Ness Bridge to turn red for Chinese celebration as Inverness welcomes in the Year of the Tiger
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Inverness may not be welcoming in the Chinese New Year with the traditional lion dance to banish bad luck, but the Highland capital will still be marking the Year of the Tiger by turning the Ness Bridge red.
In Chinese culture, red is the colour of good fortune and joy and the most prominent colour for new year.
Monica Lee-Macpherson, chairwoman of the Scottish Highlands and Islands and Moray Chinese Association (SHIMCA), thanked Inverness city management for its recognition of the start of the Chinese New Year today.
“It is a shame that this year, once again, we won’t be able to have our usual new year celebration,” she said. “The association is 18 years old. We had our first Chinese New Year celebration in 2005 and it is only in the last two years that we have missed celebrations in Inverness and Elgin.”
Scottish Government restrictions on social gatherings, introduced in a bid to curb the spread of the Omicron variant of Omicron, were withdrawn too late to organise a celebration parade for this year.
The closure of Inverness Chinese restaurant Jimmy Chung’s has also seen SHIMCA lose the venue which hosted its Chinese New Year banquet in the city, which attracted members of the north Chinese community from as far away as Skye, as well as representatives from the wider community.
Mrs Lee-Macpherson said she plans to look for an alternative venue for future events, but still hopes to hold her own more intimate celebration for the Year of the Tiger.
“I’m hoping to have a mini-gathering at our Eco Café in Ardconnel Terrace instead of the usual big celebration,” she explained.
“People can phone me if interested and I will cook them some traditional Chinese dishes.”
The mini-celebration may have to wait a couple of weeks, as Mrs Lee-Macpherson has injured her shoulder, but the Eco Café itself, which serves traditional and sustainable Chinese food which includes ingredients from the café’s own garden, has reopened for business.
Mrs Lee-Macpherson now hopes other association activities, which range from Mandarin and music lessons to a pensioners’ lunch club will also be able to return to their normal schedule.
