Joining Conversations About Festivals and Local Life.
Singlish for Living and Working in Singapore. Lesson 9.
Singapore’s calendar is full of festivals and public events, and these are safe, warm topics for small talk if you handle them with respect. In this lesson, you listen to pantry conversations and HR announcements around Chinese New Year, Hari Raya and Deepavali. You learn common festival words, greetings and references like CNY, open house and long weekend, and see how colleagues ask each other about fasting, family visits and travel plans. You also practise asking curious but sensitive questions about religious practices and food restrictions without sounding kaypoh or rude. Short HR emails and posters help you understand how companies talk about Racial Harmony Day and National Day, and what people expect from colleagues at celebrations. By the end, you can join festival chats, schedule around key dates and show genuine interest in local life while staying away from risky political or racial comments.
1. Pantry chat about Chinese New Year.
Let us start with a very typical scene in a Singapore office: an informal pantry chat just before Chinese New Year. You will hear colleagues using the short form CNY, talking about a long weekend, and asking about travel and family plans. This kind of conversation is friendly and quite safe. People are not discussing politics or religion in detail, they are just sharing how they will spend the holiday. In this block, I want you to get used to the sound and rhythm of this kind of small talk. Do not worry about understanding every single word. Focus on three key questions in your mind: Which festival are they talking about, what are the colleagues planning to do, and what simple phrases can you reuse later? After the listening, you will see the same scene on the screen. We will unpack a few useful festival words, like goodies, reunion dinner and long weekend. Then you will write a short summary of what you understood, and pick out some new festival vocabulary. This is your warm-up to join future chats with confidence.
Scene: First Chinese New Year chat in the pantry.
Imagine it is your first January in a Singapore office. You walk into the pantry to make coffee and hear this conversation between three colleagues: Mei, Ravi and Alex, who is new in Singapore.
Pantry dialogue
Mei: 'Eh, CNY coming soon already, you all finish buying goodies or not?'
Ravi: 'Not yet lah, last minute as usual. This year I going back to Penang.'
Alex: 'I am still new here, CNY is Chinese New Year, right?'
Mei: 'Ya, Chinese New Year. Long weekend this time, four days. You travelling anywhere?'
Alex: 'I am thinking to stay in Singapore and see the Chinatown lights.'
Ravi: 'Wah, good idea. But very crowded one. Better go earlier.'
Mei: 'Alex, first CNY here, you must try pineapple tarts and bak kwa. Those are the standard goodies.'
Alex: 'Sounds great. Any tips what I should say to colleagues for CNY?'
Ravi: 'Simple one can already. Just say: happy Chinese New Year, enjoy the long weekend.'
Noticing useful CNY language.
From the short chat you heard, you can already pick up several common words and ideas:
CNY: short form for Chinese New Year. Everyone uses this in speech, chats and emails.
Goodies: snacks and special food people buy and offer during the festival.
Long weekend: when a public holiday falls near the weekend, giving three or four days off.
First CNY here: people often ask if this is your first time experiencing a festival in Singapore.
Notice how Alex checks meaning in a very natural way:
> 'I am still new here, CNY is Chinese New Year, right?'
This is a safe pattern you can reuse for other abbreviations, not only for festivals.
Also, look at the tone. The conversation is:
light and friendly,
focused on food, travel and decorations,
not going into sensitive topics.
This is the style you want when you first join these chats.
In the activity below, you will listen to the same dialogue again and then describe what you understood in your own words.
Practice & Feedback
Listen carefully to the pantry conversation again. Do not pause or replay the first time; just let the sound wash over you and focus on the key ideas. Then you can listen a second time if you like. After that, write:
3–4 full sentences summarising what each person is doing for Chinese New Year and what advice they give Alex.
A short list of at least 3 festival words or phrases you noticed (for example, CNY, goodies). If any words are new for you, you can add a question mark next to them.
Write your answer in clear sentences, as if you are explaining the scene to a friend who did not hear it. Do not worry about perfect grammar; focus more on showing that you caught the main points and some useful vocabulary.
