Nan Tien Temple

This being the first day after Chinese New Year, Mum said we're going to Nan Tien Temple to pray for health, prosperity and help in my studies. I think a lot of Chinese people in Oz has been there before, I think (but am not absolutely sure) that it's the largest of its kind in the Southern hemisphere.

I watched the Chinese New Years gala last night live from start to finish (which means I slept at 3:30 in the morning). Naturally I slept in, and we actually got there at around 1:00 in the afternoon. It was a road trip of a little more than an hour (according to google maps) and there was a stretch of highway 33 km long. The trip itself was actually quite relaxing, and I listened to my iPod all the way.

I like going to temples, especially temples in Australia, it's always quite peaceful. If you went in China or Hong Kong, it'll be packed and there'll be whole crowds of people squeezing around every body around and holding lit incense over their heads and it'll be so so noisy. But it's quieter in Australia.

Everything was outrageously expensive, a pack of 15 sticks of incense is $10, having a year-long incense lit for you is $60 for one person and $100 for the whole family. My Grandma already lit them for me in China already, so I didn't need to do it here.

When we came back we went to Bankstown RSL for the all you can eat buffet. All the food was nice and I definitely over-ate. I'm still not feeling very comfortable.

So, photos! (photography not allowed inside the temple halls themselves)

 This statue was in the car park

Happy Chinese New Year

Happy Chinese new Year everyone. 新年快乐，恭喜发财！

Chinese New Year is a time for family, so I hope you all have a nice get-together with your family and relatives. Watch the 春晚(I don't even know what it's called in English, that late night concert/celebration that's on every year) or watch it tomorrow, since it'll be very late due to the time difference. Most Chinese channels will be replaying it again and again for the whole day tomorrow, and many more times days after that.

There's quite a bit of homework for me already, and I have to finish reading Jane Austen's Emma by next week. So I'll probably be doing that instead of celebrating. There's only Mum and me anyway, with Grandma in China. There's nothing special planned, we're not even eating dinner. Mum's usually so tired after work, and she recently hurt her leg. It doesn't feel like a special occasion, I only remembered it was Chinese New Year because an Asian girls at school made a comment of not wanting homework because she's celebrating Chinese New Year with her family.

Grandma left me two 利是though, one from her and one from Grandpa. I think there's 200 dollars in each of them, so I'm pretty happy. Hope you all get lots of red pockets (those two words sound so awkward), and be lucky all year. 身体健康，万事胜意。