Lunar New Year

Imagine this scene: dragons dancing around an audience, singers partying to your favorite trending pop songs, and children singing traditional Spring Festival songs from their countries. Well, this all happened at our school. Last month, Nagoya International School (NIS) hosted a Lunar New Year celebration after school on Friday, January 31st. This event, led by students Letian Liu (10G) and Alice Xu (10W), celebrated the new year in many East Asian countries, such as China, South Korea, and more. As our NIS community is full of East Asian staff, students, and parents alike, it was important for the whole school to honor this event.

But first, what is the Lunar New Year? Why is it celebrated? Where is it celebrated, and how? Spring Festival, as it is also called, starts at the beginning of the lunar calendar, which is different every year. This also means there is no fixed date for the Lunar New Year and it changes yearly. This year, it started on January 29th and ended on February 12th. This event celebrates the arrival of spring and the desire for a new life. It is the largest holiday in China and is also widely celebrated in countries such as South Korea and Vietnam. Celebrations often include (but are not limited to) fireworks, wearing red, putting red paper with couplets on windows and doors, seeing dragon dances, and red envelopes containing money for children.

Now, let's hear about how it was celebrated at NIS! The event started in the East lobby, where many Korean parents sold snacks and hosted fun activities for younger students to engage in. This led to a stunning performance by community members, such as an umbrella dance, a dragon and lion dance, singing, and more. Then, even more Lunar New Year-themed activities were planned: writing the Chinese character ‘fu’ (福, meaning good luck), good fortune, blessing, ring toss, cards, couplet writing, etc. After the engaging entertainment, the cafeteria opened its gates, and dinner was served, with around 350 people attending! 

Cezars Kitchen prepared a wonderful dinner with a variety of dishes from different countries in East Asia, and the aroma of the food filled the cafeteria. Two classrooms were also filled with different dishes from China and Korea, prepared by parents who volunteered. Sheng jian bao, spring rolls, yanyeom chicken, hotteok, and Peking duck were among some of the delicacies that were available at the dinner. Afterward, visitors were able to enjoy another wonderfully done performance, showcasing some of the young Korean talents in our school’s elementary and middle school, singing traditional songs, as well as students of different backgrounds attending the dragon and lion dance, a high school band rocking out to popular modern music, a few violinists playing moving music, and even more acts that amazed the audience.

I want to give a huge thank you for all of the dedication and hard work that the staff, students, and parents put in to make this event as memorable and special as it was, and give a round of applause for all of the performers who crushed it on the stage that day! All of the food was cooked deliciously, the decorations were placed meticulously, and the event was planned so that there was a bit of everything for everybody. Thank you again to everyone who participated in this event, and happy new year!