Happy Dongzhi Festival - Dec 21 2012

Good morning! A look at the weather today spells another sunny blue-sky day. If you recall, it's supposed to be end of the world today according to the Mayan calendar.

We are having bright blue skies over in Kuala Lumpur today

though it was overcast yesterday with some rain..

And the day before was sunny with these huge cumulus clouds with the sun's rays seeping through. A glorious day for sky-watching!

Today is Winter Solstice - Dec 21, 2012 - celebrated in the Chinese community as one of the most significant Chinese festivals. In fact, it is regarded THE most significant festival of the year, surpassing even Chinese New Year.

Known as the Dongzhi Festival, it is the last festival of the lunar year before the start of a new lunar year. Dongzhi festival is traditionally celebrated as a thanksgiving holiday for the year's good harvest. It is a day where the family gets together for a feast and offerings are made to deities and deceased ancestors. Glutinous rice balls called tangyuan in Mandarin are the order of the day.

Happy Dongzhi Festival to you if you are celebrating the occasion!

End of the world? Well, today is the day. But then again, probably not.