Feasting and festivities for Chinese New Year<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): It's time to feast and relax as Chinese
\ncommunities all over the world celebrate the Lunar New Year on
\nWednesday.<\/p>\n
And many Chinese-Indonesians will have more time on their
\nhands this year, thanks to a holiday for "those who are
\ncelebrating" the Year of the Snake, local newspapers reported on
\nTuesday.<\/p>\n
It's a day for high hopes for better fortune, and the courage
\nto face what lies ahead.<\/p>\n
Of course, the place to be to celebrate the festival is Glodok
\nin Chinatown, West Jakarta. The area is always abuzz with
\nactivities, from markets selling unusual items used in Chinese
\nrecipes, to VCDs and nightclubs.<\/p>\n
If you want to celebrate in the more hospitable surroundings
\nof a hotel, then the choice is yours. Many of the capital's
\nhotels are donning their Chinese colors for Wednesday and the
\nrest of the week.<\/p>\n
Hotel Borobudur, for instance, is offering a special room
\npackage (Rp 750,000 per night) to mark the occasion; the rate,
\nvalid on Wednesday, is inclusive of a set menu dinner at its
\nTeratai Chinese Restaurant.<\/p>\n
The Golden Ming restaurant at The Acacia will provide a
\nspecial set menu (Rp 62,800), which includes a bowl of shark's
\nfin soup, on Wednesday. For those who want to get their kicks, a
\nkung fu show is scheduled at the hotel's Pharoah bar.<\/p>\n
Hotel Horison, which says that most of its visitors are
\nlocals, is having a special lunch on Wednesday and Thursday at
\nits Pondok Samudra seafood restaurant. At a price of Rp 65,000
\n++, it includes Szechuan specialties such as beef in pepper
\nsauce, Shanghai rice and kwetiau noodles.<\/p>\n
Another hotel with Chinese New Year on its mind is the Hilton
\nin Central Jakarta. Through till Jan. 31, the hotel is offering a
\nset menu for lunch at its Lotus Chinese Halal Restaurant.
\nHowever, it's a pricey Rp 150,000 ++ for the minced prawns with
\nblack mushrooms, wok charred beef tenderloin in XO sauce and
\nbraised duckling. From Jan. 25 to Jan. 31, a special dinner menu
\nwill be available for the lavish price of Rp 250,000 ++.<\/p>\n
Another five-star hotel, The Regent, will have a dragon dance
\nin its lobby at 7 p.m. and a Chinese New Year Hawker BBQ beside
\nthe swimming pool. The buffet, beginning at 7 p.m., includes a
\ntraditional performance at 8:15 p.m. and costs the tidy sum of Rp
\n188,000 ++ for adults and Rp 88,000 ++ for kids. At those prices,
\nstart fasting now to get your money's worth.<\/p>\n
Snake<\/p>\n
For those who really want to get into the year of the snake,
\none hotel is even placing some of the unfortunate reptiles on its
\nmenu.<\/p>\n
The Mulia Hotel Senayan will serve the delicacy of king cobra
\nat its Samudra Shark Fin restaurant, contending that the animals
\nhave long been eaten in China for health benefits.<\/p>\n
"The meat, tastes slightly sweet and the texture resembles
\nthat of fish. It is very popularly cooked into soups," said Benny
\nTan Ngee Heng, head chef at the restaurant.<\/p>\n
"The poisonous part is in the snakes' mouth, especially its
\nteeth, but one need not worry when consuming its meat and blood,
\nwhich are edible and good for one's health."<\/p>\n
The meat is available in certain markets only, including
\nLokasari market in Mangga Besar, West Jakarta at Rp 12,000 per
\nounce of meat or a three-meter-long king cobra snake costs Rp
\n450,000.<\/p>\n
For those interested in savoring the meat in a genuine
\nChinatown setting, then head down to Glodok, where several
\nsidewalk eateries specialize in cobra meat. Of course, it's a
\ndelicacy which is not for the squeamish (lup\/brc).<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/feasting-and-festivities-for-chinese-new-year-1447893297",
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