Vietnamese-New Zealander Julie Fam with Bada the cat, and Sarah Ting Wang originally from Shanghai with Max the angora rabbit named Max Photo / Dean Purcell
Thousands in New Zealand will be joining the millions around the globe tonight to farewell the roaring tiger - and welcome the milder rabbit or purring cat.
The Lunar New Year, a massive event with long-held cultural traditions, starts tomorrow, with the Chinese celebrating the Year of the Rabbit, the fourth animal in the Chinese zodiac.
To the Vietnamese, however, the celebrations will be for the Year of the Cat matching the fourth animal on their zodiac.
Across New Zealand, communities are preparing to roll out events to usher in the new year with festivities to occur from tonight until February 5.
In Auckland, where the focus is mainly on the rabbit, festivities kick off with the Chinese New Year Festival and Market Day at the ASB Showgrounds today.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, who will be officiating the lion “eye dotting” launch ceremony, described the Lunar New Year as a “special time for families and friends to come together, give thanks and reflect on the previous year”.
“It’s wonderful to see so many communities across the country holding events to mark Lunar New Year, another reminder of New Zealand’s rich diversity and the contribution of Chinese and Asian New Zealanders to our culture and our communities,” Ardern said.
She said this year, the Chinese zodiac cycle moves into the Year of the Rabbit.
“People born in the Year of the Rabbit are said to be kind, empathetic and creative - qualities I believe are incredibly important to hold on to as we face the challenges and opportunities ahead.”
Leader of the Opposition Chris Luxon said the Lunar New Year is “one of the biggest reasons for travel in the world as people joined their families to celebrate the occasion”.
“I hope that the Year of the Rabbit, and the Year of the Cat for our Vietnamese friends, brings prosperity, peace and good luck,” said Luxon, who will also be at the Showgrounds today.
“After the Covid-19 disruptions that have affected recent New Year celebrations, I am sure this year will be particularly joyous.”
Air New Zealand has increased its services to fly three times a week to Shanghai, and going up to four from February 4 to meet a spike in demand.
“This will be the first Chinese New Year that Chinese living in NZ can be reunited with their families for this special holiday,” an Air NZ spokeswoman said.
“China’s swift reopening of its border after nearly three years of isolation has meant Kiwis with family in China have jumped to secure tickets home for Chinese New Year.
Air NZ was expected to fly around 500 tonnes of Central Otago cherries, and 350 tonnes of seafood to Taipei and Shanghai ahead of the festivities.
“We now have three passenger/cargo flights, which equates to around 900 seats weekly, as well as three cargo-only flights going to Shanghai a week,” the spokeswoman said.
The rabbit, or specifically the water rabbit, is a symbol of longevity, peace and prosperity in Chinese culture.
But Auckland astrologer Jojo Zou is predicting the rabbit year to be one of tough challenges - although it will be rewarding for those willing to take risks.
“It is going to be a tough year, especially for the economy, and people will find it even harder to make money. Inflation will be high and the growth of economies will be even slower,” she said.
Zhou said people needed to be cautious with investments, but the year comes with “strong energy for innovation, transformation and new development”.
“These energies require us to change and get out of our comfort zone in order to create new positive possibilities in our lives,” she said.
The elements for this zodiac year will enhance “future popular industries” and those involving wood, such as manufacturing, interior design, education and artificial intelligence technology. The water energy will also benefit those in gaming, travel, international business and logistics.
The rabbit also being a fertility symbol makes it a powerful year to start new business ventures in these industries, and will also be a beneficial year to those looking to have children.
This will be a good year for people who are born in the year of the pig, sheep or dog.
Tonight, Chinese families will be celebrating Chuxi, or Chinese New Year’s Eve, and gather for tuan nian, or the reunion dinner.
Auckland mother Sarah Ting Wang who will not be returning to celebrate with her family in Shanghai this year is looking forward to gathering with friends for the “most important meal of the year”.
“When we live overseas, close friends become our new family and the reunion dinner is the most important meal to have together to strengthen our bond and solidarity,” Wang said.
Among the lunar new year traditions, food is considered the most important and many believe eating the right food will bring luck and good fortune.
Chinese restaurants across Auckland are already fully booked for multiple seatings at lunch and dinner for the weekend.
From Huami to the many Malaysian Chinese restaurants here, a tossed-up fish salad dish called yu sheng is being adopted as a must-have on the Chinese New Year menu.
This Singapore-Malaysian tradition involves a ritual called “lo hei”, literally translated from Cantonese as “tossing up good fortune”.is
People around the table would toss the ingredients with their chopsticks, flinging raw fish slices, slivered carrots and crackers into the air while shouting auspicious phrases in Chinese to ring in good luck for the year. It is believed that the higher the toss, the better the luck they will get.
Auckland restaurateur and owner of Lao Guangzhou Hot Pot restaurant said hot pot was another customary staple for reunion dinner because the pot’s round shape represents “endlessness” and “reunion”.
Hot pot is a popular East Asian cooking method where the cooking is done at the dinner table. A boiling pot of soup stock is placed at the centre with a variety of raw seafood, meat, vegetables, noodles and dumplings.
But during Chinese New Year, Cai said people would order lucky dishes such as whole fish, abalone and scampi.
