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The Danish company Lego also took part in the recent China International Import Exhibition in Shanghai. She gave the hosts of the grand event a real gift: 80108 LEGO Lunar New Year Traditions and 80109 LEGO Lunar New Year Ice Festival. They are dedicated to the forthcoming Year of the Tiger according to the Chinese calendar.

Residents of the Middle Kingdom, as well as countries throughout the Asia-Pacific region, will have the opportunity to purchase new items from December 25. For the rest of the fans of the «world of cubes», the original kits will be available in the official stores of the Danish manufacturer and most other specialized outlets from January 1, 2022.

What are these New Year’s Lego sets? Let’s take a quick look at their content.

80108 LEGO Lunar New Year Traditions

The toy set consists of six separate modules connected by the main theme — New Year’s Eve. At the same time, each of them reflects a certain tradition, which is typical for New Year’s Eve troubles and urgent matters on the eve of everyone’s favorite holiday. This includes putting things in order and cleaning the house, and visits to beloved grandparents, and shopping for gifts, and, finally, meeting the New Year with the whole family.

The design of small parts provides two possibilities for combining into a single complex: either fold them in the form of a pyramid, as shown in the picture above, or build something like a carousel out of them (bottom picture). When choosing any option, the combined model will look like an excellent exhibit due to the specific Asian flavor and a catchy riot of bright colors.

Let’s start the review from the very top of a kind of pyramid.

On it you see a module with dark red walls. It is no coincidence that it is placed on top of the rest of the structures, because this is perhaps one of the most iconic attributes of the Lunar New Year. Just as it is impossible to imagine the New Year holidays without Santa Claus, so the Chinese cannot imagine their New Year without Kaishen, the god of Wealth and Prosperity.

In one hand, Kaishen holds a red Hongbao envelope, cherished for every inhabitant of the Celestial Empire, symbolizing a sign of kindness and good luck, in the second — a gold ingot. By the way, the miniature figurine of the deity is exclusive among the works of Lego designers.

The worship of this mythical creature is associated with the popular belief that he is able to bless for wealth and prosperity.

Now we go down from the deity below to the ground, or to the middle tier of the pyramid.

The inhabitants of the room on the left are closely busy preparing for the Chinese New Year. The entrance is decorated with banners and congratulatory stickers. There is also a large bush with green leaves and tangerines. The inclusion of a tangerine tree in the game set is also not accidental, since both the name and the color of the fruit are associated with gold. Therefore, the Chinese are happy to give each other tangerines, believing that this is akin to presenting gold.

The module on the right recreates the episode with the grandparents visiting. According to a long tradition, on the eve of the celebration, they give children and grandchildren the same red envelopes filled with money.

The base of the pyramid is made up of three sections…

The room on the left is being cleaned with might and main. A married couple cleans up the apartment. It is very important to complete such matters before the holiday. Because, say, sweeping on the Chinese New Year is strictly prohibited — after all, you can sweep away your own prosperity and good luck along with the garbage.

In the middle, the atmosphere of a traditional Chinese kiosk is reproduced, where you can buy toys and figurines on sticks for the New Year holidays.

The composition of the game set is being completed 80108 LEGO Lunar New Year Traditions recreating a warm family corner.

Dad, mom and daughter, in anticipation of the onset of the New Year, stayed up late. They spend the last hours of the outgoing year in a close circle, watching a festive show on TV. And before the arrival of the New, judging by the dial of the wall electronic clock above the huge aquarium, there is only one minute left.

By the way, the photo on the wall shows that this family loves festive events — it can be seen from it that they recently attended the traditional Spring Lantern Festival, also very popular in China.

Thus, in one set, the creators 80108 LEGO Lunar New Year Traditions managed to demonstrate various scenes related to the preparations for the Chinese New Year. Along with beautiful decorations, rare items and accessories, this construction set is attractive with the inclusion of 12 minifigures in the package. Thanks to this, each episode becomes more realistic.

A modular model from individual modules is an excellent option for spending time together with the whole family. There is work for everyone, because the designer consists of 1066 parts. Well, the most important thing is that it will be extremely interesting and fun for everyone to recreate the celebration of the Chinese New Year.

80109 LEGO Lunar New Year Ice Festival

No less beautiful will be a model from the second New Year’s set 80109 LEGO Lunar New Year Ice Festival. It is dedicated to the traditional international festival of ice and snow sculptures, which has been held in Harbin for many years. The owner of the constructor is waiting for a rich gaming location with thirteen characters.

In terms of the number of “bricks”, it is half the size of the previous set, so it will take longer to work on the project. However, it’s worth it, because the creators managed to reflect the beautiful ice town with all the accompanying paraphernalia.

The center of the sculptural composition should be considered a tall building made of dark blue ice, which rises above all the others. An arch was made under it with a small but steep hill — it looks like you can slide down from it by simply sitting on an ordinary «cardboard». After that, the child finds himself on the territory of a real ice rink. Here, almost all the guys are already skating. If they want, they can play hockey. The set also includes a toy passenger car on a skid — you can put kids in the cab and arrange ice races.

In general, in this children’s town there is an exciting activity for every child, regardless of age. Here you can even drill a hole and arrange ice fishing. A boy in a yellow-white fur earflap, pulling a big fish out of the hole with a fishing rod, is a vivid confirmation of this.

The designers of the play set did not forget about the participants of the festival of ice and snow sculptures. On the right, next to a makeshift photo wall that allows you to take a memorable picture in the image of a tiger, creative work is in full swing. One of the representatives of the original art work, a man with a highly raised electric saw in his hand, critically examines a figurine of a wild animal that has just been cut out of an ice block.

Not far from the «workshop» of the artist, the author’s sculpture already flaunts — a figure of a penguin, apparently still watching the children playing in the court.

A fence made of a variety of materials, including snow and picket fence, has been erected around the playground. At the entrance to the amusement park there is a two-wheeled cart with a whole barrel of roasted chestnuts, a roadside delicacy popular in China and the Asian region. So the guys can enjoy a treat at any time.

Among the thirteen miniature figures included in this set, the figurine dressed as a tiger attracts special attention. Not surprising, considering what year is coming according to the Chinese calendar. According to unconfirmed information, it will be released as a standalone minifigure for use in the New Year sales of sets as an additional gift for active buyers from a Danish company.