FINAL DAY OF CNY CELEBRATIONS

Tomorrow is the fifteenth and final day of the Chinese New Year. The night of the 15th day is called Chap Goh Meh in Hokkien. Do you know that many of my Malay friends keep asking me whether I'd be going to the Lumut beach to throw some Mandarin oranges into the sea but Nah I won't. This practice actually originated in Penang in the 19th century and not China. The last day is celebrated with lots of activities like the way the first day is welcomed. Quite a number will go to the temples for prayers and there are also many last minute requests for prosperity since the "god of prosperity" or Cai Xin usually departs after Chap Goh Meh. In China thee are lantern processions.
In Penang and some other places inMalaysia, the most popular and colourful activity is the "throwing of mandarin oranges (kum) into the sea by young maidens or unmarried BUT not so young ladies". This act has the historical inference that the young maiden is available for marriage if she is seen throwing oranges into the sea on Chap Goh Meh. Bear in mind that the oranges thrown must be Mandarin Oranges.

Here is an interesting story about Chap Goh Meh that I read:

A fascinating Chap Goh Meh legend tells the story of a lonely young man who, during an outing on this very significant night, was suddenly enraptured by the most beautiful sight he ever laid eyes on. Who was this exquisitely delicate beauty driving by in all her finery, he wondered. Despite the excitement pounding in his heart, the hopeful young gentleman quickly jotted down the number of her car, lest he forgot. The very next day, he made enquiries as to who the car belonged to, and finally obtained the car owner's address. With great haste, he requested his mother to send a matchmaker to his dream girl's home to arrange the marriage. In his rush, the star-crossed optimist did not realise that the girl he had seen was not the daughter of the house but a visiting niece. And so on his wedding day, the poor groom found that instead of the radiant smiling girl he had expected, he was married to her fat and rather plain cousin. The story does have a rather happy ending though, as his wife was a wealthy woman!

Picture and content of post sourced from: http://www.tourismpenang.gov.my/article.cfm?id=28