5th Annual Lunar New Year Flower Market in New York

New York Chinatown holds 5th Annual Flower Market 2008 for Chinese New Year.

From February 2-4, 2008 get ready for the Lunar New Year at the fifth annual Lunar New Year Flower Market in New York Chinatown's Columbus Park. Auspicious plants and blossoms will be available for purchase, and are viewed by Chinese as symbols of prosperity, fortune and abundance. The Flower Market is sponsored by the Museum of Chinese in Americas (MOCA), United East Athletic Association (UEAA), and New York Chinese Cultural Center (NYCCC).

February 7, 2008 is the first day of the Lunar New Year for 4706 the Year of the Rat. Celebrations will last for fifteen days afterwards, but preparations including cleaning and decorating the home can begin as early as two weeks prior. The market, typically held one to two days prior to the New Year, is a significant kick-off event in many Asian countries. The flower is one of the most important and symbolic decorations: "fa" in Cantonese shares homonymic qualities to the word for fortune, "fat." Therefore, to have flowers blooming in one's home during the New Year is a prosperous and fortuitous sign. Among the propitious plants and flowers are azaleas, dahlias, chrysanthemums, peach and plum blossoms, peonies, narcissi and small orange trees.

For more information on MOCA's Lunar New Year Flower Market 2008, visit www.mocanyc. org. More information on the United East Athletics Association and the New York Chinese Cultural Centre is available on www.ueaa.org and www.chinesedance. org.

When: Saturday, February 2, noon - 10pm,
Sunday, February 3, noon - 5pm
Monday, February 4, 2pm- 8pm
When: February 2-4, 2008
Where: Columbus Park