Members of the College’s African, Caribbean, Asian & Allies Society (ACAAS) have put together activities so that the whole College community could celebrate the Lunar New Year of the Rabbit which began on Monday 22 January.
Celebrated widely throughout South and East Asia, the Lunar New Year marks the beginning of spring and the start of a new lunar cycle. It is celebrated over the course of 16 days.
To mark the occasion, red handmade Chinese lanterns decorated the trees in the quad and were illuminated in the evening by solar fairy lights to mimic firecrackers which are traditionally lit. The catering department supported the celebrations by offering a Chinese menu with dishes that are typically eaten during the celebrations for the whole school to enjoy. Elsewhere, hand-drawn banners with new year messages adorned doorways around the school and in houses.
Main Hall, decorated in red and gold, hosted the main event on Monday, giving everyone an opportunity to join in. ACAAS members manned stalls offering different activities such as traditional games, paper-cutting decorations, name writing in Chinese calligraphy or exchanging a Chinese proverb for a lucky red envelope that contained a chocolate coin.
On Tuesday evening, the Mandarin department hosted a meal for pupils from Year 7 to Lower Sixth. They enjoyed a meal of traditional food, played games of Chinese whispers, learned how to use chopsticks and enjoyed sharing the celebrations together.
“Learning Mandarin is exciting as you get to learn about a whole different culture. It was very fun to be around friends whilst celebrating the Chinese New Year. I really enjoyed opening the fortune cookies and talking about our different fortunes,” said Eleanora Beneytout-Olson (Year 7, Hutchison).
For pupils wanting to know more about the activities ACAAS are involved in, speak to your House EDI representatives.
