Chinese New Year or Lunar New Year, is a 15 day celebration, the first day this year being the 10th Feb 2013.  Here in Singapore it is a pretty big deal, lots of festivities and decorations everywhere. Therefore, it is not long before at some point in that 15 days, you run into a Lion Dance Troupe.  Many businesses and private residences will pay for a Lion Dance performance, in order to bring in good luck and prosperity for the coming year.

I happened to be in Tiong Bahru Plaza here in Singapore yesterday, when one such troupe was doing the rounds.  It was my first time getting close to seeing one, so I was quite thrilled.  It was not difficult to realize they were in the vicinity, as the noise was pretty deafening.  Banging of drums and cymbals is part of the ritual, all designed to scare off any evil spirits.  The eating of greens (lettuce) and oranges  symbolizes good luck and fortune. The red packet, containing money, a reward for the Lion chasing away the evil sprits.

It was fun to watch, and luckily I was able to capture a little video.

I did have a little chuckle to myself.  The Troupe would wait around for a few minutes whilst the "Lion Dance Pimp" as I fondly refer to him - aka the guy in the black shirt and grey trousers, went into the store to verify all was well (and paid for I presume).  I guess someone has to be in charge! :)

If you want to watch a much better video of a Lion Dance than mine, click here.  This video was filmed at Centre Point Mall on Orchard Road.  Very close to where I live.

For more detail on Chinese New Year, click here.

For a more modern twist on the Lion Dance, click here.  This is a cool hip hop version performed on Orchard Road here in Singapore, courtesy of UniquelySG on You Tube.

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With the Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations almost upon us (9th February 2013 is Chinese New Years Eve), the center of Chinatown is very busy with people shopping and preparing, getting ready to welcome the year of the Snake.  Our walk was a little different as we took in some of the quieter streets first, learning some of the history of the buildings along the way.