Top 6 Traditional Things to do during Chinese New Year holidays

1. Give Hongbaos: If you have an ayi , driver or Chinese friends who have kids, it's a nice gesture to give them a "Hongbao" It's a red envelope that you can put money in and give it to them. We gave our Ayi a goodie bag with a few essentials like Food items, Cooking Oil, Toiletries etc...

2. Attend Miaohuis: Miaohui or Temple fairs are quite popular during this time. They have traditional parades, snacks and activities for kids and adults. It will be really crowded, but worth a trip to get a feel of how Chinese new year is celebrated.
Some popular fairs are the ones at Summer Palace, Temple of heaven, Ditan Park and Chaoyang Park

3. Putting up "Fu" on your door: It's supposed to bring luck and prosperity. You can even put it upside down  to show prosperity has arrived.

4. Eat dumplings/tangyuan: Traditional food that is popular during this timeare dumplings including sweet dumpling variety. Pick up a frozen packet from your local market or grocery store and just boil them. Our favourite is the Sesame paste filling ones.

5. Burst firecrackers: The city will be lit up with fireworks all night. If you have a good view you can enjoy the colorful fireworks from your window at home. Every corner street will even have shops selling firecrackers, so you can also join in the celebration by bursting a few.

6. Watch the New year gala on TV: If you have CCTV 9 you can watch the show with subtitles, or you can just tune in to any chinese channel to watch the fun..

Just a small tip to survive during this long weekend when everything is going to be closed:
Stock up on grocery. Recharge gas, electricity, hot water. Withdraw some extra cash from the ATM. If you want to step out prepare to use public transport as taxis will be limited.

Enjoy the long weekend and once again wishing you a happy year of the Snake. Gong xi fa cai!