University students wearing traditional Chinese clothing scattered among the round red tables filling the EMU Ballroom Sunday night for China Night. They served a variety of dishes and welcomed students of all cultures, and of course, the Chinese New Year guest of honor this year: the boar.
Red lanterns, believed to scare away evil spirits, lined the stairway and hung from the ceiling as students from abroad were given the opportunity to celebrate the Chinese New Year, also known as the Spring Festival or the Lunar New Year in traditional Chinese culture.
“This is a special night when you can connect to people halfway around the world in Asia,” said Robert Shea, the director of the Chinese Student Association, which put on the celebration.
Yu-Yin Liu, a University senior from Taiwan, said the holiday is similar to Thanksgiving, in that it’s a celebration when family gets together and enjoy good food.
“Sometimes families only get together once a year and that’s on Chinese New Year,” Liu said, adding that she especially misses her family on this holiday.
The 15-day holiday, celebrated on the first day of the lunar calendar, was created around the myth of Nián, a human-munching beast whose name coincidentally means “year” in Chinese. In order to scare Nián away and avoid being swallowed whole, people would set off fire-crackers and decorate their homes with the color red.
The theme of last night’s event was “Channel C,” representing a traditional TV channel found in China or Taiwan, which shows performances varying from traditional tai chi to western hip-hop, which were performed at last night, Shea said.
Additional entertainment for the celebration included singing and instruments, such as violin and piano, performed by young Chinese students.
An array of Chinese dishes were served at the event, including chicken, representing prosperity, and fish, representing togetherness.
“The meat they have is the same but the way they make it is different,” Liu said. “This is more Chinese-style and in Taiwan it’s different.”
During the meal, the food was served by students wearing traditional Chinese clothing such as silk patterned dresses with high collars and short sleeves.
Florence Chan, a University senior from Hong Kong who wore a blue Chi-pao dress, said the clothing is usually worn on special occasions, such as weddings and Chinese New Year.
Chan said that celebrating the holiday is very different here than at home, where the older generations give children red envelopes with money inside.
“We usually go to my aunt or uncle’s house and say some blessings,” Chan said, who has lived here for two years and usually attends the Hong Kong Student Association’s dinner.
“When everyone gets together it reminds me of home,” she said.
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