Chinese New Year

Last week was Chinese New Year.

Mauritius has a sizeable community of people whose ancestors came from China three generations back. Those Mauritians actively celebrate the festival here

Throughout the week, there were echoes of fat red firecrackers everywhere. In the background through the windows at work, far-off at night before we went to bed. In the morning, the malls (what we call 'arcades' here) were strewn with red petals from those crackers.

On Sunday morning, I chanced upon a Lion Dance. The lion jumped and scampered in front of the Chinese store, to the beat of cymbals wielded by two silk-clad Chinese Cultural Association artists. It was one of those joyful, angry and scary dances where all negative energies are purged, and as far as I know, evil spirits chased off.

We got cakes from friends who had celebrated: one called wax-cake which looks a little like...wax but tastes really good (this does not sound good, I know, but it is), then salty snacks, and also cakes made from rice flour and sesame seeds. And, well, a public holiday, even if it was already Sunday.