2. Reading an HR email about holidays.
Now that you have heard a casual pantry conversation, let us move to something a bit more formal but still very common in Singapore offices: an HR email about public holidays. These emails are usually short, efficient and quite similar across companies. They often use abbreviations like CNY and PH for public holiday, and they combine neutral information with a polite greeting for colleagues who celebrate. In this block, you will read one sample email from HR about Chinese New Year and another festival. We will look at how the writer gives clear facts about dates and office hours, and then adds a short, friendly well wish. This is a useful model for your own future writing, but it also shows you phrases that colleagues expect to hear. After reading, you will create a few simple greetings of your own for CNY, Hari Raya and Deepavali, plus one neutral message that you can safely use for any celebration. Do not worry about sounding super creative. For festival greetings in Singapore, simple and sincere is usually best.
Sample HR email about upcoming festivals.
Below is a typical HR note you might receive before a festival in Singapore.
> Subject: CNY public holidays and office hours
>
> Dear colleagues,
>
> Please be informed that the office will be closed on 9 and 10 February for the Chinese New Year public holidays. We will operate as usual on 8 February, with early dismissal at 3 pm.
>
> We would like to wish all colleagues celebrating a happy and safe Chinese New Year. For those travelling, have a pleasant journey and enjoy the long weekend.
>
> Best regards,
> HR Team
Notice some useful patterns:
Please be informed that… – formal but very common opening for HR information.
The office will be closed on… – clear, simple way to give dates.
We would like to wish all colleagues celebrating… – polite, inclusive phrase that recognises not everyone celebrates.
Enjoy the long weekend. – safe, friendly line you can reuse in speech and writing.
Adapting the pattern for other festivals.
Here is a shorter announcement for another festival.
> Subject: Hari Raya public holiday reminder
>
> Dear colleagues,
>
> Please note that Monday, 1 April is a public holiday for Hari Raya Puasa. The office will be closed.
>
> We wish our Muslim colleagues a blessed Hari Raya, and everyone a restful break.
>
> Best regards,
> HR Team
You can use this structure to create your own simple greetings, even when you are not the one sending the official email. For example, after reading this, you might say to a colleague:
Happy Chinese New Year, enjoy the long weekend.
Wishing you a blessed Hari Raya.
Enjoy the Deepavali break with your family.
Keep your greeting short, positive and focused on rest, family and celebration, not on religion or politics.
Practice & Feedback
Read the two HR messages on the screen one more time. Notice how they mention the festival, the public holiday, and also give a warm but simple wish. Now it is your turn to create your own greetings.
Please write four short greetings as full sentences:
One greeting you can say or write for Chinese New Year.
One greeting for Hari Raya.
One greeting for Deepavali.
One neutral greeting that would be ok for almost any festival or long weekend.
Keep each greeting to one sentence. You can imagine saying it in the pantry, writing it in a card, or adding it to a short chat. Try to use some phrases from the examples, like enjoy the long weekend or have a restful break, but change the details so that it feels like your own style.
Subject: CNY public holidays and office hours
Dear colleagues,
Please be informed that the office will be closed on 9 and 10 February for the Chinese New Year public holidays. We will operate as usual on 8 February, with early dismissal at 3 pm.
We would like to wish all colleagues celebrating a happy and safe Chinese New Year. For those travelling, have a pleasant journey and enjoy the long weekend.
Best regards,
HR Team
---
Subject: Hari Raya public holiday reminder
Dear colleagues,
Please note that Monday, 1 April is a public holiday for Hari Raya Puasa. The office will be closed.
We wish our Muslim colleagues a blessed Hari Raya, and everyone a restful break.
Best regards,
HR Team
3. Asking about fasting and food politely.
Festivals in Singapore are often connected to food, but also to fasting and dietary rules. For example, during the Muslim fasting month, many colleagues will not eat or drink between dawn and sunset. Some colleagues need halal food, some are vegetarian, and some do not take beef or pork for religious or cultural reasons. It is good to show care, but it is also easy to sound too direct or a bit kaypoh if you ask in the wrong way. In this block, we focus on polite questions you can use when you want to bring food, join a potluck, or understand a little more about your colleagues' practices. You will see a short dialogue where Alex checks with Aisha and Kavita about food restrictions for a team lunch. Then we will zoom in on question frames like: any food restrictions I should know, is there anything I should avoid bringing, and if you do not mind me asking. After that, you will write your own questions for different festivals, using these gentle patterns. The goal is to be respectful and curious, without making anyone feel uncomfortable.
