Eye on London - Chinese New Year in London

London from the inside Monday 23rd January - Sunday 29th January 2017

There’s reason to celebrate this week as our re-opening on 25th January (after our annual maintenance) coincides with Burn’s Night and Chinese New Year. London’s Chinese New Year festivities are the largest outside Asia with over 700,000 people celebrating across the capital.

YEAR OF THE ROOSTER

The Rooster (or Chicken) is the tenth zodiac animal and represents fidelity and punctuality. It is said that people born in the year of the Rooster are beautiful, hard-working, kind, courageous, tidy and honest but may be a bit wild or arrogant. Lucky numbers for them are 5, 7 and 8 but they should avoid 1, 3 and 9. Lucky colours are gold, brown and yellow - white and green are unlucky.

CHINESE NEW YEAR CELEBRATIONS IN LONDON

The main celebrations are held by the London Chinatown Chinese Association in Trafalgar Square, Chinatown and the West End on Sunday 29th January. The lion will be dancing and they’ll be a spectacular stage show.

From 27th - 29th January we’ll be hosting a weekend of Chinese surprises at the Eye. They’ll be dragon dancers, fortune cookies, appearances from Kung Fu Panda and a special red and gold light show every hour from 4pm.

AIM HIGH

Chinese superstition dictates that going somewhere high on New Year's Day will bring you good luck in business and education.

NEW YEAR GREETINGS

Wish your friends “Xin Nian Le” in Mandarin or “San Nin Faai Lok” in Cantonese.

THE BEST BUBBLE TEAS IN LONDON - BUBBLING HOT

Or cold! Bubble teas are fruit or milk flavoured teas served hot or ice cold with chewy tapioca balls that you suck up through a big straw. Flavours range from brown sugar coconut to pineapple and lychee. Originally from Taiwan, you’ll now find bubble tea shops throughout Chinatown and London. Four of the best are below. Is it a food or a drink? What’s the best flavour? You decide.

• Brew Box Bubble Tea, Islington High Street
• Mooboo, Camden Town  
• Biju Bubble Tea Room, Old Compton Street, Soho   
• Chaboba Bubble Tea, East Yard  

EYE ON… CROYDON

There are 32 capsules on The Coca-Cola London Eye, representing the 32 London boroughs, so each week we explore a different London borough.

Croydon is perfect for a bit of retail therapy to perk you up at the end of January. Purley Way has huge shops including Ikea, John Lewis at Home, Hobbycraft, Decathlon and a giant Wing Yip Chinese supermarket for getting all your Chinese ingredients. Jump on a 15-20 minute train from London Bridge or Victoria. If you’d rather have someone cook for you, tuck into the best Chinese cuisine that Croydon has to offer at one of these restaurants (we’re assured these are the places to go for delicious dumplings and chow mein)...

• Wei Dao, High Street
• Welcome Friends, Bingham Corner
• The Crown and Pepper, High Street
• Imperial Lounge and Restaurant, Purley Way
• Chang Cheng, Waddon Road

ON THIS DAY… 24TH JANUARY 1965

Sir Winston Churchill died at the age of 90 with his wife Lady Clementine Churchill and other members of the family at his bedside.

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