Tag Archives: culture

Happy Lunar New Year!

Lunar New Year begins tomorrow, February 5, and sparks the Year of the Pig.

Lunar New Year is celebrated widely throughout Asia.  It begins on the second new moon after the Winter Solstice and is celebrated until the first full moon of the lunar year, 15 days after the celebrations begin.

Sometimes known as the Spring Festival, traditions include:  visiting family and gathering for meals, especially the New Year’s Eve Feast; gifting children and young adults with special red envelopes containing money; fireworks or lantern displays, accompanied by a Dragon Dance, especially on the last night of celebration.

Individuals born in the Year of the Pig are known for the following traits:

  • Successful, hard-working, responsible, diligent, energetic and enthusiastic
  • Friendly, generous, and compassionate
  • Realistic, calm, sometimes thrifty, though materialistic, and prefer to handle things properly and carefully.

Sharing Cultures: If you’d like  to celebrate Chinese New Year with your host children (or with your Au Pair friends), check out these websites for more information:

  • Chinatown

One of the largest Chinese New Year celebrations in the United States!

951 N. Broadway, Los Angeles

Saturday, February 9, 12noon to 8pm, Free!

lagoldendragonparade.com

 

 

  • Pacific Asian Museum

46 N. Robles Ave., Pasadena, In various areas of the museum

Sunday, Feb. 3, 10 a.m., Free!

https://pacificasiamuseum.usc.edu/calendar/details/?event-id=1525835

 

 

  • The Original Farmer’s Market & the Gove LA

click here for flyer

6333 W 3rd St., Los Angeles

Sunday, Feb. 17, 12noon to 5 p.m., Free!

https://www.farmersmarketla.com/

 

Hints for Success – Overcoming Homesickness

Almost everyone experiences homesickness and culture shock to some degree, when they come to live in a completely new environment. So much is different and it takes time to adjust.

It is normal to miss your own family, at home. Try to remember that they support you and want you to make the most of this experience. They will enjoy learning more about the U.S., through your eyes, as you share your adventures with them.

Top 5 Tips for Dealing with Homesickness

1. Make Friends – Don’t wait for other au pairs to reach out to you, reach out to them. There are other lots of new au pairs who are feeling the same way you are right now. Set a goal to reach out to a few of them each day. Some will respond and some will not. Don’t let that discourage you. No one will ever be mad at you for sending them a message to say hello or ask if they want to do something together. Make friends from various countries and you will also get a chance to practice your English skills together.

2. Stay in touch with your home country, but not too much. Skyping or talking on the phone every day with your family and/or friends back home normally makes homesickness worse. Try emailing instead and reduce the Skype and phone calls to once a week, until you feel stronger. It’s much harder seeing the faces and hearing the voices of those you miss.

3. Get out of the house (or your room specifically) – Go to cluster meetings, have coffee or movies with other au pairs, join a gym, go to the library, go for a walk, visit the mall, get a manicure, visit a museum. If someone invites you out, say “yes.” Also, don’t be afraid to do the inviting. If your host family invites you to do things with them, say “yes.” This will help you get to know each other and contribute to your overall happiness.

4. Realize that it definitely gets better – All au pairs experience homesickness and the vast majority of them get through it, stay and have a successful year (some even extend for a second year!) So, it must get better, right? Once you get past the initial homesickness, most au pairs report how quickly the year goes by.

5. Make Plans – Create your own Au Pair Bucket List (places you want to go, new foods to try, new things to experience during your year in the U.S.) and start doing them now. Post on our cluster Facebook group to find others who may want to join you on your adventures.

Photo by:  Shimelle Laine (Flickr)

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