ALTHOUGH there will be no physical events celebrating the Lunar New Year because of the ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) is taking the event’s cherished traditions online, sending festive blessings in a whole new fashion.

A three-week “Fortunes in Hong Kong” Chinese New Year campaign is being held in an “online+offline” format from Feb. 8 to 26 at www.discoverhongkong.com/CNY, featuring an online market which offers Chinese New Year delicacies and specialties. Games, lucky feng shui tips, and festive e-cards are also available, allowing participants from all over the world to feel the festive vibes. There is also a video on this year’s Chinese New Year celebration on https://youtube/QvVydbZQ4Xw.

On a normal new year, locals make their way to visit the city’s renowned flower market in Prince Edward, Kowloon to shop for seasonal flowers and plants that symbolize good wishes. Tangerine trees, for example, are believed to bring good luck, while orchids symbolize fertility and refinement. Bountiful offerings of other festive blooms and fruits are also believed to bring home good wishes.

Paying respect to the deities is another customary practice, with thousands of locals visiting one or more famous temples, such as the Che Kung Temple, the Wong Tai Sin Temple, and the Man Mo Temple to pray for health and prosperity in the coming year.

The fai chun, a traditional decoration placed on doorways and on walls, is also an essential item to create a joyful festive atmosphere and to bring good luck and prosperity.

Hong Kong also has what is called “Guanyin Loan-granting Day,” where, on the 26th day of the first lunar month every year, Guanyin temples in various districts get packed with worshippers seeking their desired amount of “money” from Guanyin which may bring them fortune and wealth in the coming year. People who borrow money are expected to use it for righteous purposes only.

For more information on Hong Kong, visit https://www.discoverhongkong.com/eng/index.html.

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