When visiting grandparents, parents, aunts and uncles, adult cousins, or even friends, it is a time-honoured tradition to give gifts. They should be wrapped in red paper, as red is the colour of good fortune. So I did the time-honoured thing and stood in line to buy the gifts, then stood in line to get them wrapped. This year we gave Belgian chocolates stamped with the Chinese word fok , which also means good fortune. Along with that, we gave each aunt and uncle a bag filled with eight oranges.
Oranges signify good health, and the number eight sounds like the word for prosperity .
Now that I think about it, perhaps we should have given healthier gifts than chocolates. It is customary to give red pocket money to children and unmarried adults. Next I had to run to the market, then stand in line to buy enough red envelopes in which to put the cash. The envelopes are stamped in gold foil with characters of good wishes. While visiting, we give the lucky money to each child while wishing them happy new year.