Scene: Planning food for a team lunch.
Alex wants to organise a small team lunch during the Hari Raya period and does not want to bring the wrong things. Alex talks to Aisha, who is Muslim, and Kavita, who is Hindu.
Dialogue
Alex: 'Thanks for inviting me to the potluck. Any food restrictions I should know about?'
Aisha: 'For me, just make sure the food is halal, or you can bring vegetarian. No pork, no alcohol.'
Alex: 'Got it. Is there anything I should avoid bringing for Hari Raya?'
Aisha: 'Better not bring pork or anything with alcohol, that one a bit sensitive.'
Kavita: 'For me, I do not eat beef. Vegetarian is always safe.'
Alex: 'Thanks for telling me. If you do not mind me asking, during the fasting month, is it ok if I eat at my desk?'
Aisha: 'No problem, really. Most of us are quite used to it. Just maybe avoid waving your food in front of us.'
Alex: 'Understood. I really appreciate you explaining.'
Useful question frames.
Notice that Alex does not directly ask: 'What can you not eat?' or 'Why you cannot eat this?' Instead, Alex uses softer patterns:
Any food restrictions I should know about?
Neutral, shows you want to be considerate.
Is there anything I should avoid bringing for Hari Raya?
Focuses on the action (bringing food), not on the person.
If you do not mind me asking, during the fasting month, is it ok if I eat at my desk?
Adds a softening phrase at the start.
These patterns help you stay respectful and non-intrusive, especially when you are not close friends yet.
Language tips.
You can mix and match these frames with different festivals:
For Deepavali: 'Is there anything I should avoid bringing for Deepavali?'
For Chinese New Year: 'Any food restrictions I should know about before I bring snacks for CNY?'
For Hari Raya: 'If you do not mind me asking, how do you usually break fast with your family?'
Keep the focus on being helpful (choosing suitable food, planning timing) rather than on getting private details.
Practice & Feedback
Think about a real situation where you might need to ask about food or fasting at work. For example, a potluck at the office, an open house at a colleague's home, or a team lunch near a festival.
Write five polite questions you could ask colleagues, using at least three different frames from the dialogue above, such as:
any food restrictions I should know about
is there anything I should avoid bringing
if you do not mind me asking
For each question, briefly add in brackets which festival or situation you are thinking of, for example: '(Deepavali office potluck)' or '(fasting month lunch meeting)'.
Aim for natural-sounding questions you would really feel comfortable using in your own workplace.
Useful frames you can reuse:
Any food restrictions I should know about?
Is there anything I should avoid bringing for Hari Raya / Deepavali / CNY?
If you do not mind me asking, during the fasting month, is it ok if I eat at my desk?
Would vegetarian options be better for everyone?
Is this place halal / suitable for you?
4. Replying in a Hari Raya WhatsApp group.
Festivals are not only in face to face conversations and HR emails. Very often, your colleagues will create a WhatsApp or Teams group for a potluck, an open house, or a small celebration. The style here is usually short, warm and a bit more casual. In this block, you will look at a sample WhatsApp group chat for a Hari Raya open house. You will see how colleagues invite each other, how they accept or decline, and how they ask about what to bring or about food restrictions. Pay attention to how much text people actually write. Messages are often just one line, sometimes even just a phrase plus an emoji. After reading the chat, you will practise replying as if you are part of the group. You will write a few short messages, not a long paragraph, so that your style fits the local chat rhythm. This is also a nice chance to reuse polite festival greetings and your new question frames about food.
WhatsApp group: Aisha Raya Open House.
Imagine your Malay colleague Aisha has created a small group chat for your team.
Group chat screenshot (text version)
Aisha: 'Hi all, I am having Raya open house this Sunday, 3 to 6 pm, at my place near Punggol MRT. You are all welcome!'
Aisha: 'It is simple potluck, can just bring one small dish or snack. No pork, no alcohol, thanks!'
Mei: 'Thanks Aisha! I will come. I bring some CNY style pineapple tarts, ok?'
Aisha: 'Can, no problem, I love pineapple tarts.'
Ravi: 'I am out of town this weekend, sorry cannot join. Next time, ya.'
