Chingay @ Heartlands

Bryan and I were enjoying a quiet Sunday at home when we heard quite a commotion outside. This isn't entirely unusual considering that we live opposite a sometimes raucous Hindu temple, but this was louder than average. When we went to the window to check it out, there was a whole line of floats queuing up on the street!!

A colorful view

On the green down the street, loud music was playing and dragon dancers were performing. Lots of people were milling about waiting for the parade to get going, and the traffic was backing up around the block. The floats got moving and they came right past our flat. We had a great view from our twentieth story window!

Check it out! Dragons AND the Singapore Flyer!

From the side of one of the floats, we learned that the parade was for Chingay. I don't know how I've managed to live in Singapore for two and a half years without ever hearing of Chingay, but apparently it's a parade held every year as part of the Chinese New Year's festivities. It originated in Malaysia as a celebration of Chinese deities' birthdays, and eventually made its way to Singapore, where it became a multicultural celebration and was incorporated into Chinese New Year.

Lots of the floats had elaborately costumed dancers

The main Chingay parade is a big affair held downtown, but the smaller parade we saw was part of an effort to bring Chingay to the heartlands. Similar parades were also held in Ang Mo Kio, Chinatown, Bukit Panjang, and elsewhere.

My favorite float!

NUS's float had a fantastic butterfly! It looked like it came right out of a coloring book!

So pretty! Way to go, NUS!

There were eleven floats in all, each more colorful than the last.

New Creation Church's float was covered in BALLOONS!

Another float was sea creature-themed!

Bryan and I really enjoyed the last couple of floats, which looked like old-fashioned ships!

The waves looked really pretty

The hearts on the sail are a nice touch!

The parade definitely brightened up our Sunday. It was nice to have entertainment just outside our window!

P.S. Matt, a fellow blogger also did a post about the Chingay parade he saw in Bukit Panjang. Check it out here.