Chinese New Year Edition - The Big Day

26/01/09, Monday - On the first day of Chinese New Year, my family had a good rest. We didn't do any cleaning and as my parents were traditional, we didn't do any housework at all on this day. So what we did was munching on the goodies such as pineapple tarts and love letters.

Speaking of pineapple tarts, this is the best pineapple tarts which I have ever tasted! Every year, I look forward to eat these pineapple tarts which are homemade by my auntie' friend. Apparently, I learnt from my auntie that she had to beg this friend of hers to make at least two bottles of these lovely pineapple tarts because making this particular goodie is a definite sheer hard work. Currently, the status quo of these pineapple tarts is finishing real fast. I think in two days time, it will be all gone!

On the other hand, my dad also bought a box of pineapple tarts from Bee Cheng Hiang. I'm not sure how much it costs. After tasting a few of those, my mum felt that these weren't that bad except for the fact that the pineapple filling is a little artificial.

After our morning breakfast, we went out for a walk in Botanic Garden. Well, it has been our family tradition for 5 years now that we go for a walk in a garden on the first day of Chinese New Year. Along the way, I managed to capture a picture of a swan swimming lazily on a big pond.

In the mid afternoon, my relatives from my paternal side came over to my place for a visit. We played mahjong, eat and drink merrily on this festive season where we are able to gather once in a year. So my second auntie who is very good in cooking came to help my mum with the cooking.

She whipped up this lovely vegetables with abalone.

Stir-fried leeks with tanghoon.

And lastly, she cooked this sweet and sour fish. Most of them ate up most of the fish before I can capture a good one on this.

This is one of my mum's speciality - Stewed Duck.

Before the dinner, all of us did a traditional thing - mixing of yusheng (raw fish salad). But instead of raw fish, we substituted it with abalone because some of us don't really like eating raw fish.

This was the beginning state of the Yusheng. It may unapetitising. But once it's mixed, it tasted really good.

This was how it looked like after we mixed it.

It was really fun to meet up with my cousins, uncles and aunties as we chatted, played and ate through the night in this once in a year festival.