Cantonese New Year Animals And Their Origin

By John Chan

Let us fin out what animal we are and the ancient history that led to the origins of the Chinese New Year animals.

The occasion of Chinese New Year is without a doubt considered to be the most prominent event in the Chinese lunar calendar. The traditional celebrations have been going on for years and the festive spirit is pretty much alive even today. The unique characteristic of the Chinese New Year is however the twelve year cycle that associates the coming of the year with an animal symbol.

The Chinese New Year animal reappearsevery twelve years. According to their current standing the next year should be the year of the Ox. The ancient philosophers of China studied the behavior of the animals in the calendar and drew a semblance with their personality traits and human nature.

You may believe the fact that the Chinese feel the person born on a particular animal year will have parallel characteristics of the animal. If you are born in the year of ox then you will have good skill for organizing while loyalty and dependability will be your big assets. Ox is also known to be strong and patient.

The concept behind the twelve year cycle with these beasts symbolizing each year was taken from the Buddhist dharma. Ancient history records that it was Buddha himself who summoned all these animals before he himself descended to Earth. Then a race was held amongst these animals where the victorious one would be responsible for the first year.

When the race began, the competition was tough. The act of betrayal was seen in the rat who made a deal with the cat but eventually didn't keep his word. All along the race it looked like the ox would win as he wadedthrough the crowd but little did he know that the rat was riding on his back all through the race and just when the ox was about to finish the race first, the rat jumped off his back and claimed the first position.

The first year of the twelve year cycle as a consequenceof the race was the year of the rat as he managed to end the race in first position. This year is followed by the year of the ox as the rightly deserving animal came second unfortunately. Then the ox is followed by the remaining of the animals on the basis of the position they finished the race in. the Last in the race was the pig!

If you are in a doubt as to why just twelve animals came to Buddha and why only these specific animals came, then do not look for any answers to such questions. As a matter of fact, this is nothing but an ancient culture which has been just made alive up till now and is strongly believed. As a token of honor and appreciation for their coming, Buddha assigned a year each to the animals. - 30294

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Chinese new year animals are a wonderful way to introduce the festival to children. If you would like ot learn about other fun activities for Chinese new year follow the hyperlinks.

Chinese Tea House: A Getaway for Relaxation and Socialization

By Zasha Tecson

The evolution of Tea House is closely related with the Chinese tea culture. A tea-house has become a form of cultural life among the Chinese people. Just an ancient Chinese proverb saying goes, better to be deprived of food for three days, than tea for one, signifies the importance of it in people's lives. Chinese tea is top listed among their basic needs.

The teahouse is a social place that played an important role in Chinese History. Teahouses historically have been, and currently are common throughout China. In ancient times, the teahouse was the only non-religious place for public communication, recreation, and social activities. Teahouses were also used as centers of non-government organizations and clubs, as well as for transacting business. A teahouse is a much loved place for the Chinese to socialize and enjoy a cup of their Chinese tea.

Chinese Tea house has many different Chinese names. In Yangtze River area it is called Chaguan. In provinces like Guangdong, Guangxi and Hainan it is commonly called Chalou. A Chating in Beijing and Tianjin of north China means a tea pavilion. Chatan is a tea booth and Chaliao is a small Chinese tea house. Some other names for tea house include Chafang, Chasi, Chashe, Chayuan, Chawu and Chashi. The names may vary but the forms and contents are basically the same.

The tradition of tea drinking among Chinese people has been widely spread among Asians and as well as among Americans and Europeans. In these present times, Chinese teahouses designs and concepts are introduced in some regions of America and Europe and other parts of the world. The history and culture of the Chinese people, and drinking Chinese tea are well served in teahouses.

Yes, you walk along the streets of China and you can definitely find teahouses in almost every corner. Every busy person knows just where to find a perfect place to stay, chat, relax, and take a sip of the most valued Chinese tea. Other leisure activities that go along while drinking Chinese tea include writing or simply reading. Teahouses also held theatrical performances such as story-telling and plays to entertain their customers. - 30294

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After reading this article, please visit the online store for a wide selection of the best Chinese Tea and learn more about the benefits of Chinese Tea to your health.

Chinese Tea Drinking: The Values Behind the Traditions

By Roselah Varde

Throughout the world Chinese tea has gained its renown because of its medical use. Tea was said to originate from the ancient China. Dating back from 2737 BC story told about Legendary Emperor Shen Nong who for hygienic purposes always had its drinking water boiled.