Aisha: 'No worries, enjoy your trip!'
Kavita: 'Thanks for inviting! Any preference, sweet or savoury? I can do vegetarian.'
Aisha: 'Anything is fine. Vegetarian would be great, thanks.'
What do you notice about the style?.
Short messages
Nobody writes long paragraphs. Each idea is usually one line.
Friendly but not too slangy
There is a bit of local style (can, ya), but overall it is still clear, standard English.
Clear information and boundaries
Aisha politely mentions 'no pork, no alcohol' so everyone knows what is suitable.
Simple greetings and thanks
Colleagues say thanks for inviting and enjoy your trip rather than very formal sentences.
In Singapore, this balance feels comfortable for most teams: not super formal, but still respectful. You can choose to be slightly more or slightly less casual, depending on your own style and how your colleagues write.
Practice & Feedback
Imagine you are also in this WhatsApp group as the new colleague Alex. You want to reply in a way that is friendly, respectful and not too long.
Write 3–5 separate chat messages, each on a new line, as if you are sending them in the group. For example, your messages might include:
thanking Aisha and saying whether you can join,
asking what kind of dish would be useful,
checking briefly about food restrictions using a soft question,
sending a simple Hari Raya greeting.
Keep each message short, like a real chat line, not a big paragraph. You can reuse phrases such as 'Thanks for inviting' or 'Any food restrictions I should know about?'. If you like, you may include one or two simple emoji words like 'haha' or 'thumbs up', but this is optional.
WhatsApp group messages:
Aisha: 'Hi all, I am having Raya open house this Sunday, 3 to 6 pm, at my place near Punggol MRT. You are all welcome!'
Aisha: 'It is simple potluck, can just bring one small dish or snack. No pork, no alcohol, thanks!'
Mei: 'Thanks Aisha! I will come. I bring some CNY style pineapple tarts, ok?'
Aisha: 'Can, no problem, I love pineapple tarts.'
Ravi: 'I am out of town this weekend, sorry cannot join. Next time, ya.'
Aisha: 'No worries, enjoy your trip!'
Kavita: 'Thanks for inviting! Any preference, sweet or savoury? I can do vegetarian.'
Aisha: 'Anything is fine. Vegetarian would be great, thanks.'
5. Scheduling around Deepavali and long weekends.
Another very practical part of festival communication in Singapore is scheduling. Around big holidays like Deepavali, Hari Raya or Chinese New Year, many colleagues travel or have important family events. It is polite to avoid putting major meetings or deadlines on key dates if possible. In this block, you will listen to a short meeting extract where Alex and the team discuss when to hold a training session near Deepavali. You will hear how they mention the holiday, ask who will be around, and suggest moving the date in a respectful way. Notice that they do not force people to share personal details. They simply check availability and show that they are aware of the festival. After listening and reading the transcript, you will write a few sentences suggesting how to reschedule a meeting or deadline around a festival in your own context. Try to combine practical phrases like maybe we schedule after the holiday with warm lines like enjoy the long weekend.
Meeting extract: Planning training near Deepavali.
In this scene, the team is trying to schedule a half-day training. Deepavali is coming on Thursday.
Transcript
Manager: 'So, we were thinking of doing the training on Thursday. But that is Deepavali, right?'
Priya: 'Yes, Thursday is Deepavali. I will be on leave that day and the day after.'
Alex: 'Maybe we schedule the training after the holiday? I know some of you will be celebrating or travelling.'
Manager: 'Good point. Friday might be quite quiet also. How about the following Monday?'
Farid: 'Monday works for me. The Deepavali long weekend I will be in Johor, but I am back by then.'
Manager: 'Ok, let us fix it on Monday then. For now we avoid the Deepavali period.'
Key phrases for scheduling politely.
From this short discussion, you can borrow:
That is Deepavali, right?
A simple way to check your understanding of the date.
Maybe we schedule the training after the holiday?
A soft suggestion that respects the festival.
Some of you will be celebrating or travelling.
Shows awareness without asking for personal details.
For now we avoid the Deepavali period.
A clear decision that still sounds respectful.
You can adapt these for other festivals:
Maybe we schedule the meeting after the Chinese New Year break.
Let us avoid the Hari Raya period for major deadlines.
