Year of the Rat

Feburary 7th marks the beginning of the Chinese New Year...the year of the Rat. Traditionally the rat is supposed to be a bringer of new beginnings. A year of good fortune. A year of prosperity. I maintain that any year can herald in such tidings, but as I am starting with a clean slate so to speak with many aspects on my life, I am looking forward to what this year may usher in.

Last night, during First Friday, Chinatown kicked off the celebrations with lion dances. My co-worker and I had high tailed it to Indigo after work to catch a quick drink before tracking down the lions. We needed have gone far. By 5:30 the streets were already reverberating with the sounds of drums and firecrackers.

After slamming our second ginger martini the two of us scurried to find the nearest of the drumming. The lions had already begun their paces. Drummers thudded, cymbals crashed and a long strand of firecrackers dangling from the doorway of the coffee shop I frequent was lit. The noise was deafening. The smoke, thick and sweet. The dancers pranced among the pops and flares without flinching. They ducked and bobbed. Weaved around the doorway like a curious cat. eying the bunch of lettuce and red envelope suspended above the door. Eventually the dancers pushed into the building, dancing around the patrons, ducking and weaving. Eyes lit, nostrils bobbing and massive jaws closing on eager hands waving dollars at its maw. The lion worked its way around the room and outside again. It postured and undulated in front of the door, playing coy. All to the beat of the ceaseless drums. A quick approach...it snatched the greenery from the danglingly thread and spat the leaves back out at the gathered audience. With one final lunge, it swallowed the red envelope...most likely containing cash to reward the dancers. And then the lion moved onto the next business, swallowing dollar bills from eagerly outstretched hands the entire way.

The festivities continued all night. We didn't have to go far before running into another dance troupe, this one with a child's lion in tow. Firecrackers thundered around us from every side street. It sounded as if it was pouring rain. Drums shock the sidewalks. And the lions danced.

My co-worker and I stopped for a quick dinner at a dim sum resturant. They were doing a brisk business. And a lion had yet to arrive at their door...the lettuce and envelope still dangled temptingly from their sign. Waitresses scurried around with trays laden with a variety of dim sum, so there was no need to even glance at a menu. Cha sui bau is quickly becoming a favorite of mine...

After dinner we scurried on our way...we only made it a few doors down before we encountered the next tangle of pedestrians and performers. Three troupes, three sets of drums, all vying for the same business. The lions faced off...posturing for one another. All three descended upon the business, silken necks stretching, mouths slapping. The smoke was becoming so thick from the lengths of firecrackers thrown into the streets and set off above the doorways you could barely breathe. But the lions never missed a beat.
There must have been 7 troupes out that night, all with multiple lions. We were so engrossed in the pageantry that my co-worker and I never made it into a gallery. Sort of felt like a kid again...though this evening was unlike any I've experienced before.