According to the legend, when Emperor Shen Nong was on a long way journey he stopped by to rest. While his servants boiled water for Him and for them to drink, dried leaves from a nearby bush fell into the container of boiled water. The emperor as a known herbalist and a scientist of his time tasted the water and discovered it was good and delightful to the taste. Since then Chinese tea drinking has been a culture among the Chinese people.

Chinese Tea has been used as a medical beverage only ever since that day. It was not until 300 A.D., when it became a daily drink habit. Today, tea is known to purge toxins out from the body. Interestingly, tea discharges nicotine from the body fast, which benefits smokers. Also, the reason for Chinese people to drink tea after their meals, is that it helps in digestion. Drinking tea has a refreshing and tonic effect to the body.

Not only for its health benefits, Chinese Tea, being a significant part of the Chinese Culture, serves as an avenue for Chinese people to cultivate their family values. By serving a cup of Chinese tea, and by inviting and paying for their drinking tea, younger generations show respect to the elderly.

A son or a daughter serves tea to their parents at home to sincerely apologize whenever they grieved their parents. In restaurants, tea drinking with the whole family is an important family gathering because it shows a wonderful picture of the family values of Chinese.

Tea drinking also imparts an important social value shown during wedding ceremonies. The groom and the bride shall serve a tea in front of their parents as a way of manifesting their gratitude. The parents then express their response by drinking a minute portion of the served tea. The couple would also served tea to all family members both from the groom's relatives and bride's relatives. The Chinese tea ceremony during the wedding will serve as an avenue for both parties to meet. If there be anyone who refuses to drink it signifies that he does not approve the wedding.

From the small unit, the family and to the large community in the society, drinking Chinese Tea has been a treasured tradition that shows a remarkable social values of the Chinese families from the ancient days until today. - 30294

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Learn more about Chinese Tea?, Visit The Big Teas today for a wide selection of the finest Chinese Tea for your health needs.

The Role You Know About The Lion Dance

By Davion Wong

Are you attention-grabbing in knowing about the Lion Dance? This text will tell you all that you wish to know. Well, it is a terribly ancient half of Chinese culture, and therefore the dance essentially mimics the movements of a lion, someone doing it during a lion costume. The lions that are depicted in Chinese culture are Asiatic lions, which are found in India. In fact, the Lion Dance truly originated in India, a rustic where the lion is considered a creature of guardianship.

Nowadays, the Lion Dance has many variations in different Asian cultures like Hong Kong, China, Macau, Taiwan, Vietnam, Singapore, Japan, Korea, Okinawa, Malaysia, etc. as well as Sydney - and therefore the dance varies from region to region, in the shape of distinct styles and movements. For example, in Japanese culture, the Lion Dance is practiced as Shishimai, a observe that meant dancing around symbols of other animals like deer.

The Chinese Lion Dance can be of 2 main sorts - Northern and Southern. The former was used as a type of entertainment for the imperial court, and the northern lion is red, orange and yellow, sometimes the female lion is depicted as having green fur. The lion additionally has a shaggy look, and contains a golden head. The northern Lion Dance itself is highly acrobatic in nature, and is sometimes performed for the aim of entertainment. Dangerous stunts are sometimes performed by them.

The Southern Lion Dance, on the opposite hand, is a lot of symbolic in nature. The aim of its performance is sometimes to exorcise evil spirits, and to bring in fortune and sensible luck. The southern lion will have a wide selection of colors, and the animal itself contains a distinctive head with big eyes, there is a mirror on the forehead, and on the center of the head is a single horn. Don't ever confuse the Lion Dance with the Chinese Dragon Dance, which is totally different. The latter is completed with a team of ten or additional folks, whereas the Lion Dance typically is made up of just 2 dancers. The Lion Dance is closely related to the practice of Kung Fu, and also the individuals who dance it might be members of the native Kung Fu Club. Some rigorous training is required so as to master the Lion Dance.

