Hong bao
(‘Hong bao’ or ‘red packets’ from Spring Festival: Singapore)
I found this collection the other day in amongst a pile of items on my desk that I have been meaning to sift through. It was one pile, I don’t live amongst towering columns of paper ephemera, just for the record.
I collected all the handsomest ones together to show you. The general themes are red and gold, as you can see, but there was a delightful selection of different designs – it was all very exciting and I kept them all as I’ve never really been given any red packets before. I like the two of the little children’s faces, fish are connected to prosperity and the tiger is this year’s zodiac animal. All in all, it felt like a kind of different style of Christmas; family oriented, steeped in tradition with certain peculiarities and rituals that must be followed. When gifted, each packet contains a sum of money as a New Year blessing. It was all enormous fun.
There’s one red packet I haven’t shown here – I’ll add it soon– there is one hong bao that Ying’s dad gave me after the frantic exchanges of Chinese New Year and it’s a stunner. Stay tuned!
– Today Rosie is in the UK, entertaining friends –
