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| peach blossom forest |
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| blossom |
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| Jessica hanging her prayer on the tree |
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| blossom and prayer slips |
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| prayer slips |
February 28, 2012
Qingxiushan Peach Blossom
Each year, when the peach blossom trees bloom, the people of Nanning go up to Mount Qingxiu to hang prayers on the trees for good luck and fortune. I went there with some colleagues to get a taste of it. It's been unusually cold in Nanning this year so the trees haven't bloomed much yet but it did look pretty amazing anyway.
February 6, 2012
Spring Festival/Lunar New Year
The most important festival in China is Spring Festival/Chinese New Year. This is when all businesses close, people travel home to visit their family (it's the largest human migration in the world with an estimated 1bn people traveling) and people go crazy for fireworks!
As with most festivals, people love to eat. In the north they eat special dumplings shaped like the moon crescent, symbolizing new beginnings. Some Jiao Zi are stuffed with sugar to wish for a sweet life and others have coins hidden inside. If you find the coin it means you will enjoy good luck and make a lot of money in the coming year.
In the south I've been told they eat 'hot pot' (chinese fondue) or sweet, sticky rice cakes called Nian Gao. This means 'New Year Cake'. This can also mean higher each year, symbolizing progress and promotion in work and daily life: general improvement in life.
I had hoped for lots of festivities in town but other than some private fireworks and the odd dragon parade to welcome the year of the dragon, I saw nothing special. I'm sure the story would be different in the larger cities of China.
At my work, we got oranges. The Chinese word for oranges sounds like Ji which means good luck. By giving the oranges, people are wishing you good luck for the new year.
In preparation for the festival, people do a spring clean of their house (sweeping away the bad luck) and at our school we 'sealed the windows'. I'm not sure what this was for, I think this was to show if someone had tried to break in, having said that, we would have seen this by the broken windows. People give each other gifts, and this is money in a red envelope. Because everyone is looking for money at this time of year, you have to be more vigilant with your stuff as there is more pickpocketing going on. A number of our students had their phones stolen by people driving by on motorbikes. We heard that there were gangs in Nanning who'd come from Guangzhou as the police control was very strict there.
After the first week of celebrations, shops began to open again and people returned to the city. Then the sales started and people bought new clothes for the new year.
Finally, the Spring Festival finished with the 'Lantern Festival' on the last day of the lunar month. On this night, lanterns are lit and some are left to float in the sky. I had witnessed this last year, and it is a real indication of the fact that I've almost been here one year already!
As with most festivals, people love to eat. In the north they eat special dumplings shaped like the moon crescent, symbolizing new beginnings. Some Jiao Zi are stuffed with sugar to wish for a sweet life and others have coins hidden inside. If you find the coin it means you will enjoy good luck and make a lot of money in the coming year.
In the south I've been told they eat 'hot pot' (chinese fondue) or sweet, sticky rice cakes called Nian Gao. This means 'New Year Cake'. This can also mean higher each year, symbolizing progress and promotion in work and daily life: general improvement in life.
I had hoped for lots of festivities in town but other than some private fireworks and the odd dragon parade to welcome the year of the dragon, I saw nothing special. I'm sure the story would be different in the larger cities of China.
At my work, we got oranges. The Chinese word for oranges sounds like Ji which means good luck. By giving the oranges, people are wishing you good luck for the new year.
In preparation for the festival, people do a spring clean of their house (sweeping away the bad luck) and at our school we 'sealed the windows'. I'm not sure what this was for, I think this was to show if someone had tried to break in, having said that, we would have seen this by the broken windows. People give each other gifts, and this is money in a red envelope. Because everyone is looking for money at this time of year, you have to be more vigilant with your stuff as there is more pickpocketing going on. A number of our students had their phones stolen by people driving by on motorbikes. We heard that there were gangs in Nanning who'd come from Guangzhou as the police control was very strict there.
After the first week of celebrations, shops began to open again and people returned to the city. Then the sales started and people bought new clothes for the new year.
Finally, the Spring Festival finished with the 'Lantern Festival' on the last day of the lunar month. On this night, lanterns are lit and some are left to float in the sky. I had witnessed this last year, and it is a real indication of the fact that I've almost been here one year already!
xīn nián kuài lè
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