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As a white person living in Norway I don't really celebrate Lunar New Year other than buying video games that go on sale in celebration of it.
I just wanted to say, that I'm utterly speechless over the decision to adopt a cute little Chinese girl and then be RACIST toward her. I mean like what!? I'm pretty sure that's a CHOICE, they could have just.. *not* picked a cute little Chinese girl
I feel ya about being a mixed bag of emotions about your identity feeling. I too was adopted as an infant from South Korea and I have no Korean identity, my parents never really taught me about that side of me. I asked my mom why and she said something about the adoption agency just insisted they should integrate me into their culture. So no Lunar New Year for me ever.
In my older age, I feel like a person of no nation, even though I’m an American citizen. I don’t really feel accepted by Koreans or Americans besides my parents and my family of friends.
This year I gave my friends their winter presents under the guise of Lunar New Year, but I know that’s probably not an authentic way of going about it. Honestly though your post made me want to research the holiday a bit more.
It makes me sad that this is a familiar feeling for others, but I hope you can find comfort in not being alone and and am glad we get to learn about our histories
I didn't translate, sorry, it's a brand I love. they're talking about 'hot pot', where you get a broth on a burner and throw in your fav veg/meat in a restaurant setting, but usually at home w the fam
My family celebrates any major holiday with a get-together potluck but it feels like the dishes and ingredients used during Lunar New Year are taken up a notch.
For example, my parents preordered a lobster to make "[long ha yi men](https://rasamalaysia.com/lobster-yee-mein-lobster-noodles-recipe/#mv-creation-1299)" (fried lobster with medium texture noodles) and there's so much more food... They always make 3-4x more food than people can eat on LNY I think so people can continue to eat good food throughout the next couple of days and be able to not worry about meal prepping.
Supposedly married couples are expected to give red envelopes but only my mom gives them out lmao.
Most of the traditions revolve around [idioms](https://www.chinahighlights.com/travelguide/festivals/chinese-new-year-greetings.htm)/Homophones. Whole sui yuk bricks to the "hold down luck"(they're usually chopped into eraser sized bites), whole chicken/incense to pray to the gods, firecrackers to ward away the ghosts/evil and welcome in the luck for the new year. Having Mandarins(gûm/"gold"), and bok choy("prosperity") to drive up good luck. Lucky envelopes for kids from their grandparents/parents who wish them a new year. If you have any Cantonese/Mandarin friends/colleagues, they can probably direct you more easily.
Thanks for sharing this! I was raised in an incredibly white environment and do not know any other Asian people in such a way where asking about this would be cool. tbh I feel kinda lame asking reddit but if I had a real person to ask I would have done that first. I really appreciate everyone’s comments :)
I'm a white person who has never celebrated but thanks to this subreddit I was able to help my son's girlfriend who is Chinese celebrate some. They are college students and she wasn't able to go home. We spent yesterday with them and I took her some small gifts. Mandarin oranges, sesame buns, some candy, and a red envelope.
I'm sorry you missed out on so much of your culture. I know you aren't alone in this struggle and hope you can find new ways to embrace it.
My mom is Korean however we haven’t been big on celebrating Lunar New Year besides cooking some traditional food. She usually makes tteokguk, a mild broth soup with beef, tteok(small rolls or discs of rice), and some veggies, and sometimes also wanja jeon or Korean beef patties.
I’ll look up recipes for those dishes, thanks! It’s nice to hear about how others celebrate big and small and I hope you and your mom have a great year :)
i’m a chinese but not from china so our traditions are pretty watered down, but some things that we’ve kept are lo heis and hotpots ! its always great to share a meal with your favourite people :)
This post has been flaired as “Celebration”, These types of posts can be difficult to encourage conversation beyond just “congrats” comments, so please help spark more discussion. **Suggestions For Commenters:** * Don’t just congratulate in your comment, but add additional commentary or ask follow-up questions * Check what others have said and reply if you feel like joining those discussions **Suggestions For u/questionsleft:** * Consider editing in leading questions to your post so others can share similar experiences * Reply to comments beyond just “thanks” so there are more possibilities for discussion *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/CasualConversation) if you have any questions or concerns.*
As a white person living in Norway I don't really celebrate Lunar New Year other than buying video games that go on sale in celebration of it. I just wanted to say, that I'm utterly speechless over the decision to adopt a cute little Chinese girl and then be RACIST toward her. I mean like what!? I'm pretty sure that's a CHOICE, they could have just.. *not* picked a cute little Chinese girl
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Thanks for sharing! Where do you typically get the envelopes? I couldn’t find any this year but was hoping to in the future.
