Donnerstag, Januar 22, 2004

Hou Nian Xing Da Yun!

Waking up to a new day every day is an arduous task because of the late nights that I keep. And today was no exception.

Being the first day of the Chinese Lunar New Year, I will be one of the few billions of Chinese throughout the globe trotting around with auspicious red bags containing kums (mandarin oranges) to pay visits to family and friends and offering New Year greetings and wishes for good luck and prosperity over the year. These house visits usually take place over a 2 week long period of Chinese New Year celebrations.

Kums or tangerines are small, loose-skinned, orange-yellow to deep orange-red fruit with very sweet aromatic pulp. They symbolise abundant happiness and it is a form of etiquette and respect to have a pair of tangerines when offering elders new year greetings.

However to my horror, just when I was already getting ready to leave my house with the kums, I discovered that the whole carton of them had gone bad! I was so lost for words and it almost felt tragic. Imagine just how ill-bred and improper I will look if I just went ahead to pay house visits empty-handed.

Yet not a sense of panic rattled through my nerves since the thought that most supermarkets and convenience stores on the island would be closed for holiday did not strike me. Still, the idea of having to travel to one just to buy tangerines was unattractive. I was so reluctant but nothing could salve my conscience or save the situation except to get the kums.

It is most fortunate that the nearest Cold Storage (the reliable supermarket, largely catering to causasians' needs and is one of the few that is opened as it is not managed by a chinese managment, saved my day) is only 3 stops away from my place. I was so relieved to see mandarin oranges on display at the fruit section when I arrived. Nonetheless, I spent quite a substantial amount of time, picking, comparing, digging, out-stretching my arm and unwrapping those covered in red cellophane to choose decent looking ones amongst partially bruised, musty or squashed tangerines. Luckily for me, I had managed to find 6!

While waiting under the sweltering heat from across the road, a tibs cab finally came by and took me on a bumpy ride down to Marcus' place for lunch.

I sure had quite an experiential 1.5 hours choosing tangerines in the earlier part of the afternoon and I was glad that the rest of the day went about smoothly albeit less stimulating.

# one caramel latte for the road lili-dime | 12:41 AM |