Horses And Dragons Descend Upon Local Care Home

Horses and dragons may make for strange bedfellows, yet the combination went down well at local care home, Parklands, in Poynton, where staff and residents have been enjoying a full range of Chinese New Year festivities.

To welcome in the Year of the Horse residents spent a morning dressing the CLS-run home from head to toe in an array of equine-themed decorations, interspersed with a colourful horde of paper dragons and Chinese lanterns, which they made themselves.

All this was followed by a delicious oriental banquet of dim sum, Chinese dumplings, spring rolls and noodles, washed down with Chinese specialist green tea. To spice things up residents also took part in a ‘Chopstick Challenge’, comparing their chopstick handling skills, and shared the messages written inside their fortune cookies.

90-year-old Dorothy Robinson (pictured), originally from Poynton, said:

“I’ve had so much fun taking part in all the activities! I’ve never celebrated Chinese New Year before so it was a whole new experience for me. I also enjoyed learning about another country’s traditions, it makes you wonder how other places around the world celebrate special days.”

Chris Machin, Home Manager at Parklands, added:

“It was great to see all the residents get involved in the celebrations. Many of them have never eaten Chinese food before and we always aim to provide a diverse range of activities which residents will find engaging.

The paper lantern craft sessions also proved very popular and it was great to see everyone chatting about their different designs and helping with the decorations. We’re already looking forward to next year – the Year of the Sheep.”