The northern Lion Dance has the dancers showing in pairs, and during their performance, the lions sometimes resemble Pekingese or Fu Dogs, the movements are realistic and life-like. They perform stunts like balancing on a big ball, or doing lifts. It is quite common for the northern lions to appear as a family, there are typically 2 giant adult lions, and a combine of small young lions. On the opposite hand, the homeland of the southern style of the Lion Dance is Guangdong, and therefore the southern Cantonese style can be additional sub-divided into Hok Shan (Crane Mountain), Fat Shan (Buddha Mountain), Fat Hok (this can be a mix of the previous two), Jow Ga, and the Green Lion (that is very popular with the Taiwanese). - 30294

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Star Collection Entertainment Sdn Bhd, that established in during 1990. the lion dance is a vigorous type of dance that is usually performed during Chinese festivals like Chinese New Year.

The Capital Museum: A Stone's Throw Away from Beijing Hotels

By Efrenn Larson

The City of Beijing, previously known as Peking, is China's political capital. With more than 17 million people in its jurisdiction, Beijing is the second largest city in China after Shanghai. To facilitate the movement of its citizens, visitors and the goods they produce, the city is built with dozens of railways, motorways, seaports and a modern airport. This fact makes travelling to this great city a lot easier.

The visitor will be inspired by how old-world buildings coexist with modern structures. In times past, it has been proven that the city exceeds the expectations of the traveler. Good news is that Beijing hotels are just walking distances from these memorable sites, making it less difficult for tourists who want to visit many spots.

Culture has always been important for the Chinese. To preserve this unique aspect, several museums have been opened. One of the biggest and worthwhile of these destinations is the Capital Museum which houses over 200,000 relics in its collection. It debuted in 1981 and was renovated in 2007.

The faade of the museum is based on human and cultural heritage and underlines the harmonious integration of the past and the present, history and nature, art and modernism. The immense roof and the slope at the entrance are derived from traditional Chinese architectural style, and the stone exterior represents the city walls of ancient China. A large number of bronze, timber and stones are dispersed throughout the museum to represent a deeper sense of historicity. Also, a glass curtain wall, which gives a grand and transparent effect, reflects a sense of modernity.

The museum holds three stable exhibitions. The first, named "Ancient Capital: Chapter on the History and Culture of Beijing," depicts imperial rule and the intricacies of art, dance, architecture, trade, commerce and transportation of the early Chinese.

The second exhibition, entitled "Ancient Capital: Urban Construction," stresses the embrace of the new world order by the Chinese, highlights their urbanization and the adoption of new-age technologies which brought the nation to its present state.

The last exhibition, called "Stories of the Capital City - Old Beijing Folk-customs," shows the belief of the Chinese in a Supreme Being, their perception on luck and on how folkways and folklores were vital in their early lives.

The museum, aside from its exhibitions, also functions as a cultural heritage storehouse, conference and reception hall, and a digital movie hall where a super wide screen with the state-of-the-art technology are installed to display high-definition films. For visitors to enjoy the wonders of this site, they can earlier purchase their tickets in Beijing hotels or any travel agency to avoid the usual hustle and bustle. - 30294

About the Author:

E. Larson is a long-time resident of Beijing, China. He works closely with the Hongkun Beijing Hotel and many other hotels in Beijing. Check out his website about the Hongkun Beijing Hotel here.

The History Dim Sum Plus The Ways To Prepare It

By Sean R Mize

Dim Sum that finds its source in Southern China is currently famous international. Dim Sum literally which means 'to bit your heart' could be a staple of Chinese dining society. Dim Sum is served in tiny parts and might accommodates vegetable, numerous seafood and meat. Steamer baskets are perfect to serve Dim sum.

In older days, Dim Sum was served along with tea to rural farmers once an exhausting day of work. In China, as a practice, Dim sum is made on big day like Chinese New Year, family get along, evening with friends. Dim Sums are a widespread food item with restaurants as well. Dim Sums are served in the morning hours and restaurants are open as early as 5 in the morning to sell hot and steaming Dim Sums. These are also sold day long as remove and is fashionable with college and school going students and also office goers.

Dim Sums are created of rice flour cakes filled with vegetables, seafood, shrimps, chicken or meat. These can either be fried or steamed. Every has its own unique taste. Health acutely aware people like steamed Dim Sums along with a hot cup of jasmine tea. Dim Sums will be served as desert additionally, known as sweet Dim Sums.

