Chinese children singing in Mandarin at the 'Spring Garden' party held at the Chinese Benevolent Association's headquarters on Old Hope Road last Sunday. THERE WAS hardly an available seat at the Chinese Benevolent Association (CBA) headquarters on Old Hope Road on Sunday evening, where members of the Chinese community, well-wishers and friends turned out in droves to ring in the New Year. Well, the Chinese New Year, that is.
The CBA ushered in, 'The Year of the Sheep' with a 'Spring Garden' party on the association's grounds, and the event will go down as one of the best supported Chinese New Year celebrations ever.
On entering the grounds, the aroma of meats, oils and spices permeated the air, luring many people straight to the food. With four caterers, in the form of Golden Gate Restaurant, Orient Express, Chang's Catering and Lorraine Fung, there was plenty of food to choose from. The meals ranged from the regular sweet and sour chicken, to Malai Chicken and Tofu. There were also various offerings of pork and fish. The crowd ate it all up with some meals like barbecue ribs going quickly. Clearly for many it was the place to get Sunday
dinner.
At about 7:00 p.m., the entertainment segment of the festivities kicked off with a group of Chinese children singing 'Jamaica Land We Love', the Jamaican national anthem in English and the anthem of the People's Republic of China in Mandarin.
They were soon followed by the traditional 'Lion Dance'. In Chinese culture the lion is used to welcome in the lunar new year and drive out demons.
However, the highlight of the day's event was the crowning of 'Miss CBA'. The pageant, which had 12 contestants who were members of the CBA, was being revived after a 41-year absence.
The contestants were Amoy Lyew, Stephanie Lueyen, Angella Yap Chung, Annabel Glaze, Azhima Akinenbebe, Thasya Chin, Stephanie Chung, Tiffany-Ann Lue, Kristina Kerr, Tiffany Gangadeen, Simone Burton and Roseanna Chen.
The young women first graced the stage performing a beautiful rendition of the traditional fan dance. Their next appearance was in swimwear by Mushroom.
Dressed in traditional cheongsam, they introduced themselves by saying their names and talking about the attributes of persons born in their particular month of birth on the Chinese calendar.
Most breezed through the exercise with little difficulty, with two girls even speaking a part of their pieces in Mandarin. However, some girls appeared nervous on- stage and as a result did not run through their presentation as well.
While the judging panel, which included Miss World 1993, Lisa Hanna; the last 'Miss CBA' Melody Bitter and Howard Moo-Young deliberated, a quartet named INQUE serenaded the girls. Performing the Stylistics hit Betcha By Golly Wow, they handed a red rose to each of the young women on-stage. They next performed a rendition of the Temptations' My Girl to an appreciative audience.
The wait was soon over as the winners were announced. Amoy Lyew was crowned 'Miss CBA', while Stephanie Lueyen and Tiffany Ann Lue were awarded second and third place respectively. Lyew's prize is a trip to any Air Jamaica destination other than Los Angeles.
Sectional prizes were awarded to Lueyen for 'Best Smile', Rosanna Chen for 'Best Legs'; and Thasya Chin for 'Best Personality'. The prize for best figure went to Terry Gangadeen.
