Chinese New Year in Singapore marks the debut of the Year of the Ox in style, with a fantastic celebration spanning the whole island. The celebrations begin on the first week of January, continuing till the last day of the Chinese New Year on February 7.
Chinese New Year in Chinatown
Singapore's Chinese New Year celebrations are naturally anchored in Chinatown, where the year's first celebrations kick off. Beginning on January 3, the Chinatown Chinese New Year Celebrations transform the island-state's traditional Chinese enclave into a riot of lanterns, street stalls, and performing arts.
Look forward to a few key events of the season: a Festive Street Bazaar, Nightly Stage Shows, and Chinatown Yuan Xiao Jie.
Street Light-Up: Key streets in Chinatown - Eu Tong Sen Street, New Bridge Road, South Bridge Road, Pagoda Street, Trengganu Street, Sago Street and Garden Bridge - will be lit up with traditional Chinese lanterns, interactive displays, and other colorful street lights in the form of oranges (a lucky fruit in Chinese culture) and oxen (this is the Year of the Ox). The light-up will last till February 15.
Festive Street Bazaar: Chinatown will host more than five hundred stalls selling traditional foods, flowers, Chinese handicrafts, and customary New Year decorations. The Bazaar will last till January 25, covering Pagoda Street, Sago Street, Smith Street, Temple Street, People's Park Complex, Trengganu Street, Banda Street, and Tanjong Pagar.
Nightly Stage Shows: Kreta Ayer Square plays host to live cultural performances, from Chinese opera to magical acts to tea ceremony demonstrations. Kreta Ayer Square can be found next to the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple. The festivities will continue till January 25.
Chinatown Yuan Xiao Jie: The 15th day of Chinese New Year (February 7) is the last, and serves as the high point of the celebrations. This day's celebrations will center around Eu Tong Sen Street and New Bridge Road.
On Marina Bay, cultural performances will compete with giant displays of figures from Chinese mythology. This is when the Chingay Parade takes place, a colorful riot of floats and music (see below).
Punters looking for more refined entertainment may visit the Esplanade to witness the Chinese Festival of Arts (January 30 to February 8), for music, theater, and visual arts performances by accomplished Chinese artists.
Singapore River Hong Bao Carnival
Moving on to the Singapore riverside, Marina Promenade hosts the yearly Singapore River Hong Bao carnival from January 24 to February 1. The "Hong Bao" derives its name from the traditional red packets of money given by older Chinese to unmarried younger relatives during Chinese New Year.
Nightly cultural performances and traditional Chinese artwork can be enjoyed outdoors, and icons from Chinese folklore (legendary heroes, pagodas, mythical figures) loom larger-than-life.
Watch Chinese acrobats perform on the street. Have your name written in Chinese calligraphy. Get a Chinese zodiac reading of your birth date. If you want to get into the swing of Chinese culture for the duration of the festival, the Hong Bao is the place to be.
- January 24-25 - official launch of Hong Bao - entertainment by dance and acrobatics troupes from HuBei Art College and Nanjing Acrobatic
- January 26 - first day of Chinese New Year - song and dance performances by immigrants to Singapore
- January 27 - Snippets of Chinese Opera
- January 28-29 - Modern youth performances
- January 30-31 - Performances from famous Chinese pop stars
- February 1 - Grand "Lo Hei" dinner
Chingay Parade 2009
"Chingay", in its Hokkien equivalent, translates to "costume and masquerade". The normally staid Singaporeans take Chingay to its more colorful and musical extreme every year during the Chingay Parade, a two-night street party and parade that marks the climax of the Chinese New Year celebration.
The parade is now proudly international, growing from its purely Chinese traditional roots to embrace Taiwanese acrobats, Filipino traditional dancers, circus acrobats, and salsa artists, drawing hundreds from all over the world.
The parade will commence in front of City Hall, looping around the Padang to Connaught Drive, turning into Raffles Avenue, and passing the Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay. Parade participants will ride on floats, or walk in the procession, offering a riot of color and noise that few other Singapore festivals can equal.
Tickets to Chingay may be purchased at sistic.com.sg, at prices from S$30 to $65, with a special 10% discount available for tourists. Tickets include entry to the All-Night Party on the 31st. Visit the official Chingay website for more information: www.chingay.org.
