Saturday, January 29, 2011

Chinese New Year is approaching!

Beijing is very empty today...and I can only believe that it's going to get more so.

China operates primarily on the lunar calendar and this time around their year ends this coming Wednesday, February 2nd...followed by a week-long holiday! It's delightful. At first I didn't really like the fact that China would shift working days onto the weekends before and after holidays to put together an extended week. But now, I've come around. I like it. Many people have already taken off for an extended vacation, most heading back to their homes all across China or on fantastic vacations to Cambodia, Japan, or Europe. Brian and I are banking on the fact that there will be some decent last minute deals and we'll be able to take a mini-vacation. Thailand is out of the question for now, but I think Vietnam, South Korea, Japan, and Hong Kong are still in the running!

So this coming 2011 year is the Year of Rabbit, and I'm discovering this season to be quite festive! Piles of candy in the grocery store, red and gold lanterns glow everywhere, and mini oranges and red bunnies adorn many a hallway. Eating dumplings (jiao zi) are the holiday food tradition, and i'm definitely going to capitalize on that one! It's such a blessing to be here during this time and to be able to experience such a great season.

Happy New Year!!

beautiful red and gold lanterns


festive lights outside our apartment

looks a bit like a cat with ears to me...


1 comment:

  1. Happy Chinese New Year!! By the way, playing fireworks is the tradition as well. ---Junhao

    ReplyDelete