Cover Photo: Courtesy of Feiping Chang
From traditional family gatherings to hitting the slopes and catching some rays, our Tatler friends share how they and their loved ones like to greet the New Year

1. Patricia Tung-Gaw

Tatler Asia
Above Photo: Courtesy of Patricia Tung-Gaw

"Our family skis every Chinese New Year in Canada or Europe. And my husband and I always get some heliskiing in, because we love powder and fresh untouched run. These were taken in 2019 in Revelstoke, Canada, where we were skiing with Eagle Pass Heliskiing."—Patricia Tung-Gaw

2. Bonnae Gokson

"I normally spend Chinese New Year in Sydney where I have a home. It's summertime there, and just very pleasant—a time where I have an intensive homoeopath programme with my German doctor and my trainer to start a new year."—Bonnae Gokson

See also: Reset Your Body With These Hong Kong Fitness And Nutrition Challenges In 2020

3. Feiping Chang

Tatler Asia
Above Photo: Courtesy of Feiping Chang

"My mother loves new year traditions, so we had so many memories growing up, from decorating the house to making auspicious food for each day of the new year. My favourite is making dumplings together on new year's day morning, it's an activity that brings the whole family together. This year I'll be spending Chinese New Year in Sydney, but I'll be sure to carry on the tradition of making dumplings!"—Feiping Chang

See also: Chinese New Year 2020: Astrology Tips For The Year Of The Rat

 

4. Kayla Wong

"We just annually do our family day every year on the first day of the lunar new year. Having it filled with home-cooked yummy food—mostly turnip cake!"—Kayla Wong

See also: Chinese New Year 2020: Auspicious Menus To Enjoy In Hong Kong

5. Barney Cheng

"Usually we will prep narcissus buds, make Lo Bak Go and sweet soup in anticipation for visiting relatives. I’ll be skiing in Courchevel this year as I haven’t been there for close to two decades!"—Barney Cheng

6. Pearl Shek

"We usually spend the morning at home with the immediate family and our eight dogs, then we head out to yum cha and bai leen (aka visiting relatives and friends) with the rest of the extended family (there’s a lot of us!). All the parents will be in one section, and the “kids” will be on the other side. We laugh and chat over delicious food, then usually my family will head over to the airport for our annual family trip—we’ll be spending Chinese New Year in Singapore again this year!"—Pearl Shek

7. Laura Cheung

"We usually spend Chinese New Year in Sydney so it’s always summertime for us. Our extended family is all there; it’s much more festive being with everyone. We have mandatory family time together during Chinese New Year, then right after I usually go skiing with my husband. Last year and this year we’ll be at Powder Mountain for Summit Series; we love it because of the amazing group of people and curated learning sessions that make it so special."—Laura Cheung

8. Veronica Lam

Tatler Asia
Above Fish, shrimp and crab rolling dice board game (Photo: Getty Images)

"The first day of Chinese New Year, we all go back to office with all colleagues and families and relatives and give out or receive lai see and play fish, shrimp and crab rolling dice board game—the first gamble of the year, with everyone joining in. It’s fun!"—Veronica Lam

See also: Chinese New Year 2020: Unique Red Packets To Give Your Blessings In Hong Kong

9. Helen Ma

"My tradition was to spend Chinese New Year every year at my father’s in Taipei before he passed. We used to buy a lot of playful fireworks, to light and play on our own; it was so much fun and such a nice memory after all. The past five years we’ve been celebrating at the Mandarin Oriental watching the lion dance. This year we will start travelling with family during Chinese New Year; we’ll visit Singapore as it has nice weather and is a clean and safe city—the most ideal place for kids and family."—Helen Ma

See also: Tatler's Guide To Chinese New Year Traditions In Asia 2020

10. Esther Sham

"My own family tradition on top of Chinese New Year foods and visits, we take a family photo in front of our cherry blossom at home each year. However, the tree we had last year was so bad that I had to throw it out before Chinese New Year, so we went to Sunny’s brother’s to take our family photo next to his blossom tree. Haha!"—Esther Sham

11. Carmen Yim

"Being brought up by my very traditional parents, we value the traditions of Chinese New Year. We would clean the whole house before Chinese New Year, then on the first few days of new year we would go around to different relatives homes to give and get red packets with my parents. This year I will be passing on this tradition with my husband and pass our red packets to friends and family as Mr. and Mrs. Char."—Carmen Yim 

12. René Chu

Tatler Asia
Above Photo: Courtesy of René Chu

"My Chinese New Year traditions: wearing red on red, and selfies with grandma!"—René Chu

See also: Chinese New Year 2020: A Hong Kong Itinerary

13. Ruth Chao

Tatler Asia
Above Photo: Courtesy of Ruth Chao

"Chinese New Year is all about sharing and happiness. Every year I custom design red packets as special gifts to friends and clients for a beautiful year ahead!"—Ruth Chao

See also: A Day in the Life of Antonio Li and Ruth Chao

14. Sabrina Fung-Lam

Tatler Asia
Above Photo: Courtesy of Sabrina Fung-Lam

"We host an open day on a Sunday after CNY coinciding with the annual HK marathon at our home with lots of symbolism and new year foods. We dress in traditional Chinese festive attire and greet our guests with lai see and well wishes; it’s a warm and friendly affair for all. This is an annual CNY event that I look forward to every year!"—Sabrina Fung-Lam

See also: Going Beyond Limits with Sabrina Fung-Lam

15. Victoria Tang-Owen

Tatler Asia
Above Photo: Courtesy of Victoria Tang-Owen

"One of my annual traditions is buying flowers every year during Chinese New Year."—Victoria Tang-Owen

See also: Victoria Tang-Owen On Family Legacy And Her First Collection As Shanghai Tang’s Creative Director

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