Happy Lunar New Year 2020! A vital part of Lunar New Year celebrations is the preparing and gifting of red packets. Also known as red envelopes, lai see (Cantonese), or hongbao (Mandarin), these red packets usually contain money and are given to the important people in one’s life before the New Year begins. In the […]
Lunar New Year Part One: A Week in the Life- Preparing for Lunar New Year in Singapore
Happy Lunar New Year 2020! Lunar New will begin on January 25, 2020. This year, we approached several of our intercultural trainers across Asia to understand what the Lunar New Year looks like from their personal perspective. For the first of the series, take a look into how one of CAI’s intercultural facilitators in Singapore, […]
Enkutatash – Ethiopian New Year
Thursday, September 12th, marks the first day of the first month – known as Meskerem – of the new year for both Ethiopia and Eritrea. The name “Enkutatash” translates to “Gift of Jewels” and alludes to a centuries-old tale of Queen of Sheba’s visit to King Solomon. She brought a range of gifts for the […]
“Chunyun”: China’s Annual Mass Migration
Springtime is swiftly approaching and the Lunar New Year has arrived! Chinese New Year follows the Lunar calendar. This means that while the exact date changes every year, the New Year day typically falls between mid-January and mid-February. This year Chinese New Year, celebrating the year of the Earth Pig, falls on February 5th and […]
Honoring the Dead: Mexico’s Día de los Muertos
By: Ivonne Juraidini Día de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is a Mexican holiday that commemorates the lives of deceased loved ones. It is a tradition that originated from indigenous rituals and eventually blended with Catholic elements as a result of Spanish influence. The holiday takes place over two days: November 1st and […]
The Power of Art
Art is a powerful thing. From the moment that humankind could, we started thinking creatively. Explaining and depicting the world around us. From the earliest cave drawings in South Africa which date back 164 thousand years to the well-known cave paintings in Europe that date 40 thousand years, humans have always been moved to art. […]