Happy Chinese New Year!

​Gong Xi Fa Cai from Heat Pumps NOW

​If you’re enjoying the great weather and the Summertimes events hosted by the Christchurch City Council, you’ll know about the Lantern Festival in Hagley Park to celebrate Chinese New Year! 

But what does this have to do with Heat Pumps NOW?

We'll get to why it's important soon...​

A 15 Day Party!

In New Zealand we mark our calendar by the position of the earth around the sun. The Chinese calendar is based on phases of the moon. This is why the dates for Chinese New Year are always different, and why their celebrations last for 15 days! What a party!

The Lantern Festival has marked the end of Chinese New Year celebrations since the Han Dynasty (206 BC – 221 AD), which was a really long time ago. Like our Western calendar, the Chinese calendar is also divided into twelve blocks, except each one is represented by an animal and they last a whole year instead of a month.
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2016 is the Year of the Monkey, the ninth animal in the Chinese zodiac cycle. It’s believed that those born in the Year of the Monkey are very sociable, curious, enthusiastic but a bit cheeky. While it may sound like Heat Pumps NOW Director Blair Ashdowne, he was actually born in the Year of the Rabbit. Typical personality traits for those born under the Rabbit zodiac include being gentle, quiet, elegant and patient. Definitely sounds like Blair!

Why is this important for Christchurch?

​First and foremost it will be an awesome, free event in Hagley Park for everyone in Christchurch to attend. There will be lots of food stalls, which if the popularity of the Christchurch Noodle Market was anything to go by should be really big! Plus there will be live entertainment, bands, puppeteers, fireworks and hundreds of specially imported lanterns!

​The main colour for celebrations is red, which is just perfect for Canterbury Crusaders fans! It promises to be an exciting night and a lot of fun. 

It’s also an opportunity for most Cantabrians to experience something a little bit different and broaden our horizons. This festival is part of a tradition that goes back thousands of years. We can be entertained by the colourful fireworks and lanterns, and maybe learn a thing or two.
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Did you know a calendar based on moon phases is called a Lunisolar calendar? You do now! 

Rebuilding Christchurch

Christchurch is changing. Our city is rebuilding, and part of that rebuild includes our population. While many have left, lots of people have moved to Christchurch recently from around the world. For some it’s temporary for work. Others are bringing their families and plan to make a new life here. Chinese New Year celebrations are usually shared with other countries who use a Lunisolar calendar. This weekend also marks a new year for Japan, Taiwan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Korea and Vietnam.

Locally these celebrations show a more multicultural and vibrant Christchurch. Nationally and internationally the Christchurch Lantern Festival is strengthening bonds around the world. Japanese Search & Rescue teams arrived in Christchurch after February 22nd, and Kiwi teams went to Japan after they suffered their own disaster earthquake three and a half weeks later. What global unity!
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Now for the clever part where we relate the Christchurch Lantern Festival and Chinese New Year back to Heat Pumps NOW. We could say that the lanterns are also a source of heat and would keep partygoers warm, especially those in China in the Northern Hemisphere. Both lanterns and heat pumps come in a variety of sizes and designs. Unlike the brightly coloured lanterns, heat pumps are meant to be discreet and go unnoticed in the background. At a real stretch, releasing lanterns into the sky to symbolize the letting go of the old and bringing in the new is mirrored by heat pumps cycling fresh air in and out of a room. 

Releasing lanterns to let go of the old and bring in the new. Not unlike how heat pumps cycle air in and out of a room.

The truth is this isn’t a clever ploy to talk about heat pumps. February 22nd brings a painful reminder of what happened in Christchurch five years ago, and most of us could use an excuse to celebrate and have a new beginning. Instead of making heat pump comparisons, Heat Pumps NOW is taking a few traditions from the Chinese New Year on board: Be with family, remember those who aren’t with us, try to release the old and embrace the new future for Christchurch.
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Check out the Christchurch Lantern Festival in Hagley Park on the 27th & 28th of February, and have a Gong Xi Fa Cai from the team at Heat Pumps NOW.