SINGAPORE — Chinese New Year lasts 15 days, and its last day is regarded as Chinese Valentine’s Day. For the Chinese in Southeast Asia, we’ve got a couple of homegrown traditions that aren’t practiced by the wider community.
Like throwing oranges into a river on the day. This practice apparently originated in Penang, Malaysia, and sees women gathering on a bridge to throw Mandarin oranges inscribed with their names and phone numbers into the river below. It’s been said that if the floating oranges are retrieved, you’ll meet your future match soon. Cleverly, prospective suitors have also been known to gather under the bridge to fish for oranges.
Lady in red looking for love.
Image: Victoria Ho/Mashable
My oranges were inscribed with my name and Instagram handle.
Image: Victoria Ho/Mashable
With my relationship status going from attached to single recently, I was needless to say the best candidate at Mashable Asia to test the custom’s powers. Plus, this is not my first time throwing oranges, either. Last year, I went to the same bridge with a bunch of friends to try our luck in finding love. The skeptic in me puts it down to pure coincidence, but many of us did find boyfriends soon after.
Sadly, most of those relationships didn’t work out. So as to play it safe and not jinx myself this year, I made a real effort to stick to the rules. First, I dressed head-to-toe in red for luck, and completed the look with a bold red lipstick.
When we got to the bridge, I picked out the two best oranges from the lot and proceeded to write my name on one of them. Instead of writing my number on the other orange, I decided to put my Instagram handle down. Got to keep up with the times, right?
After saying a quick little wish, I threw both oranges over the bridge and into the river and saw them float away. The whole process was over in 15 minutes but I did feel a two-second surge of hope while I was flinging the oranges. Sadly, it’s been more than 12 hours since, and still I’ve received no direct messages on Instagram.
There goes my oranges!
Image: Alicia Tan/Mashable
I guess I’ll have to get back to you guys on whether I do find love.
Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.
