Year of the Horse kicks off
“Happy New Year” greetings echo across Box Hill in Melbourne’s east as shoppers fill baskets with glutinous rice cakes, red envelopes, bright lanterns, goji berries and other treats.
Exuberant festive energy is just gaining momentum for those welcoming the Year of the Horse in the City of Whitehorse, where nearly one in eight people were born in China and more than a quarter of the population has Chinese heritage.
The Year of the Horse begins on Tuesday. Traditional family reunion dinners kick off with 15 days of celebrations, while on Saturday up to 100,000 revelers are expected to watch lion dancers, fireworks and taste delicacies at the Box Hill Chinese New Year Festival, the biggest event in the municipality.
“It’s like an onion; seemingly fun, lively, people come and look at it,” said Richard Shi, vice president of the Whitehorse Asian Business Association.
“But the further back you peel it back, the more complex it becomes.”
Shi and association president Bihong Wang are among the volunteers who spent thousands of hours organizing the festival.
A big reason why Wang does this is so he can proudly bring his own children’s friends.
“This is very important to them, [saying] “This is my identity, this is my culture and we want to show you this,” he said.
Shi remembers being the only child with black hair at Kew primary school after migrating from northern China, and said there was a noticeable difference in cross-cultural communication as the local festival grew.
He had never seen the southern Chinese dish of prawn spring rolls before coming to Melbourne, and during celebrations in Australia he likened the seasonal specialties from across Southeast Asia to a common language among dozens of ethnic groups.
Lunar New Year is also one of the most important events for the local economy.
Shi owns multiple businesses, including an importing company. Dried mushrooms are in such high demand that they prepare an extra 20,000 kilos just for the holiday season.
Queues at local institution Ducgo Live Seafood can start from 7am and are three times the normal amount of Murray cod, coral trout and other fish sold.
Owner Victor Huang, who also runs the nearby Canton Lake Restaurant, has noticed that customers are tightening their belts as they do everywhere, but expensive foods like lobster cooked in professional kitchens are popular decorations for banquets.
“Whether it’s Chinese cultural traditions or food culture, it should be maintained, passed on to future generations,” Huang said through a translator.
The nearby Welcome Butcher expects to sell at least 1,000 kilograms of pork in three days.
“We usually serve around 200-300.” [customers] a day, but maybe 400 on Chinese New Year,” owner Ray Su said.
More people will pass through Box Hill Central shopping center during the festivities than at any other time of the year, and there will be a noticeable increase in deliveries, according to center manager James Roper.
“In terms of economic activity, it is on the rise around Christmas,” he said.
It’s also the busiest time of year for performers from the Melbourne Chinese Youth Community, a volunteer troupe who are preparing to stage 100 lion dance, dragon dance and martial arts performances. Performance and events coordinator Carmen Lau said most of the members are overseas students, while others are third-generation families.
“Our artists train all year long, and in the next two weeks, these trainings reach their peak,” Lau said.
Monash councilor Nicky Luo, who emigrated from China as a teenager, said old traditions such as fireworks sets local celebrations apart.
“It’s a very common thing here, it’s a must-have thing, but in China it’s not a must,” Luo said. “We actually kept things that were brought here probably 200 years ago when the first Cantonese came during the Gold Rush.”
Other major celebrations will also be held in various parts of the city. Parts of Little Bourke and Lonsdale streets will be closed in the CBD as up to 200,000 people attend Melbourne’s Chinese Lunar New Year Festival on Sunday.
“Everywhere is packed; you can’t even walk,” said Christina Zhao, president of the Melbourne Chinese Business Association.
Charlotte Setijadi, an anthropologist and lecturer in Asian studies at the University of Melbourne, said local celebrations had evolved due to shifts in immigrant demographics and generational change, but the proud public display of culture and family meals remained at its heart.
“Lunar New Year will be celebrated not only by the Chinese, but also by the Koreans and Vietnamese, for example,” he said.
“Even families who have lived in Australia for generations, who are Australian citizens, and who may have never been to their ancestral homeland… [it is] “This is an important time of year for reaffirming ethnic and cultural identities.”
Start your day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.
Rachael Ward is a journalist on The Age’s City team. Contact her at rachael.ward@theage.com.auConnect via email.
