Gong Xi Fa Cai

? Fu woodcut

This year, what with starting a new job, selling our house, and going to Melbourne to present a paper at the VALA2010 conference, I just did not manage to send greeting cards to anyone.

So, a virtual greeting will have to do for this year: GONG XI FA CAI! Happy New Year! I hope this year brings good health, success and happiness to you and yours.

This picture (below right) shows part of what I had for dinner last night: Mum’s “faat choy” dish, which would have to be the quintessential Chinese New Year food for me.

The dish consists of braised cabbage and bean curd skin along with an assortment of other foods we only ever eat around this time of the year – faat choy, kum jum, muk ee – all of which symbolise wealth and success. (These three foods are all fungi while wikipedia says the faat choy is a cyanobacterium?)

It was great to catch up with family last night.

I’m still pondering what I learned and all the connections I made in Melbourne. I had a great time meeting people. Blog post on VALA2010 to follow soon.

3 Comments

Penny 15 February 2010

Happy new year to you too 🙂 Trying to pummel my brain into gathering vala thoughts too.

CW 15 February 2010

Thanks Penny. It was very good to catch up in Melbourne! 🙂

Belongun 15 February 2010

Happy belated New Year to you too CW… may you indeed have a fresh and full-filling run at ‘Life’, this new year!

I have to tell you – I jumped onboard a writing course through my work here last year and as chance would have it – the person facilitating the course had a particular interest in fountain pens. This person took me to one of her favourite shops in the city and proceeded to share with me the many things she enjoyed about said pens. I even had a go with a flash one – although I cant say I’m converted. I then told her about you and your blogs on the same subject. It fair made me smile it did. haha 😉