ИконописIt is 2012. The Lunar or the Chinese New Year 2012 is finally here. It is indeed an auspicious day for the Chinese where they get to celebrate the new year in the Chinese calendar. To me, it is like celebrating two new years where else those that only celebrate the western new year on the Julian calendar only get to celebrate it once.

Chinese New Year 2012 is a little bit different this year. Why???? Come let me tell you why is it different for me!

We have a simple “yee sang” (raw fish) mix but WITHOUT the fish. Why is it different? Well, previous years even when there are no fishes, we have jellyfishes. Well, that is why my 2012 yee sang is really different. So funny that this year no one seemed to rush to eat more yee sang as it is all vegetable. Knowing myself, I am not a fan of vegetable (I know… I know… vege is supposed to be good for us), so I had very little vegetarian yee sang this year.

Though strange enough, it seems as years go by, I am not that picky on certain food at last. Last time, to get me to drink salted vegetable soup with duck is like making me drink something yucky. Suddenly it is totally the opposite this year. I can definitely drink a lot this year though.

What is a salty vegetable soup? Every year I will return back to my hometown in Melaka (Malacca for you English speaking dudes) to visit my relatives and to get some taste of nyonya food.

Itik Tim (Duck Salted Vegetable Soup) is one of a kind. Talked about it last year too. The above has Hennessy VSOP mixed into the soup. The soup is delicious. For those halal people out there, you can get this soup in Nyonya Restaurants out there but for a hefty sum. For us baba nyonyas, it is a normal dish we can have every year. Hehe…

What is so special then? Ducks that were used are ducks that were rear in villages. That is suffice to say, that there would not be a lot of fats like you get on commercial ducks being widely bred. The taste would be superb, the meat might be little but there is definitely very less fat in your soup.

Did I mentioned that you can also use Remy Martin for your Itik Tim? Let me say it again, YES!!! You can!

One good thing being back to Melaka is also the abundance of fruits there. One of my favorites though is the Rambutan.

I have just found out that there are two species being grown here in the place I visited. They are Kawan Sekolah and something else…. errr…. which I cannot really remember right now.

The only problem with the rambutans is that there are Red Ants making their nest on the trees. So getting bitten once or twice is kind of normal to us folks here. Does not really bother me much. Just love the ‘kampung‘ life!!! Give me a farm or a shopping complex, I would rather visit the farm than the shopping complex. (Though give me a house to sleep and a farm, I would rather be at the house!! Hee hee…)

After all, Chinese New Year is usually celebrated and associated with card playing, mahjong. Surprisingly this year, I did not bothered to take part in any of those activities. Maybe I felt that it is more important to embrace the part of life where mixing with people without gambling is good enough. Though one change did happen!!!! Wait for it… wait for it….

The BOOZE!!!!! We have Sheridan!! We have Kahlua!! We have Bacardi!! We have some other kind of alcoholic drink my weird younger brother bought from somewhere which have a weird plum in it. Anyway, let us all have a great Chinese new Year 2012 this year and have a prosperous new year!

Anyway here is to the new year 2012 and looks like this is how I greet the new year with a new look!

KAM PAI!!!! YAM SENG!!! GONG XI FA CAI!!!

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Sorry I’ve been away as I am in the festive mood
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OK….The new year holidays has finally ended. What more didn’t get to climb Bukit Tabur as planned (Sobs, T_T ) . Well, due to other plans I forfeited this plan. Well, why climb when one can enjoy eating and eating at houses during these festive seasons. It’s one of those special food and eat eat days. Well yeah…

Anyway, so what did most families do on the eve of the Lunar New Year?? Most of them go back to their hometown to have their festive get together dinner. Well, to me though, it’s totally different, as my hometown people are disperse since the passing away of both my grandparents at my mom and dad’s side. But anyway, that’s beside the question. Just a brief introduction for people who doesn’t know the meaning of the eve of Chinese New Year.

Being the Year of the Pig (Boar), what more way to celebrate than to have eat. Ha Ha… Well, so on my way to Melaka or Malacca, the once famous city port during historical times. Well, my dad’s from Melaka if you’re wondering. So, all the way there, visiting relatives and friends.

Well, it was a long long journey as expected. Traffic jam resulted going out to Port Dickson toll. Arghhh… the agony of being stuck in a road of about only 200 meters in like 1 hour all because everyones cramping into one lane for the Touch N’ Go toll booth. OK, calm down, enough ranting..

Well, I went shooting (pics) and it was a frenzy. Being like in touch with my artistic side. (Well I used to not know about the wonders of photos). Talking about Melaka somehow reminded me of my first ever post on my blog. Well it was a talk on some serious matter. Can be viewed here.

But then why divert the attention. Chinese New Year spirit somehow seems much livelier when you’re back in your own hometown.

Well, with more lanterns, ang pow packets and the people here are more welcome to visitors than my place in KL. I wonder why? Must be the upbringing or the ever hectic life in Kuala Lumpur that people seems to ignore each another and hardly meet each another unless it’s for business. Well, for starters, make friends people. Make friends. That’s how the world should be actually.

Ha ha ha… suddenly the ang paos I received this year seems lesser than last time. Maybe coz I’ve grown up and people are aging…well you know. What more, the ever annoying thing comes every Chinese New Year once you’re over 20.

“Hey, danielctw…. where’s your girlfriend ar???”
or
“danielctw, you not young anymore, fast fast find girlfriend”

This is not like once or twice. It’s kinda frequent whenever it’s a Chinese New Year. Okay, maybe because I am kinda choosy and such, but then why the heck almost the same question every year???? Sometimes I give up but then knowingly, I grew accustom to it.

I’ll just say,

“Oh too many girlfriends, I don’t know which one to choose =P “. (ya…rite… – some of you might be thinking)

Well how else could I say it then. Well, shoot me for being not creative at all. Anyway what about this year. Year of The Pig means more food and more lazy (haha… just thought that up) so what about some “ba kua“. Well here’s a picture of it, if you don’t know what it is. Have a look up at wikipedia.

Delicious looking. But not for those people who are strictly on the halal side. Hehehe….
There are many more food I can describe like Pon Teh, Dodol, Wajid, Itik Tim which are all nyonya food that I ate in my trip to Melaka. Well, it’s a priviledge to come from a baba nyonya family. You get to enjoy these kind of food which one might never even heard of it especially town folks.. (Haha.. no offense)

The trip wasn’t as long as expected. But imagined visiting like 5 houses in a day. The life of a kampung with chickens, ducks, dog, geese… such life. So I reached back home like 2am in the morning and guessed what I was found. My burnt AMD Processor… haha…

What an amazing sight. Heh

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