We visited an outlet mall yesterday (primarily to buy new sports shoes for JD) and stumbled across some rather good Chinese New Year celebrations with dancing dragons, stilted monks giving out blessings and acrobatic lions leaping from one high pole to another.
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This weekend is likely to be our last Spring Festival in China. JD enjoyed letting off his fireworks yesterday evening and, with no home-schooling for a few days, we can have some late mornings and play some games [eg Risk]. With the Spousal Visa application finally in, we are focusing more now on packing, saying goodbyes and the practicalities of leaving the country. Three months and counting. Happy Chinese New Year! JD had a blast (literally) yesterday night setting off his huge collection of fireworks.
So a new year starts in China. We celebrated with a big meal (cooked by Jiajia - Ma is "dying with cancer" again i.e. she has a sore throat), a visit from Druncle, and JD's fireworks. This time last year we were returning from our holiday in Vietnam and hearing news of a possible new pandemic in China. How things move on....!
Yesterday was the big annual celebration here of Chinese New Year, otherwise known as Spring Festival. We had the obligatory family meal, (including Druncle) and JD enjoyed some fireworks and sparklers.
Today is the start of the Chinese Year of the Dog. JD very much enjoyed New Year's Eve yesterday with "hongbao" (lucky red envelopes with money inside) from various relatives, a meal with the family (plus Drunkle) and a range of fireworks outside.
Christmas is a time for western children to receive thoughtful gifts. At Chinese New Year (aka Spring Festival) kids here just get a pile of cash! Admittedly it is modestly tucked away in pretty red envelopes but, make no mistake, it's the thickness of the insides that counts! Our friends have been very generous to JD this year [he's pictured here with our friend, the nurse who helped us get VIP treatment for JD's birth], and we've even opened up a little bank account for his stash. He's earned it, mind you, with endless smiles and patiently allowing every other person to pick him up and give him a cuddle. No surprise though, even hongbao (red envelopes) don't always escape the curse of Chinglish! Tomorrow is Chinese New Year. It's the time in China when families traditionally spend all the money they have saved up, in order to give their child a fantastic gift which will be cherished forever. We bought JD a balloon. He wasn't totally impressed, as you can see. Next year he'll probably be agitating for a computer games console or something. But for now, it's looking like a cheap holiday! |
AuthorPaul Hider lives and works in Kunming (SW China) and regularly updates this blog about his life there. Past blog entries
February 2024
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