Five things to do this weekend (Feb 11-14)

This long weekend is going to be a special one with both Chinese New Year and Valentine’s Day happening. 

While it is more muted this year (with the COVID-19 rules), you can still have fun with your family and loved ones. 

Here are five things to do this weekend (Feb 11-14): 

COVID-19 isn’t stopping the annual River Hongbao from happening. This year’s event will take place at Gardens by the Bay so as to better implement social distancing measures. 

While there will not be any fireworks, live performance and guided tours, there will be 24 giant lanterns featuring the 12 zodiacs and an 18-metre tall God of Fortune. The free event lasts till Feb 16, with a cap of 2,000 visitors per 90-minute time slot. Pre-booking is required and you can do so here.

As part of IKEA’s seasonal Chinese New Year and Valentine’s Day menu, you can now try some mala crayfish. 

One portion comes with six pieces (S$11) and it is available until Feb 13. You can also try the Swedish meatball in a cup (S$5), chee cheong fun with mushroom and minced chicken (S$3.50) and plant balls with pasta and truffle-flavoured mushroom sauce (S$9). 

Do note that some dishes are available in limited quantities. Check out the full menu here. 

With the banning of yelling out auspicious Chinese phrases while tossing yusheng, Lo Hei this year will be very different. SO why not get an app to do that for you? You can try downloading the “lohei app” ( http://djbeng.com/lohei.html ), which will shout out “yam seng” and “huat ah!” for you. 

It is available in Mandarin and other dialects such as Cantonese, Teochew, Hokkien, Hainanese, Hakka and Shanghainese. Alternatively, you can try out the Lovolume Lohei app (https://lovolume-lohei.sg/ ) which shows you which auspicious phrases are traditionally spoken while you’re adding the specific yusheng ingredients in. It also comes with a 4D number generator.

Here are ways that you can conduct your Lo Hei this year!

Netflix will be releasing the final instalment of the popular To All The Boys I Loved Before trilogy over the weekend and it’s shaping up to be the perfect snuggle for that Valentine’s date. 

To All The Boys: Always And Forever tells the love story of Lara Jean (Lana Condor) and Peter Kavinsky (Noah Centineo) as they endure their final year of high school and make important life-changing decisions along the way. 

And if movies aren’t your thing, maybe you can consider playing Monopoly. Monopoly Explore! SG is a new mobile game app that has launched in Singapore via the Google Play Store (it will only be available in the Apple App Store from Feb 22). 

The app lets you play Monopoly online and explore Singapore’s most iconic locations. You can also stand a chance to win prizes up to S$8,000 worth of cash. Find out more here.