Just wondering what you Peranakans do in your spare time(weekends and holidays)
  • Vote Up0Vote Down hockyhocky June 2008
    Posts: 264
    So far nobody has come in with anything to say about our Peranakan daily lives and what we actually do in our spare time. It probably wouldn't be different from any other people, but who knows maybe we still hide in the corner of the house and practise our old cheki skills, watch old Peranakan videos or have some skills in doing the manek manek shoes, handbags, nonya jewellery and even sewing and embroidery needed in the good old kebayas. For the guys(Babas) I reckon, we don't really have anything special to do in our spare times except maybe chatting around with friends, going out on the town, picnicking and swimming like my daddy used to do, but he was a horse racing follower and used to frequent the Racecourse often I reckon. I for one am totally computer addicted in my spare time surfing the net, but am also interested in hifi, videos, radio controlled big man's toys, cars, a bit of golf once in a while when I feel like it, now going into fishing and boating just for the outdoor dirt and fun. I know some of the Babas are very good at Peranakan cooking too. I can't cook at all. Doing the instant noodle is not cooking, it cooks itself just like boiling eggs. Maybe I can just about fry rice, but it won't taste like any others, ha ha ha.
  • 9 Comments sorted by
  • Vote Up0Vote Down bunga_telangbunga_telang June 2008
    Posts: 88
    Hi Hocky,

    I find the topic of what Peranakans do during spare time is very amusing ... hehehe  :P

    We do what the any average Singaporean, Malaysian or the average Jones of any country that we reside in will do ... We are not from Mars and neither are we trapped in the Middle Ages. :P

    Most of us no longer sew, bead or cook during our spare time. Such a chore for the modern nonyas! Shopping, watching TV, clubbing, gymming, going to the spa and travelling are what we do nowadays.

    The Babas also doing the same ... maybe something else that they induldge in that the nonyas do not ... "Cuci Mata"! Ogling at girls ... Hahaha. Of cos not all Babas do it lah ... Some ogle at guys too, lah!  Juz kidding ... ;)

    Basically, we spend our time just like what the average modern people in this day and age do ... of course, depending on the cultures of the countries that we live in.


    Cheers!
    Bunga_Telang
  • Vote Up0Vote Down hockyhocky June 2008
    Posts: 264
    Yes oogling is a wonderful hobby and it surely is the treat in European countries where many of the birds watched are of supermodel proportions and more, ha ha ha.
  • Vote Up0Vote Down betul_baba%3Fbetul_baba? June 2008
    Posts: 40
    Hello all -- Not quite relevant to this forum.  But since it is about spare time activities, I thought I just ask.

    I would like to know if it is just me or does anyone here do remember of their late grannies/great grannies cutting squares of red paper into patterns. And then pasting them on jars or tins of the various kueh-kueh for Chinese New Year?

    And if they have a pair of scissors with jagged/blades whereby they would cut a strip of red paper on both sides. And then paste it around the huat kueh, three oranges piled on a plate and kueh bakol. For the altar table.

    I ask because apparently nobody mentions this, hence it could be a lost art altogether. Not sure exactly about the practice of pasting red paper.  But I believe it is for luck or something like that.

    I did try my hand on paper cutting but that was many moons ago. It is good to have the small foldable Made-in-China scissors which made the task of cutting easier. Again, such scissors are either hard to find now, or no longer sold.

    Best wishes
    Betul-baba?

  • Vote Up0Vote Down hockyhocky August 2008
    Posts: 264
    Hi betul_baba,
    I do remember our parents and grandparents doing this for Chinese New Year and some other occassions and we also tried our hands on it with little success.
  • Vote Up0Vote Down betul_baba%3Fbetul_baba? August 2008
    Posts: 40
    Hi Hocky -- I am thinking if there would be any Babas and Nyonyas out there interested in reviving this craft?

    I have this vision of Chinese New Year cards with our very own paper cuts on them. Maybe can also sell them to friends or at fairs. At least can also make a tidy sum of pocket money.

    To quote an all-time Singaporean favourite: So how?

    Best wishes
    Betul-baba?
  • Vote Up0Vote Down wonjyunyungwonjyunyung August 2008
    Posts: 357
    Hi Betul Baba

    I would be greatly be anticipating to see how this Peranakan red paper cutting would be like.  Just like how I always anticipate what kind of ang pow design would the Peranakan Association sell every year at their D&D.

    If you have a picture of it, can you post it online to show us.  You can also send the picture to me and I could post it up for you onto the forum.

    Cheers
  • Vote Up0Vote Down hockyhocky August 2008
    Posts: 264
    I reckon there are several ways of doing this, and one is to just imagine a pattern or design and go and cut it out using the small pair of scissors as mentioned before. The other way is to think in duplicates or triplicates or even further by folding the paper a few times so when you cut pieces out of it, the design is replicated saving some time and making exact duplicates of the cutting, clever, clever! ;D
  • Vote Up0Vote Down hockyhocky August 2008
    Posts: 264
    I actually do some gardenning when I have the spare time besides surfing the Net and peeping into the Peranakan site to look for interesting threads and pictures, muck around with some of my antique hifi stuff, some big boys toys like radio controlled boats, planes, cars, my own car and go fishing and boating. ;D
  • Vote Up0Vote Down hockyhocky August 2008
    Posts: 264
    Hi Betul_baba,
    Could you please supply some pictures of the red paper cuttings you mentioned about so those of us who are not familiar with it can have an idea about this craft work and may become interested in doing it themselves? From memory I can only remember seeing the round or square pieces which were stuck on top of things like that very hard and chewy sweet brown stuff and biscuit tins and also the thin ones which were pasted around the sides of them too like a ribbon. If your cakes or other things didn't look very good on the tops, these cuttings did do a good job distracting the observers!!!
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