By Rupert Wingfield-Hayes BBC, Beijing

China is about to say goodbye to the year of the horse and hello to the year of the goat.

In the Chinese lunar calendar, Saturday February 1 marks the first day of the new year.

The year of the goat is in many ways seen as a good year, in that it should be peaceful.

But being born in the year of the goat is a different matter.

Many Chinese believe that children born in the coming twelve months will face a life of challenges.

It is a belief that is leading to some serious congestion in Beijing's hospitals, as pregnant women hope to beat the deadline.

Mrs Gao's glad she had a horse

I went along to the Beijing Maternity Hospital to find out, and met new mother Mrs Gao.

The fact that her new-born son, Zhou Yi, has been born a horse and not a goat was a huge relief to her.

"The hospital's full, it's really hard just to get a bed. Everyone wants to have their baby before the new year so their child will be born in the year of the horse not the goat," said Mrs Gao.

Chinese tradition

Doctor Qin, a senior gynaecologist at the Beijing Maternity Hospital, explained: "It is Chinese tradition, people have these sorts of beliefs that the year of the goat in not good and certainly many believe that".

Babies born in the year of the goat are said to lead a tempestuous life.

Which is all a bit worrying for me, because I am a goat.

Many people will come at new year to find out what's going to happen in the year of the goat Wang Lijun, fortune teller

And if, like me, you were born in the year of the goat, you are going to have to be especially careful in the coming 12 months, which is why I decided to have my fortune told.

Mr Wang Lijun is, I am assured, one of the best fortune tellers in the business.

Using ancient methods developed more than 2000 years ago, he can tell you anything from your health, to how many children you will have, to whether you will have a job in six months time.

Starting with my birth date he began the careful calculations that will reveal my future.

Fortune telling was once suppressed by the communist party as a feudal superstition.

But today the coins used to determine my future are being eagerly tossed by everyone, even the odd communist party official.

"Many people will come at new year to find out what's going to happen in the year of the goat, what direction they should take with work, their marriage, their children's education, things like that," Mr Wang said.

The good news for me is that despite being a goat, things are looking quite good this year.

To me, not being the superstitious kind, this might all be a bit of fun, but for Mr Wang's clients it is deadly serious.

This new year at temples all over China, people will be lighting incense and praying for good fortune.

Despite the communist party's best efforts, belief and superstition is alive and well in China.