Cambodians Celebrate New Year : Culture: Prayers, food and dances are traditional, but Western schedules force early observance of Tuesday’s holiday.

The colorful silk gowns, traditional folk dances and the aroma of familiar foods reminded Thira Srey of the country he fled more than 18 years ago.

“I feel something touch me right here,” said the 50-year-old Cambodian native, pointing to his heart. “It brings back good memories of my home.”

Srey, who now lives in Fullerton, was one of about 400 people who attended a celebration Saturday commemorating the Cambodian New Year, which officially begins Tuesday.

Like the Chinese and Vietnamese, who marked their new years in February, Cambodians, Laotians and Thais are ushering in the Year of the Rooster.

The festivities, sponsored by the Cambodian Family Inc. and the Orange County Cambodian Buddhist Organization, were held three days before the new year to accommodate local celebrants’ work schedules, organizers said.

In Cambodia, the celebration marks the end of harvest season and is a time to honor the memories of deceased friends and relatives.

“In our country, the celebration is usually three days and can go on for a month,” said Chhen Poeung, 48, who moved to Santa Ana from Cambodia more than 15 years ago. “But this still is very nice. It feels like home.”

He said the festivities in this country are especially important in teaching young Cambodian-Americans about cultural traditions.

“It shows them a part of our culture,” he said.

The celebration Saturday began with hundreds of the faithful kneeling in prayer with Buddhist monks. They prayed, asking for prosperity and kindness.

The orange-robed monks chanted in front of bowls of food, meant as offerings to the deceased relatives. The aroma of sweet and sour pork, curry chicken, rice and other Cambodian dishes filled the air.

After the prayers, the monks began to eat, signaling the start of the feast.

“We share the food to bring happiness and wealth,” said Darin Sin, 49, of Long Beach. “The more you share the more happiness it will bring.”

Sin, dressed in a traditional silk Sampot gown and lace blouse called auv paks with a karma scarf over her shoulder, said the New Year celebration is a joyous time that unites the Cambodian community.

“It’s a happy time for people who are homesick,” she said. “It’s a time to heal the stress, especially now in this time when we are feeling stress about a possible riot” in Los Angeles.

Later in the afternoon, when most of the food was gone, children performed traditional folk dances about the rice harvest and the courtship of a man and woman, as well as more modern hip-hop dances.