At Huami SkyCity for this weekend only, executive chef Raymond Xue has created three exclusive festive set menus, ranging between eight and 12 courses and priced from $109 per person to $1398 for a table of 10 to 12 diners.
His culinary highlights include the auspicious Canton-style crayfish with butter and superior broth, Beijing-style whole fish and fruit wood-roasted peking duck.
Lunar new year entertainment including lion dances, fire dancers, firecrackers and meeting the God of Fortune will take place at SkyCity tonight and tomorrow from 6pm.
Lion dancing is one of the most iconic Chinese cultural performances to mark religious festivals, banish evil spirits and bring luck.
Simon Lee, head of the New Zealand Asian Cultural and Sports Association lion dance troupe, said the Lunar New Year is an incredibly busy time and his team had been preparing for weeks for back-to-back performances.
“With Covid at first we were not sure if the same thing will happen like in the past three years, but since indications that celebrations will be back in full force, we have had non-stop requests to perform,” Lee said.
Lee’s troupe performs a southern Chinese-style dance, with the furry lions dancing to the beat of drums and clash of cymbals.
Vietnamese-Kiwi Julie Fam says it is “rather sad” that New Zealand’s Lunar New Year celebrations feature only the rabbit and not the cat.
There are 10,086 who identified themselves as Vietnamese living in New Zealand according to the 2018 Census while Chinese New Zealanders numbered 231,387.
The 12 Vietnamese zodiac animals largely match the Chinese signs with the only difference being the rabbit and the cat.
It is not clear why Vietnam dumped the rabbit and adopted the cat in its zodiac, but it is thought to have possibly been because of a complex translation error.
“I can understand that the Chinese population is much larger, but it is rather sad that the cat does not get any mention and this can make the Vietnamese community here feel excluded,” said Fam, a local Vietnamese musician.
Chris Simpson, head of major events at Tātaki Auckland Unlimited said however, it was open to talking about the cat being included in future Lunar New Year events.
“Like all Tātaki Auckland Unlimited-delivered events, we continue to look at ways to grow our festivals,” Simpson said.
“If there is an opportunity in the future to include Lunar New Year celebrations from other cultures, we would be open to being a part of those conversations.”
The Auckland Lantern Festival, one of Tātaki Auckland Unlimited’s main cultural events, will return after three years of cancellations due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The festival, which traditionally brings the 15-day Lunar New Year festivities to a close will be held from February 2 to 5 at a new venue, the Manukau Sports Bowl.
The festival usually attracts between 160,000 to 200,000 people.
It outgrew long-time venue Albert Park in 2015, it was then held at Auckland Domain.
The 2020 Domain event and the 2021 and 2022 festivals which were set to take place at the Ports of Auckland and Auckland Showgrounds respectively were cancelled due to pandemic restrictions.
“Tataki Auckland Unlimited’s focus in 2023 is to successfully deliver Auckland’s beloved Lantern Festival for the first time since 2019,” Simpson said.
“This celebration will be in a way that Aucklanders and visitors have come to know since the festival’s inception in 2000, marking the Chinese New Year through traditional food, music, crafts, and the popular lanterns.
“The festival is inclusive and welcomes people of all backgrounds to attend and participate, with stalls from a variety of cultures taking part.”
Koreans also celebrate their Lunar New Year, or Seollal, as one of the most important dates on their calendar.
Wendy Kim, director of Auckland-based skincare business Nellie Tier, said unlike the Chinese, the festive period for Koreans lasts for three days instead of 15.
“We will eat white rice cake soup, traditional confectionery, fruits and sweet drinks,” said Kim, who will be returning to Seoul to celebrate the new year.
“Growing up in Korea, we would gather and perform rituals honoring our ancestors and the sebae, an act of kneeling and bowing, as a way of showing respect and wishing our elders.”
In the 2018 Census, there were 35,664 people who identified as belonging to the Korean ethnic group here.
According to Chinese astrology, those born in the Year of the Rabbit are gentle, quiet, elegant and alert. They are also quick, skillful, kind and patient.
Famous people born in the year of the rabbit include scientist Albert Einstein, actress Angelina Jolie, actor Brad Pitt, footballer Lionel Messi, tennis star Novak Djokovic, American designer Ralph Lauren
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How to celebrate the Year of the Rabbit in Auckland?
Multiple events across the city to celebrate Lunar New Year from tonight and February 6, 2021.
January 21: Chinese New Year Festival and Market Day featuring over 200 specialist stalls selling food and crafts, and an extensive entertainment programme that includes lion dances, a face-changing performance and cultural dances. ASB Showgrounds, Greenlane from 10am to 4pm.
January 21 and 22: SkyCity will host Lunar New Year 2023 festivities including firecrackers, lion dancing, panda dances and the God of Fortune. There will also be traditional calligraphy and guzheng performances. SkyCity Auckland, 5.30 to 8pm.
January 22: Happy Chinese New Year in Takapuna. Ring in the year of the Rabbit with a day at the beach enjoying live music, cultural performances, food and market stalls. Takapuna Beach from 10am
February 2-5: The Auckland Lantern Festival returns with hundreds of Chinese lanterns on display, cultural music and dance performances, food stalls, traditional craft demonstrations and a fireworks display to bring Chinese New Year festivities to a close on February 5. Manukau Sports Bowl, 4.30 to 10.30pm.
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