Chinese Culture

Red Packet for Chinese New Year

A Red Packet (Red Envelope) is simply a red envelope with money in it, often decorated with lucky symbols, which symbolizes luck and wealth. It is called Hong Bao in Chinese.
Occasions for Red PacketsTraditionally red packets are handed out to younger generation by their parents, grand parents, relatives, and even close neighbors and friends during Chinese New Year. They are also popular gifts for weddings and birthdays. Nowadays giving red packets as a bonus at the year-end by employers becomes popular.

Chinese Lantern Festival

The Lantern Festival or Yuanxiao Jie is a traditional Chinese festival, which is on the 15th of the first month of the Chinese New Year. The festival marks the end of the celebrations of the Chinese New Year.
Chinese started to celebrate the Lantern Festival from the Han Dynasty (206 BC - 221 AD). Like most other Chinese festivals, there is also a story behind the Festival. It is also believed that the festival has Taoist origins

Chinese New Year

The Spring Festival is the grandest festival for the Chinese. The Spring Festival is also called "Nian", but who knows the term, Nian, was once the name of a furious monster that lived on human beings in the ancient time. How the Festival has some relationship with the monster lies in a story about the origin and development of the Spring Festival.

For more information on chinese culture:

http://chineseculture.about.com/od/culturesociety/Chinese_Culture_and_Society.htm