Chinese New Year Update

So, I'm finally getting around to writing about family traditions/culture/whatever that I observed while the Chinese New Year holiday was celebrated here in Taiwan. This year, the Chinese New Year holiday officially began in Taiwan on Wednesday, 2/6, & ended on Tuesday, 2/12. During this period, I observed that many businesses, especially family-owned or non-franchised ones, closed their doors as proprietors & staff traveled home to visit with relatives or otherwise took a rest from work. For many people in Taiwan, the New Year holiday is the only substantive official holiday during the entire year, especially since a lot of industries in Taiwan have gone recently from a 48-hour work week to a 44-hour work week, i.e., from working 6 days per week to 5.5 days per week.

In our case, we re-located to the home of Amy's youngest aunt, San[1] A[1]yi[2], where we lived until the evening of 2/8 & where almost all of Amy's maternal relatives gathered to prepare food, catch-up, exchange hong[2] bao[1], play mah jong (pinyin = ma[2] jiang[4]), & stay-up late doing all of the above! It was fascinating to observe the process that brought to life the family dishes I have come to enjoy so much - learning about the ingredient that gives the family dumplings their distinctive sharp taste was a special treat. Also, watching Amy's grandmother & grandmother make these dumplings by hand - an activity that they've engaged in together for more than 50 years - was also quite special.


檢視較大的地圖

On New Year's Day (2/7), Amy, Nathan, & I made a special trip to Xin[1]zhu[2] (spelled "Hsinchu" above), which is southwest of Taipei City & where many members of Amy's paternal family reside. Religious & spiritual orientations were an interesting dimension of this trip, as, during our visit to the home of Amy's paternal grandparents, Amy was encouraged to bow to photographs of two family ancestors set within a permanent alter abutting the dining area. Also, we were reunited with Amy's paternal uncle & his wife, who is a devout Buddhist & is very active in her congregation. We also learned during the visit that Amy's paternal grandparents had recently converted to Christianity, as they reported enjoying the warmth & sincerity of their daughter's congregation, which is located near their home. We had a fantastic time visiting with all of the relatives gathered in Xin[1]zhu[2] - photos taken during this even can be found at http://picasaweb.google.com/jamie.parker

Nathan will wake-up soon - Amy's started her research & is no longer here during the day, so I have to put my nai[2]ba[4] ("milk father") responsibilities first!