The week leading up to Chinese New Year was very much like the week leading up to Christmas - crowded stores, crowded streets, people more on edge with each other, decorations, crowded trains and planes, etc. But in China there are a billion more people than at home so it's about 10 times worse then what we're used to. I thought about traveling somewhere but the thought of traveling at Christmas back home reminded me how much worse it would probably be here. So it was a very relaxing week watching movies, reading books, catching up with a few friends, and occasionally studying some Chinese.
Chinese New Year is like our Thanksgiving and Christmas. It is spent with family, all the shops close, eat lots food, and shoot off nonstop firecrackers.
The holiday lasts for 15 days. There are different traditions on each day mostly to attract good luck and good fortune for the upcoming year. I'm writing this on day 5 - a day to eat jaozi (dumplings) and shoot off MORE fireworks - which explains all the noise this morning! It sounds like New Years all over again.
The color red is everywhere. According to Wikipedia this started because they believed a legend about a mythical beast called the Nian. He would come the first day of the New Year to eat food, people, and especially children. They figured out red would scare him off so they started putting up red decorations and wearing red. The firecrackers would also frighten him.
This past year was the year of the Rabbit and now it will be the year of the Dragon - supposedly the luckiest year of all the zodiacs.
I'm excited for a lucky Chinese year!
No comments:
Post a Comment