. In a city where East meets West and modernity meets tradition, it is an experience that bridges the past and the present. River Hongbao has come quite a long way since its maiden event in the 1980s. Over the years, River Hongbao has transformed and changed a lot, getting more grand and implementated more programs, activities and performances. River Hongbao is a fun event that helps to promote the festive Chinese New Year season, an appreciation of the CNY culture and traditions. It is a destination for both locals and international visitors to enjoy during this festive season.
Time flies so fast and once again we are here to usher in the Chinese New Year on 23 January 2012. Today marks the beginning of the 15-day Chinese New Year celebration, a holiday that focuses on family, good luck, prosperity and happiness.
This 15-day celebration is an important time for family reunions and often, it is the only time each year that most people return to their ancestral homes to be with their families and friends. Nothing beats a heartwarming meal / reunion with your family and loved ones on this annual chinese festive celebration. Here goes some pictures of my annual lunar new year celebration with my family taken on the first day of the Dragon Year! Here's the Part 4 of blog post on my trip to Haikou 海口, China late last year.
I know i should have blogged on the Part 4 much earlier, but i really have an endless stream of nice photos to blog about and i have to make sure that they are all being shared in my blog, regardless of time. Hey. as long as you enjoy reading my blog (so far), it's always not too late to get my travel shots shared! :-) Haikou has a lot of natural resources because of its monsoon tropical climate and seaside location. Way back since the late Qing Dynasty, its proximity to the mainland makes it a convenient port for trading. Now there are many towering buildings that can seen around the metropolis, manufacturing industries are also found and resorts line up the coastal area, which makes it a highly urbanized city. One of my photos taken in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam last year is being featured in the local main Straits Times newspapers Life! Travel section (page C4) today, 10 January 2012 ! Hooray!! :-)
Chinese New Year, also known as Lunar New Year, is one of the most eagerly anticipated occasions each year. This is the biggest and most significant event of the Chinese community and it is observed by Singaporeans from all walks of life.
Chinese New Year which is the most important days of the traditional Chinese holidays – falls on the 23 and 24 January this year. The main highlight of Chinese New Year in Singapore is the Chinatown Celebrations. Numerous people congregate here year after year to shop for items for the home, festive goodies and gifts. Every year, many stalls will line up the streets of Chinatown and visitors can soak in the festive mood at the market. Here are some of the recent street photos that I took at the annual Chinese Festive New Year Market / Bazaar at the bustling Singapore Chinatown. One of my favorite things while waiting to depart from an airport is watching sunsets (if my flight takes off in the evening). The expansive runways make for a perfect space where the setting sun takes center stage. I look forward to cloud-free days - not just for smooth flying - but for nature's show. Sometimes, when things are taking their toll at an airport, I just look out the window and the soaring airplanes coupled with the warm hues of the sunset - well, there is no other word other than breath-taking. I love watching planes power up especially during sunset, as the bridge pulls away from the aircraft,and backing out to taxi away. I would never find a car pulling out of a driveway so inspiring, but a plane with its sleek shape, curvy wings and formidable engines - there is something elegant about watching these people-movers beginning their travels to places that require air travel to get them there. Often, I just take quiet time watching the planes arrive and leave the gate area at an airport during my travels. Things are as they should be. When I was looking up to these planes flying into sunset, I was probably focused on both my photography shoot and my thoughts. I looked down the centerline of the runway and look beyond, find something straight ahead for a reference point. The purpose is so that when I can no longer see the runway line ahead of me as the plane lift off the runway there would be a point ahead that will help it to keep aligned to the runway and on course. Some days are just thinking days for me and I'll just have to go with them. The whole theory of this blog is that in life, I think to get where we want to go, we have to have an extended centerline. We have to have a place ahead of us in time that when we are on a path somewhere and we can’t see exactly where we are, we can look ahead and say, “There is where I want to be and adjust my course to get back on track.” Extended center lines can take many forms in life. For some it is making a to-do list each day and strictly adhering to it moving neither to the left or the right and crossing off item after item as the day progresses. Others set longer term goals without much thinking about time, money or a path to their goals. It doesn’t matter how or how long it takes to get to their goal or who they have to step over or on as long as they eventually get there. I like to share my goals, life dreams and plans with others so that I am held accountable if it is truly something I want to carry out. Do you have someone to encourage you, someone to be your extended centerline? Life is hard, but having someone to help keep you on course and on the path you intended makes the journey so much sweeter. I’ve looked around me and starting thinking about others that I could mentor or be their extended centerline. That someone could be younger or older. There are always ways to encourage others, you just have to start the flight. :-)
New Year's Eve for most people had always been big parties, surrounded with family and friends, dancing the night away, up until early morning, and then sleeping in until their hearts were content on New Year's Day.
Yesterday (i should say this year's new year day) was a very happy start to a brand new year with the celebration of one of my friend's (Elsie) tying knot with her love of a lifetime. The groom and bride (Robert and Elsie) are a very sweet couple! I have been 'smitten' with them ever since the bride broke news of how they first met and i honestly could not wait for their big day!! Their big day was centered around their love for their close friends and family and making sure they all had a wonderful time. They had a heartfelt wedding ceremony, full of love songs and the rest of the evening was full of toasts, huge hugs and laughter! They first met in Ho Chi Minh City a few years ago when Elsie went to Vietnam to take up an overseas post which was a breakthrough in her career at that time. If not for her determination to carve out a career abroad, she probably won't get to know her hubby or found the man she can share her life with. There is nothing better than watching a happy couple getting married on the first day of the new year. It somehow symbolizes a new beginning, not just to their marriage as well as everyone's life. It's a fresh start. Elsie & Robert's day fell into place, as things that are meant to be often do. I am honored to know their love story and have met this blessed couple. I am also happy to capture them on their wedding day and share their story and photos! :-) |
Author
|