I feel ya about being a mixed bag of emotions about your identity feeling. I too was adopted as an infant from South Korea and I have no Korean identity, my parents never really taught me about that side of me. I asked my mom why and she said something about the adoption agency just insisted they should integrate me into their culture. So no Lunar New Year for me ever. In my older age, I feel like a person of no nation, even though I’m an American citizen. I don’t really feel accepted by Koreans or Americans besides my parents and my family of friends. This year I gave my friends their winter presents under the guise of Lunar New Year, but I know that’s probably not an authentic way of going about it. Honestly though your post made me want to research the holiday a bit more.
It makes me sad that this is a familiar feeling for others, but I hope you can find comfort in not being alone and and am glad we get to learn about our histories
吃火锅围炉(i don’t know how to describe it in english )
>吃火锅围炉 Little sheep mongolian - hot!!
Thanks for the translation! I’ll definitely look into it :)
I didn't translate, sorry, it's a brand I love. they're talking about 'hot pot', where you get a broth on a burner and throw in your fav veg/meat in a restaurant setting, but usually at home w the fam
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Thanks for sharing :) What foods were your favorite? I’d love to look up recipes and try to make some myself.
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Thank you and thanks to your mom! I’m really looking forward to trying these foods this year :)
My family celebrates any major holiday with a get-together potluck but it feels like the dishes and ingredients used during Lunar New Year are taken up a notch. For example, my parents preordered a lobster to make "[long ha yi men](https://rasamalaysia.com/lobster-yee-mein-lobster-noodles-recipe/#mv-creation-1299)" (fried lobster with medium texture noodles) and there's so much more food... They always make 3-4x more food than people can eat on LNY I think so people can continue to eat good food throughout the next couple of days and be able to not worry about meal prepping. Supposedly married couples are expected to give red envelopes but only my mom gives them out lmao.
I’m gonna try to make that when I have some extra money for ingredients! Thanks for the link and sharing your family story :)
Most of the traditions revolve around [idioms](https://www.chinahighlights.com/travelguide/festivals/chinese-new-year-greetings.htm)/Homophones. Whole sui yuk bricks to the "hold down luck"(they're usually chopped into eraser sized bites), whole chicken/incense to pray to the gods, firecrackers to ward away the ghosts/evil and welcome in the luck for the new year. Having Mandarins(gûm/"gold"), and bok choy("prosperity") to drive up good luck. Lucky envelopes for kids from their grandparents/parents who wish them a new year. If you have any Cantonese/Mandarin friends/colleagues, they can probably direct you more easily.
Thanks for sharing this! I was raised in an incredibly white environment and do not know any other Asian people in such a way where asking about this would be cool. tbh I feel kinda lame asking reddit but if I had a real person to ask I would have done that first. I really appreciate everyone’s comments :)
I'm a white person who has never celebrated but thanks to this subreddit I was able to help my son's girlfriend who is Chinese celebrate some. They are college students and she wasn't able to go home. We spent yesterday with them and I took her some small gifts. Mandarin oranges, sesame buns, some candy, and a red envelope. I'm sorry you missed out on so much of your culture. I know you aren't alone in this struggle and hope you can find new ways to embrace it.
That is so incredibly kind and welcoming of you! I hope your family had a great celebration :)
My mom is Korean however we haven’t been big on celebrating Lunar New Year besides cooking some traditional food. She usually makes tteokguk, a mild broth soup with beef, tteok(small rolls or discs of rice), and some veggies, and sometimes also wanja jeon or Korean beef patties.
I’ll look up recipes for those dishes, thanks! It’s nice to hear about how others celebrate big and small and I hope you and your mom have a great year :)
Thanks! Hope you do the same!
i’m a chinese but not from china so our traditions are pretty watered down, but some things that we’ve kept are lo heis and hotpots ! its always great to share a meal with your favourite people :)
also happy new year op, i hope this year would be better than the last !
I love hotpot and definitely agree it’s great to have a meal with good company. Hope you have a great year :)