MORE Lion Dance performances, China's Spring Gala performance and Selangor State-level CNY Celebration

Celcom Digi commissioned this acrobatic lion dance performers (in blue & yellow colours of the telco brand) to welcome Chinese New Year 2025 with an emphasis on 5G network. I happened to catch the lion dance whilst doing grocery shopping at Lotus Kepong. The telco's personnel were on the ground giving away nice-looking ang pow packets to the shoppers. The ang pow packets were designed by creative students from the One Academy.

I stumbled across a very traditional lion dance performance on Day 2 of CNY 2025 at a Chinese Medicines Shop. There was a solo lion dancer (Kid-size) accompanying the "mother" and "father" lion which was unique to me. The solo lion dancer was a young girl (see video below).

China's CMG Channel Spring Festival 2025 performance featured Donnie Yen (who played IP Man in the movies). The choreography showcased the art of Chinese Calligraphy with fluid Kungfu movements. It was one of the most beautiful performances I have seen. My sister and I stayed up until past midnight to watch China's Spring Gala performances. 

Selangor will celebrate their State-level CNY on 8th February which you can read about at Selangor State-level CNY Celebration In Jenjarom On Feb 8

Spring is here Reunion beckons as Wood Snake arrives

Menu display of a Chinese restaurant in Cyberjaya

Raw fish slices on Yee Sang dish are abundantly available whenever Chinese New Year is around the corner. The auspicious sayings behind each of the ingredients that are poured into the tray are explained as below:-

年年有餘 (nián nián yǒu yú) To always have more than enough; symbolizes abundance and prosperity.

Shredded vegetables

青春常驻 (qīng chūn cháng zhù) May you be youthful and vital always; represent vitality and growth.

Crushed peanuts

金玉滿堂 (jīn yù mǎn táng) May your home be filled with wealth and treasure.

Sesame seeds

大小平安 (dà xiǎo píng ān) Peace and safety for all in your family.

Crispy crackers (pok chui)

黄金满地 (huáng jīn mǎn de) May wealth and prosperity be everywhere; signifying a prosperous year filled with joy and laughter.

Sweet plum sauce

甜甜蜜蜜 (tián tián mì mì) May your life be sweet like honey; binds the ingredients together, symbolizing the sweetness of life.

Touch N Go SSSlay Chinese New Year with style can be read HERE. Speed limit decreases announced by Ministry of Transport and JPJ can be read HERE whilst Paul Tan automotive portal has a comprehensive listing of lorries which are banned from Malaysian roads which can be read HERE. Paul Tan also covered the reduced speed limit for vehicles which you can read about HERE . These are useful guides as the Chinese community return home to celebrate the coming of the Wood Snake with family & friends. A mini-mart chain in Sarawak has a festive theme for their website which you can view HERE. Their CNY story about the importance of family reunion retold in video below:-

Pudu Ria Florist Chinese New Year 2025 performances including their lion dance was held earlier on 26 January 2025. 

SAYS portal has a dedicated page for the Year of the Snake. Google introduced a "fruit-friendly" version of their Snake-themed game in 2025. Below is the screenshot of the CNY Snake game that Google introduced 12 years ago:- 

Blast from Past Google Game

Year of Wood Snake Game

The mobile phone screenshots of the red-coloured snake & blue-coloured snake eating the oranges & apples are as below:-

Google blog's guide to a festive Lunar New Year celebration can be read HERE.

Goodbye 2024 and Welcome 2025

It's that time of the year for LION DANCES as the Malaysian Chinese community welcomes the Wood Snake into our new year of 2025. Goodbye to 2024 which personally for me was one full of painful but invaluable lessons learnt. I completed my final subject for my online MBA program which according to my lecturer involved mathematical formulas. It was a nightmare for me since formulas and calculations are not my cup of tea. I studied law and I've been a legal practitioner since I graduated from University and the English Bar. The last subject which involved calculations was Accounting and I took that at A-Levels. It didn't help that I panicked the first time I took this subject whilst maintaining a full-time job. Long story short, I completed this subject, passed my written assignment on the listing of 99 Speedmart in the Bursa Malaysia and now I await the results of my final exams which should be out before the Chinese New Year holidays begin from 29th January 2025 onwards. Back to preparations for Chinese New Year, it is always interesting to know what's in store for my Chinese Zodiac sign which can be read HERE. There's also the July 2025 Lion Dance championships at the Arena of Stars in Genting Highlands to look forward to since I would have missed the National Lion Dance championship 2025 at Pavilion Bukit Jalil that ends on 5th January 2025 (see poster above). Penang is welcoming the Year of the Snake through a grand celebration on 1 February 2025 which is the 4th day of the Lunar New Year. The Penang Miaohui festival website has the Chinese zodiac animal signs from 2020 onwards. One has to bear in mind that Malaysia went into lockdown from 2020 onwards so participants would have probably celebrated the festival online during lockdown phases. 

Pudu Ria Florist where I usually buy my potted plants from, has started selling lime and lemon trees, and has an active marketing channel via Xiao Hong Shu (as pictured below). The latter is China's social media rival to Twitter/X and Instagram. Meanwhile, spring is coming to China and the largest exodus of human from cities to their rural hometowns will once again take place soon by end of January 2025. Could not resist watching episodes of A Bite of China documentaries on food and how it reflects our culture and rich heritage. For example, the famous mitten crabs of Yangcheng Lake 阳澄湖 which you can read about at China Daily website HERE. The birdlife from the South Shore of this Lake which is designated as a hotspot in Cornell Lab's eBird portal can be viewed HERE  

Shoppers are thronging hypermarkets including Lotus Kepong to stock up for CNY reunion dinners as well as stocking up for the week-long celebration. Interesting pop-up booths include this one from 100 PLUS which has a lion dance costume customized out of cardboard material. Very clever use of materials by F&N indeed.   

8TV channel Chinese New Year of the Wood Snake's music video can be viewed below.