Indeed, a virtual feast is prepared in the house to usher in the year. Certain foods are even renamed. Two traditional food made especially for New Year are gin tuy and yaukok . If you sense the urge to try either of these, buy them at the nearest Chinese grocery store. They also serve as proper gifts if you are calling on someone.
Tradition lives on and on.
No one goes to sleep on New Year's Eve, and little children are discouraged from dozing off, in the belief it will shorten their lives if they are not awake for New Year's Day. After the new year has arrived, the head of the family presents all the children and juniors with lai see so they will have good fortune for another 12 months. On New Year's Day ancestors are honored at family altars, and red scrolls inscribed with characters signifying happiness, property and long life are pasted on the walls. A basket of food is placed in the centre of the living room to guarantee that there will be enough to eat in the coming year, and knives and scissors are hidden away so that no one will cut luck's continuity. The most important event of this day is banquet-style dinner.