With the Chinese Lunar New Year coming up, there are many traditions going into the event that have lots of cultural significance. The year itself isn’t based on the Gregorian calendar that you and I are used to, but instead changes dates that always fall sometime between January 21st and February 20th. Based on the first new day when a new moon appears, the Chinese Lunar New Year is a celebration of the upcoming spring, often referred to as the Spring Festival.
This year the Chinese public holiday will fall on January 31st and celebrations will begin February 1st through to the 6th. Though the festival usually consists of large celebrations in the streets, some places will have covid restrictions limiting what they can do.
Despite this, many families will probably still have the traditional dinner in their homes, which includes eating fish for surplus, dumplings for wealth, spring rolls for prosperity, and much, much more.
It’s also tradition that the families give out red envelopes with money in them to family members, acquaintances, and from bosses to employees. The amount varies from person to person, but did you know that certain numbers hold significant value and luck in Chinese culture? Where three 6’s usually holds negative connotations in the west, over in Asia, it means “Flow, flow, flow” as in the flow of cash to you. Eight is the luckiest number in the Chinese numerical system. In fact, if you get anything relating to an 8 in your birthday, phone number, or money gift, it’s considered extremely lucky.
Each year in the Chinese calendar corresponds to an animal. Legend has it that either the emperor or Buddah called all the animals to a race for his birthday, and only the top twelve would be allowed to attend. This is how we got the 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig.
2022 is the year of the tiger, the third of the 12-year zodiac cycle, which means it’s a year of leadership, respect, and acting assertively; as well as being courageous, outspoken, and prone to taking risks and being energetic. While each year has its own connotations, this year is about going out there and being the best you can be.
So with that in mind, book your cargo shipment now with Nelson. Be strong, be assertive! Take that step you know you need to take to get your cargo moving. In the upcoming weeks, the Chinese Lunar New Year is going to have capacity shortages as we go into the Beijing Olympics, so now is the time to make your move with Nelson.
You don’t have to worry about taking risks with us involved, we’ll navigate these waters with you to make sure that your cargo is in safe hands. We are experts in the import-export business and can help you with our cutting edge technology and quality customer service. So don’t wait till the last minute! Contact your Nelson representative today for more information.
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