Out with the Ox. In with the Tiger.

Greg Fisher — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 08:20:08 +0000

Stuffed tiger decoration

The Chinese lunar calendar doesn’t always seem to be fair. That is, at least when it comes to the animal zodiac associations.

Don’t get me wrong. There’s nothing wrong with the ox.

But, how much more awesome is the tiger?

A lot more.

Tiger may be my second favorite zodiac animal.

But, what could be better tiger?

Dragon.

For sure, dragon beats tiger.

Chinese Lunar New Year is just around the corner. And that means Chinatown is all decked out with fancy decorations.

Welcome, Year of the Tiger!

Old colonial building behind hanging lanterns

Festive items & food sold in Chinatown

Dried fruits

Liquorice-flavored melon seeds

Old man singing

I Got Inked, Sort of

Greg Fisher — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 12:16:11 +0000

For several weeks leading up to Chinese New Year, Singapore’s Chinatown bustles with festive activity. Colorful decorations, crowded streets and multitudes of shopkeepers selling holiday related goods embrace the celebratory atmosphere. Visitors buy everything from traditional Mandarin orange gifts to New Year charms to ornamental lanterns. It’s all really fun and interesting to see.

While visiting, one street vendor caught my eye… this temporary tattoo artist offered several CNY inspired designs. And at only five dollars I couldn’t resist asking him for the dragon tattoo. The application was simple: it involved a latex template and an airbrush to spray the temporary ink onto my skin. Much less painful than getting a real tattoo, I expect!

CNY Dragon Tattoo

Just Outside Chinatown

Fish Tales » chinese new year

Out with the Ox. In with the Tiger.

I Got Inked, Sort of