These are stuffed with condensed milk and oatmeal and garnished with fried peanuts. It additionally ranges from barbecued meat dishes to buns and to pastry items as well. In a very nutshell, Dim Sum that was common in rural China as a road facet snack has found its place in virtually every part of the world. Restaurants in China have these little carts in that they display and sell totally different varieties of Dim Sums. The advantages of these roaming carts are that you can select and choose Dim Sums as per your taste.

Har Kaw and Sui Mai are the foremost famous Cantonese Dim Sums. Dim Sums, if created perfectly are great in taste; even the straightforward of vegetable like cabbage makes nice Dim Sum. One want to master the talent of making the fundamental Dim Sum initial and then can attempt hands with various stuffing.

Below is a very basic recipe of Dim sum that is terribly simple to understand and make:

Shrimps Dim Sum

Ingredients for the wrapper:

Plain Flour - One cup Eggs - 2 Baking soda - ? tablespoon For the stuffing Shrimp, shelled and deveined - 700 gms Cooked pork fat - one hundred gms Bamboo shoots, shredded - one hundred gms Lard - 1 tablespoon Sesame oil - one teaspoon Pepper - ? teaspoon Sugar - one ? teaspoon Salt - two teaspoon

Steps:

1. Put all the ingredients for the stuffing in a bowl. Combine it well until sticky and keep it to the side. 2. In a very bowl mix all the ingredients for the wrapper, add boiling water and oil and mix it well. Knead the blend well to create soft dough. The dough should not be sticky however terribly smooth. 3. Separate the dough into equal portion of spherical balls each. 4. To create round wrapper, the ball would like to be pressed arduous with a help of a rolling pin and flattened more to create a pleasant thin round disc. 5. Cowl the wrappers with food grade plastic sheet. 6. Take one wrapper and place one teaspoon of the stuffing within the centre of it. 7. Fold the wrapper carefully with the help of each hands and seal it gently. Create ruffles along the prime of the dumplings. 8. Steam the Dim Sums on terribly high heat for eight to 10 minutes. 9. Serve it hot. - 30294

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CEP Industries Sdn Bhd is that the manufacturer and supplier of delicious and top quality frozen dim sum to numerous restaurants, hotels and supermarkets in Malaysia.

Powers of the Eastern New Year Dragon

By John Chan

Find out about the most revered Chinese symbol and its connection to the important events of the Chinese New Year.

Two things that have immense significance in Chinese culture are the images of the dragon and the event of the Chinese New Year. These things have been part of Chinese heritage for thousands of years and continue to have their presence up till today. Furthermore the two things have a deep interconnection between them.

The dragon is an integral part of Chinese culture. The westerners only happened to know about it through their explorations into martial art movies and Chinese art work. Whereas, for the Chinese, this dragon image stands for a immensely revered mythical creature that is prized for its beauty, uniqueness and spiritual abilities.

With due respect to the Chinese custom, firstly we must recognize the fact that the Chinese New Year does not coincide with the Western celebrations of the New Year. The cause behind this is that the western world follows the Gregorian solar calendar and the Chinese have always followed the lunar calendar. Thereby, the cycle of the moon decides the date on which Chinese New Year event is celebrated and this is completely on a different day from the Western New Year.

The New Year event is a magnificent time to be in China. People are high on festivity and enjoyment. As the ancient Chinese culture goes, these people associate animal symbols with the change of time and year. There are twelve animal signs in total which keep repeating after every twelfth year. So the sign of dragon comes into full force and fresh spirituality after the end of every twelfth year.

The dragon sign is supposed to be a symbolism of immense power. Moreover, the image of a dragon is mostly considered as a symbol of mystical power and anger. The anger of a dragon is always mysteriously justified and hence it signifies the correction of any mistake. So in this case, the angry dragon image is not evil but it plays a role of inspiration.

They say the streets have rights upon you. If you hang around on the streets and see some evil you then it is upon you to block it with your hands if you have the might. If you don't then at least make an attempt to stop it with your tongue. And if you cannot even do that then at least in your heart know that the act is evil and this is a very low level of trust.

The image of the fuming dragon seeks to repress the wrong doers. It does not represent wrong doing. Rather quite the opposite. The best of deeds is to avoid evil and discourage it while engaging in good deeds and encouraging them. Hence the Chinese New Year of the Dragon is all about bringing about a revolution through peaceful and festive means. - 30294

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The traditional new year dragon is a colorful assault on the senses. If you would like more information on Chinese new year animals click on the links above.