Happy New Year!

This is going to sound pretty stupid but I didn't realise how Asian I was until I moved to Munich and couldn't celebrate Chinese New Year BECAUSE THERE WERE NO CELEBRATIONS!!! I had to fly to London in 2012 to get my quota of roasted meats and firecrackers! This year I got celebrate en famille with the heat again and told Ma that I was really going to go the whole hog (for the two days when I was in Melbs for CNY). 

CNY eve is spent as a family reunion, laying out a food offering to ancestors, and then gorging ourselves on the food since they can't eat it. 

The family shrine with food offering

One of the aunties brought a giant tray of chocolate. It was huge!

Even Uncle Roi thought so!

I surprisingly don't eat that much chocolate in Munich so this shocked me more than Amelia who clearly knows you've got to pick fast.

Mmm, glutinous rice balls in sugar syrup - traditional for us as CNY and Pooey's favourite!

Since CNY day actually fell on a Sunday, I was adamant that I had to go to the city and see the lions, fire crackers, and touch the dragon. So with Ma, Pooey, and Spu in tow, we joined the crush to get ourselves some good luck while scaring bad spirits away. 

The crowd at the edge of Chinatown

Security guy tells everyone to make space for the parade.

But Asians are bad at following instructions for once and rushed the front of the parade when it started!

Some Chinese-looking stuff..

Here come the lions!

YEAH!!!

Feel the drums!

The dragon!

Touching the dragon is good luck...

so it's a good thing there's so much of it. 

Little known fact - Chinese lions eat lettuce.

When I'd had enough of the drums and dragons and dancing, we searched around the city for somewhere to eat lunch and ended up at Pacific House for me to get a last batch of food before returning to Germany.

yummmm...char siu pork.

Chinese broccoli with garlic. Seriously, why can't I find this vegetable in Munich?! Am I going to the Asian stores on the wrong days or something?

Chicken spare ribs in salty-egg yolk sauce

Pipis in XO sauce with yau char kway

Char kway teo. This was probably a bit too much food.

During lunch, a lion came into the restaurant to give us all an extra piece of luck. 

Spu and Poo are feeling lucky...

lucky, lucky, lucky!

So on that note, Happy Year of the Snake, everyone!