A taste for adventure

During the Chinese Lunar New Year, Chinese people usually greet each other with an auspicious idiom that relates to the zodiac animals. For the Year of the Horse ormain Chinese, there will be plenty of choices, such as ma dao cheng gong, which means "achieve speedy success", or yi ma dang xian, meaning "take the lead".

The Horse is the seventh of the 12 animal signs of the Chinese zodiac cycle - after Rat, Ox, Tiger,Rabbit, Dragon, Snake and before Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog and Pig.

In Chinese culture,the horse symbolises restlessness.And some believe people share a similar personality with the animal of the year in which they were born. Those born in the Year of the Horse are expected to be hardworking,highly strung,to enjoy travelingand to have a very infectious optimism.

If you are having a child this year, you might expect it totalk and form words at an early age. These children can be restless, roaming the neighbourhood and looking for adventure.

However, they might get themselves into trouble frequently and easily have temper tantrums when they don't get their own way.

According to the Chinese lunar calendar, the Year of the Horse is a pretty long one - starting on Jan 31 and ending on Feb 28, 2015, 384 days in total.

The zodiac cycle was also used to tell time and direction in the old days. The horse symbolises the period from 11 am to 1 pm. While the other animals are eating or having a rest, the horse might still be working and even if it is sleeping, it will be standing.

(China Daily Africa Weekly 01/31/2014 page16)