USJ Hosts Festive Activities of Chinese New Year for Staff and Students
USJ Hosts Festive Activities of Chinese New Year for Staff and Students
24
Jan
24/01/2025
From 7 to 24 January, USJ hosted a series of Chinese New Year events, allowing students to experience and understand the traditional customs of the Chinese Lunar New Year.
Aligned with the upcoming Lunar New Year, in an effort to enhance students’ understanding of Chinese traditional culture, the Office for Student and Alumni Affairs (OSAA) of USJ organized the 2025 Celebratory Chinese New Year Events from 7 to 24 January. The activities included a Chinese New Year Cultural Exhibition and Quiz Game, Chinese New Year Beaded Bracelet Workshop, Chinese Calligraphy and Paper Cutting Experience, Traditional New Year Delicacies Tasting, and Blessing Slogans for the Year of the Snake. USJ staff and students joyously celebrated together, creating a lively atmosphere.
The Chinese New Year Cultural Exhibition and Quiz Game kicked off on 7 January across the three campuses: Ilha Verde Campus, Seminary Campus and Nape Campus. The university aimed to deepen students’ understanding of Chinese traditional New Year customs and their cultural significance through cultural exhibitions and quiz games, enhancing the interest of international students in learning extracurricular knowledge. On 15 – 16 Jan 2025, the USJ Arts & Cultural Buddies carried out the Chinese New Year Beaded Bracelet Workshop. Participants crafted their personalised New Year lucky charm bracelets, experiencing the joy and blessings of the New Year through collaborative creation.
The Chinese Calligraphy and Paper Cutting Experience was held from 22 to 24 January. This activity not only allowed staff and students to experience Chinese calligraphy art but also showcased the uniqueness of our culture to international students from around the world. Through introducing and tasting traditional New Year’s cakes and candies such as radish cake, sticky rice cake, and crispy dumpling, participants gained insight into the richness and charm of the Chinese Lunar New Year, fostering cross-cultural exchange and interaction. During the event, USJ staff designed the Blessing Slogans for the Year of Snake, where students drew blessing cards and learned the calligraphy and meanings of Chinese four-character idiomatic blessings in bilingual form, facilitating cultural education through gameplay. Understanding these idiomatic blessings not only enriched their knowledge but also deepened their understanding of Chinese culture.
Micah, a final-year student from the Philippines, expressed that the university’s Chinese New Year celebrations allowed international students to fully understand the costumes and reasons behind the New Year festivities. She mentioned that through the cultural exhibition area, she learned various interesting facts about the festival, and the engaging design not only made information easier to comprehend but also added enjoyment to the reading. She also found the quiz challenges created by OSAA to be stimulating, hoping for more similar activities in the future.
A local student pursuing the Master of Education expressed that the activities not only deepened her understanding of Chinese culture but also highlighted the importance of cross-cultural exchange. Through interactions with international students from various backgrounds at the university and experiencing the uniqueness of Chinese paper-cutting with students from different disciplines, she found the experience meaningful.
To enhance international students’ understanding of Chinese culture, OSAA and the International Affairs Office (IAO) of USJ organized a Chinese Yum Cha experience on 14 January for the new batch of exchange students, as the New Year approached. This aimed to introduce students to the history, customs, and importance of yum cha in social life. The event sought to promote cultural exchange and help students understand the role of yum cha (drink tea) in Chinese daily life, serving as a bridge for emotional exchange and social interaction in various settings, from family gatherings to different occasions.
Last but not least, OSAA organised a “cultural immersion activities” for exchange students from the College of Saint Anthony (CSA) in the Philippines on 20 January. These hands-on activities not only provided an opportunity for cultural exchange but also fostered cross-cultural understanding and friendship among the participants.
This series of activities is aimed to contribute to the UN’s SDGs of “Good Health and Well Being” and “Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions”.
