By Denise Ng
丹尼斯 吴
Denise Ng was born to Chinese parents in Britain. Growing up in London her parents continued the tradition of celebrating the Chinese New Year. However, it wasn't until she was an adult and went to Hong Kong that she experienced Spring Festival on Chinese soil. In this issue of A Foreigner in China she talks about her impressions of this festival.
丹尼斯?吴在英国出生，父母是中国人。
在她于伦敦长大的过程中，其父母仍保持着过中国新年的传统。然而，直到她长大成人去了香港以后，她才在中国的土地上过了一次春节。在本期的《老外在中国》中，她就谈及了她对这一节日的印象。
In London, I remember celebrating Chinese New Year without even knowing what I was celebrating! Apart from the sparse decorations in Chinatown, the rest of the city weren't partaking. So, it comes as no surprise that I didn't understand the full extent to what Chinese New Year meant. I thought it was rather strange to have the New Year in the middle of February!
我记得，我在伦敦过中国新年时连庆祝的是什么都不知道！除了唐人街稀稀拉拉地装点起来以外，城市的其余地区都置身于外。所以，我对中国新年意味着什么全然不知，这也就不显得奇怪了。我曾认为，在二月中旬过新年太不可思议了。
However, I always looked forward to this celebration, because it was a good way to make extra pocket money. For the days coming up to Chinese New Year, all I had to do was follow my parents around the city and collect red packets from various relatives and friends. It meant I could skip my part time weekend job ①for a while! But, that would be made up for, by having a huge spring clean of the entire house…which wasn't much fun.
然而，我总是盼望着这一节庆的到来，因为这是一个得到额外零用钱的好方法。在中国新年来临前的那些日子里，我所要做的就是跟着父母在城里转悠，从许多亲戚朋友那里收取红包。这就意味着，我可以暂时不用做周末的兼职工作了！但是，那是要付出代价的——对全家来一个新春大扫除……那可不是什么乐事。
I remember my mum waking up really early on Chinese New Year's Eve. First, she would light incense sticks and pray to Buddha and then she would be in the kitchen for most of the day preparing a feast for dinner. If the Chinese New Year fell on a school day, I would go to school as normal and when I came home, my mum would still be in the kitchen!
我记得，我妈在中国新年除夕那天起得十分早。首先，她会点上几根香，朝佛祖拜上一番，然后，她一天的大部分时间里都会呆在厨房里，为晚饭准备大餐。如果中国新年那天是上学的日子，我会照常上学，而当我回到家的时候，我妈肯定还是呆在厨房里。
If Chinese New Year's Eve fell on a weekend, my mum would tell my sister to pop down the road to pick up some fresh flowers to place on the cabinet where our statue of Buddha stood. Aside from that, we would lounge around all day, waiting for dinner. I didn't particularly have any emotions about this celebration and I didn't feel the festivities of it all.
如果中国新年除夕那天是周末，我妈会让我妹出去一下，到路上采一些鲜花来，放到佛像所在的橱柜上。除此以外，我们整天都是闲呆着，等着开晚饭。我对这种庆祝方式没有什么特别的感触，而且我也根本感觉不到其欢庆之处所在。
My first taste of what the Chinese New Year celebrations really meant was when I was 20 years old and I went to Hong Kong. The locals really made a big fuss over this festival. The celebrations would last over a span of two weeks. I discovered that to the Chinese people, it is the single most important holiday of the year.
我首次体会到中国新年节庆意义的真正所在是在我20岁去了香港的时候。当地人把这个节日很当回事。庆祝活动将持续两个多礼拜。我发现，对于中国人来说，那是一年中最最重要的节日。
Temporary market stalls would be erected in school playgrounds, football grounds and basketball courts. The stalls would only sell fresh flowers and customers didn't mind paying the clearly ②marked up prices.
在学校操场、足球场和篮球场会搭起临时的市场摊位。这些摊位只卖鲜花，而顾客对明显偏高的标价也不会在意。
A big part of the Chinese New Year is having fresh flowers at home. Also, the locals would buy mini tangerine trees, and decorate them with red packets. They would shop around for a new outfit to wear specially for New Year's Day and you would get red packets from extended family, friends and work colleagues who are married. Homes would be decorated with printed paintings of lucky words – with red being the symbolic colour. The paintings would have a red background, with gold writing; 'prosperity', 'fortune' and 'health' just to name a few.
过中国新年的一个主要方式就是在家中摆放鲜花。而且，当地人会买来小橘树，用红包在上面装饰一番。他们还会去逛商场，为过新年专门买一套衣服，而你可以从齐聚一堂的家人、朋友和已婚的同事那里收到红包。各家各户会用印有吉祥字的画（采用了红色这个具有象征意义的颜色）装饰起来。这些画以红色为背景，写有金色字体；比如说，“旺”、“财”和“安康”。
Hong Kong simply comes alive during the Chinese New Year. The lion dancing is great to watch as is hearing the sound of fire crackers. It all represents the Chinese New Year and sets the mood and atmosphere. Since my family is all in London, I was invited to celebrate Chinese New Year's Eve at my friend's house. I was made to feel like another member of the family and I remember going to the flower markets with them in the middle of the night! Once the huge banquet was eaten, everyone would watch television and then head out to the flower market at around 1am! The markets were always packed full of locals, trying to find the freshest flowers. There were also lots of street vendors trying to make some extra money during this festivity. Many of them would sell sweets and chocolates, which every home has during this celebration.
在中国新年期间，香港的气氛完全活跃起来。看舞狮表演、聆听爆竹声都很不错。这全是中国新年的特色，而且还调节了情绪，营造了气氛。由于我的家人全在伦敦，所以我受邀在朋友家过中国新年的除夕。那给我的感觉就是，我被当作了这个家庭的另一名成员，我记得午夜时分还和他们一起去逛了花市！吃完了丰盛的大餐之后，所有人就会去看电视，而后会在凌晨1点左右去逛花市！市场里总是挤满了当地人，挑选着鲜花。这里还有许多想趁着这个节日挣点外快的街头小贩。他们中的许多人卖的都是糖果和巧克力，而这些是各家各户在这个节庆中都会用到的东西。
Being able to celebrate the Chinese New Year in Hong Kong is a great experience. It is so different from celebrating it in London. Hong Kong has more of an atmosphere and a happy vibe. It's very much like celebrating Thanksgiving in the States or Christmas in London.
能在香港过中国新年是一次绝好的经历。那与在伦敦过节区别太大了。香港更有气氛，更有氛围。那非常像在美国庆祝感恩节，或是在伦敦过圣诞节。
I'm divided between two cultures – my Chinese side and my English side. But, I stay true to both sides by celebrating all the festivities that both sides bring…. I reap the best of both worlds!
我横跨了两种文化——我的中国背景和我的英国背景。不过，我两种文化都没有背离——两种文化背景下的节日我都过……我在这两个文化中收益颇丰。
