Year of Monkey welcomed with peace, creativity
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Gong Xi Fa Chai! Chinese-Indonesians across the country made this Chinese New Year a special one on Thursday, their second since the government declared the event an official national holiday in 2002.
Compared with the more muted celebrations last year, the Imlek celebrations on Thursday were cheerful -- and louder -- with many other ethnic groups joining the Chinese and getting into the spirit of the mischievous Year of the Monkey.
From Wednesday afternoon until early Thursday, the Chinese community in Greater Jakarta poured into brightly-decorated temples in the capital.
"I wish for a better fortune this year. I hope my electronics business can expand into other areas," Budiman, a Glodok Plaza electronic shop owner, said after praying at the Dharma Bhakti temple in West Jakarta.
"But most importantly, I hope I can get married to my fiance this year," he said.
Festivities on the street and at leisure parks also highlighted the ancient tradition.
Indonesian Museum of Records (MURI) manager Paulus Pangka said the liong (dragon) and barongsai (lion) dances performed on Thursday in a tank at Seaworld Indonesia, North Jakarta, were on the record as the first in the country.
In Bandung, West Java, the celebration was marked by the creativity of children who painted an enormous picture of a dragon.
At least 448 children aged between eight and 12 painted the picture, which stretched close to 320 meters.
In Semarang, Central Java, thousands of children, teenagers, and elder people packed the Cia Gwee 2555 Semawis Market on Jl. Wotgandul Timur.
Decorated with many red lanterns and tents, it all got even more exciting with the performance of the barongsai and wushu martial arts.
In Kendari, Southeast Sulawesi, dozens of red oil lamps neatly lined a corner of the Eka Dharma Manggala Temple, giving the large building a merry appearance.
The smell of incense mixed with the aroma of kue keranjang (New Year cake), cooked a day prior to the Imlek celebrations.
City resident Liong, 67, was one of many descending on the temple on Wednesday afternoon to pray and see first-hand the preparations for the Imlek celebration.
He had lived in Kendari for a long time and said he was happy the Chinese community was now free to celebrate Imlek.
In Pontianak, West Kalimantan, Chinese-Indonesians celebrated the New Year by visiting their families -- the same way relatives get together during Islamic Idul Fitri or Christmas.
However, many people celebrated the event by going to the shopping malls, Antara reported.
The situation in Batam was rather different -- as most of the shopping centers in the city were closed. Activities in the area came to a virtual halt because most businesspeople were celebrating Imlek with their families.
Rizal, a sidewalk vendor, said that business activity in the city had been decreasing during the past few days.
But while the commercial district was silent, many residents packed the local "Klenteng Windsor" temple.
In Atambua, East Nusa Tenggara, Chinese-Indonesians used the New Year to strengthen relations between the Chinese community and other groups.
The Chinese-Indonesians community would organize celebrations at a local hotel on Saturday and invite leaders from other ethnic groups.
Johannes Tannur, a Chinese-Indonesian, said he hoped the celebration would strengthen the brotherhood among Chinese and other ethnic groups.