The Chinese New Year Survival Guide: Everything a Couple Needs to Know
2019-01-06

Tucking into your favourite Chinese New Year goodies aside, the festive season get stressful for couples for various reasons. Whether you’re house-visiting as a couple for the first time or hosting a gathering as newlyweds, here’s a handy survivial guide to tide you through the “girl ah, when you getting married” and “ah boy, when you having chewren? So old already” this Chinese New Year!

Dating Couples

Bringing your significant other to Chinese New Year is always a little nerve wracking, especially if it’s the first time they’re meeting your family. On the bright side, you don’t have to worry about giving any ang pows and don’t forget to bring oranges to exchange with any elders! Be clear on who you’re meeting and do your best to address everyone correctly.

At the same time, be prepared for questions about how you two met and of course, what your plans are for the future. It’s best to agree on a condensed version of your get together story. 

Source: Marie France Asia

As for the more prying questions about your future, it’s perfectly alright to say you’re interested in seeing where this goes and leaving it as that. Be sincere and firm, and the others will often get the message and stop asking after a while. 

Engaged Couples

Now that you’re engaged, you may face an increase in questions regarding your wedding. From the proposal story to the wedding date to your intention of having kids, expect a whole spectrum of questions coming your way.  

Again, it’s a good idea to discuss with your partner beforehand to set a few standard answers or guidelines on how you’d like to go about answering these questions. Don’t be too pressured, just remain polite and answer them as concisely as possible.

Newlyweds

Source: Pinterest

To give ang pow or not to give, that is the question. Technically, newlyweds need not give angpows in the first year, but you can if you feel that you should or would like to score some extra brownie points. Good news is, you’re still allowed to receive angpows! Don’t forget to bring extra angpows because you’ll never know who you might meet (and you don’t want to be short on angpows). When in doubt, consult the experienced a.k.a your parents. 

Newlyweds still need to visit their elders so while you might want to host friends, do make sure that you make a visiting schedule so that you don’t offend any elders! Do also ensure you have sufficient oranges to exchange. You may also want to make sure that you’re addressing your spouse’s relatives properly now that you’re part of that family. Also, be prepared to begin fending off questions about having children but as newlyweds, they likely won’t be too aggressive. 

Married Couples

Source: Young Parents

As a couple who has been married for some time, it may be your turn to be visited instead of visiting. Get ready to flash out the CNY decorations and to prepare food and goodies for your guests. In short, it’s time to take a trip to Chinatown. 

You may be bombarded with questions about having kids or about your kids (in true Singaporean fashion). Remember that you shouldn’t say anything that might make your children uncomfortable as well! 

At the end of the day, the point of Chinese New Year is to celebrate the new year with your loved ones. So make the most of your time with your family, friends and of course, partner, and do your best to have fun!