Appeasing the tai sui, Lunar New Year customs, Hong Kong borscht: 7 Lifestyle highlights
From an executive’s weight loss journey to the luckiest time to open lai see, here are seven stories from SCMP’s recent reporting
1. Which zodiac signs must appease the tai sui in the Year of the Horse 2026?
Anyone familiar with their Chinese zodiac sign is likely to have encountered the term tai sui and discovered that their animal sometimes conflicts with this guardian deity.
2. 3 days of Lunar New Year traditions, from red envelopes to the Kitchen God
Many of these practices can be traced back more than 2,000 years, when rituals were performed for bountiful harvests and to ward off misfortune. Having evolved over the millennia, these traditions and customs vary slightly between north and south China.
3. This Singapore-based executive lost 21kg in 9 months and cured his knee pain
Ben Payet’s story is not an unfamiliar one: a high-achieving professional whose health quietly slipped down his list of priorities. The finance executive moved with his wife from London to Singapore three years ago to be closer to her family. They were building a life in a new city, but Payet was carrying excess weight.