This kind of language helps you show cultural sensitivity and keep work moving smoothly.
Practice & Feedback
Think about a real or imagined situation at your workplace: you need to set a meeting or deadline, but it is very close to a big festival, for example Deepavali, Hari Raya or Chinese New Year. You want to sound practical and also respectful.
After listening to the meeting extract again, write 3 short sentences you could send in an email or say in a meeting to suggest changing the timing. For example, you might:
gently point out that a date is a festival,
suggest moving it to after the holiday,
wish colleagues a good break.
Reuse and adapt phrases like 'Maybe we schedule the training after the holiday', 'for now we avoid the Deepavali period' or 'enjoy the long weekend'. Keep each sentence clear and polite, as if you are talking to a mixed team with different backgrounds.
6. Mini task: join a full festival conversation.
You have now seen several key pieces of language around festivals in Singapore: casual pantry talk, HR emails, polite questions about food and fasting, WhatsApp invites, and scheduling discussions around long weekends. In this final block, you will put everything together in a small performance task. I would like you to imagine an upcoming festival in your real or future workplace. It could be Chinese New Year, Hari Raya, Deepavali, or another local celebration that is common in your industry. Your job is to write a short conversation script between you and a colleague. In the script, you should greet them for the festival, ask one or two respectful questions about how they celebrate or about food restrictions, and mention the long weekend or your plans to schedule around the holiday. Try to reuse at least three useful phrases from this lesson, such as any food restrictions I should know, enjoy the long weekend, or maybe we schedule after the holiday. After that, check your script using a simple checklist. This is a safe space to experiment. You can still keep your own voice while gently adding local flavour.
Your integrated festival conversation.
You will now create a short written dialogue that could really happen in your Singapore office.
Step 1: Choose your festival and colleague.
Pick one festival and one imagined colleague:
Chinese New Year with a Chinese Singaporean colleague,
Hari Raya with a Malay Muslim colleague,
Deepavali with an Indian Hindu colleague,
or another local festival that is relevant for you.
Give your colleague a simple name, for example Mei, Aisha, Ravi or Priya.
Step 2: Write a short conversation.
Write 8–10 lines of dialogue between you and your colleague. You can format it like this:
You: '…'
Priya: '…'
You: '…'
Your conversation should include:
A simple, appropriate greeting or well wish for the festival.
At least one polite question about celebrations, food or fasting, using a soft frame (for example, any food restrictions I should know about, if you do not mind me asking).
One mention of the long weekend, travel or family plans.
Optionally, a short line about scheduling around the holiday, like maybe we schedule the meeting after the holiday.
Step 3: Quick self-check.
Before you submit, read your script and check:
Clarity – Are your sentences easy to understand?
Politeness – Do you sound respectful, not demanding or kaypoh?
Local fit – Did you reuse at least three useful phrases from this lesson, such as any food restrictions I should know, enjoy the long weekend, blessed Hari Raya, happy Chinese New Year or I would love to learn more about this festival?
This is your chance to test-drive your new Singapore festival language in a safe environment, before you use it in real life.
Practice & Feedback
Follow the steps on the screen and write your full 8–10 line conversation in the box. Remember:
Start with a natural greeting for the festival you chose.
Include at least one soft, respectful question about celebrations, food, fasting or traditions. Use frames like 'Any food restrictions I should know about?' or 'If you do not mind me asking, how do you usually celebrate?'.
Mention the long weekend, travel or family plans, or a small scheduling decision like 'Maybe we schedule the meeting after the holiday'.
Try to recycle at least three phrases from this lesson, but do not copy whole dialogues. Make it your own.
Imagine you are really talking to your colleague in the pantry or after a short meeting. Aim for friendly, simple language rather than complex storytelling.
Mini checklist for your conversation:
I included a clear festival greeting (for example: 'Happy Chinese New Year', 'Blessed Hari Raya', 'Happy Deepavali').
I used at least one soft question frame (for example: 'Any food restrictions I should know about?', 'If you do not mind me asking…').
I mentioned the long weekend, travel or family plans in a friendly way.
I avoided sensitive topics like politics, arguing about public holidays, or criticising any religion.
I reused at least three useful phrases from this lesson in a natural way.
