Gong xi fa cai

Gong xi fa cai. Here's wishing happiness and prosperity for the Chinese New Year. It's not enough to say, "Happy New Year", as we do on January 1, and when the Bengali New Year begins in the middle of April, when we say, "Shubho Naba Barsha". That's Bengali for "happy new year". In Chinese, you have to wish both happiness and prosperity.

Starting today is the Year of the Pig, which marks another difference from Indian and Western astrology. The Indian and the Western system share the same star signs, though someone who is a Gemini according to Western astrology may be a Scorpio by Indian reckoning. That's because one's sun sign is determined by the date of birth in Western astrology while Indians calculate by the time of birth. But the Chinese zodiac is entirely different, populated by animals unseen in Indian and Western charts. The Year of the Monkey just ended, now comes the Year of the Pig.

It certainly got off to a quiet start like every Chinese New Year here in Singapore. Almost all the shops are closed, there are fewer buses on the roads. Tomorrow is a public holiday too. This is when Singapore really takes a break. Most shops remain open at Christmas, but not during the Chinese New Year. One of the provision shops near my home remains closed for several days.

People were doing last-minute shopping yesterday afternoon before the shops closed. Later, in the evening, I saw an unusual sight: red table cloths laid out on the tables at the food centre. Families and friends sat down to Chinese New Year's Eve dinners served on white plates. Some of the plates had tiny scratches, but it was unusual to see them at all at the humble food centre. It had gone upscale for the Chinese New Year.