I think i better get started on writing this post before the horse year ends with a bang (by that, i mean fireworks) this coming Wednesday night. Was very late this year as there were tonnes of backlog and i was unfortunately pre-occupied with drama serials. Argh!!!
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Anyway, i was honestly disappointed with the decorations this year to herald in the year of the goat. The first impression i had was its similarity to the equine decor last year.
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Well, i can count and there are three goats versus the one humongous horse a year ago and herein lies the problem; they lacked the overarching presence even though the number three could symbolise the phrase 三阳开泰, meaning an auspicious beginning with the new year.
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It also helps that the Chinese character 阳 has that same Mandarin pronunciation for goat / sheep!
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At 10-meters high, this centerpiece is located right at the busy cross junction of Upper Cross Street, Eu Tong Sen Street and New Bridge Road.
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The very next zodiac animal in 2016 shall be the monkey; MY YEAR and i sincerely hope there would be more imaginative juice to portray the primate's innate creativity.
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Having just three goats were be embarrassing and right behind them was an army of more than 330 head butting goats waiting to bash their way through on the first day of lunar new year.
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28 were said to be motorised to add a small touch of realism to them but i guess the function was disabled in the afternoon as all of them appeared to be as dead as a dodo when i visited from 11.30 am till 4.00 pm on a weekday.
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If you really, really, really like the goat-shaped lanterns, you can wait till after 19 March; i understood from Straits Times that they would be put up for adoption!
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More of them in the above two photographs for your easy reference and identification in case you really, really, really like the goats. Note the heavy sarcasm.
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Another decor i didn't quite get was the display of many gold coins. How different were they from last year!?!?
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Wait, there are two distinct differences; one, the pattern was not the same even though with the lights switched on at night, i wonder how many can tell the dissimilarity; two, the hole in the middle of the "golden coin" was significantly smaller!
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Monkeys love gold ingots; maybe it is time for a conceptualised change in 2016? Oh, we might love bananas but having long shaped lanterns dotting the sky would not be a wise choice.
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I expected the decoration along the parallel South Bridge Road to be a surprise given the long snake in 2013 and the impressive sight of static galloping horses in 2014.
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Gold coins again!?
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The purpose of the decorations was to light them up via the Chinatown Light Up. Hence, whatever sarcasm i have so far might not be applicable when the lanterns are illuminated at night.
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Maybe i should pay Chinatown a visit again at night.
If, and that's a big IF, i have time.