Flickr Picks: My favourite China related finds from Flickr, the photo sharing website. Click on the image to visit the photo's home page on Flickr.

It’s been a while since I posted a photo I’ve found on Flickr, but when I came across this photo of intertwined padlocks on the Great Wall of China by nuck, it just cried out to be included here.

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Nuck’s comment on the photo is as follows:

Young couples interlock padlocks on gates dotting the Great Wall in the belief it will bring the strength of the wall to their relationships.

I never knew that! I can’t remember seeing any padlocks on the Great Wall of China, but I guess if I had seen some, I wouldn’t have thought of them as being significant.

It just goes to show that the Chinese are quite superstitious. In cases like this, I like it! It’s both romantic and endearing. There are times when the superstitions are less appealing however (like when I can’t do something because of a superstition!).

Anyway, I liked the concept when I saw the photo, but the clincher was that it was set on the Great Wall of China, a place I’ve visited and a place of such significance for China.

I’ve seen hundreds of photos of the Great Wall, but never one like this. It was unique. Most photos are just shots of the wall stretching into the distance. To see a photo which wasn’t just a photo of the wall, but was a photo of something else which just happened to be on the wall, was truly refreshing.

Likewise, the topic wasn’t something I’d normally associate with the Great Wall. When I think of it, I’m not thinking about customs and superstitions. I’m thinking about the ancient Great Wall of China, the spectacular achievement by the Chinese of long ago (and boy isn’t it something).

I’m wondering how long is the Great Wall of China, how did they build it, why did they build it, how old is it, etc or perhaps just marvelling at the magnificent engineering feat.

The Great Wall of China is really something that’s worthwhile visiting if you get the chance. Just remember to keep an eye out for the padlocks. If you see any, let me know!

Disclaimer: This photo was not taken by me. It was shared by a third-party on Flickr, under a Creative Commons license. For details on the license, see the photo's home page on the Flickr website.

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Flickr Picks: My favourite China related finds from Flickr, the photo sharing website. Click on the image to visit the photo's home page on Flickr.

cogdogblog posted a photo showing the inside of a lift, with the fourth floor missing from the controls:

As you can see in the photo, floor 4 is missing from the elevator controls. This is due to superstition – in Chinese, the word for 4 sounds like the word for death.

From what I’ve seen, the way the number 4 is treated in China is a little like the way the number 13 is treated in the West.

Most buildings I’ve been into do have the fourth floor. Most people I’ve met don’t pay too much attention to the fact that the number is supposed to be unlucky.

Of course there are always some people who treat it more seriously and in general Chinese people are more superstitious than those in the West.

Disclaimer: This photo was not taken by me. It was shared by a third-party on Flickr, under a Creative Commons license. For details on the license, see the photo's home page on the Flickr website.

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This is another post I wrote a little while ago and haven’t posted until now.

China’s Dragon Boat Festival (Duanwu) occurs on 5th May on the Lunar calendar. This year, that equates to 8th June.

As the name of the Festival indicates, it’s famous for Dragon Boat racing! People also eat zongzi (glutinous rice dumplings wrapped in bamboo leaves) and drink baijiu (Chinese wine) during this holiday.

Origins Of The Dragon Boat Festival

There are many stories about the origins of the Dragon Boat Festival. I’ve heard some first-hand and read others on the Internet, but all agree that the day commemorates Qu Yuan, a famous Chinese poet and minister several thousand years ago.

Qu Yuan committed suicide by drowning himself in the Miluo river in Hunan. The reasons given for this act vary, from story to story, but all agree that drowning was the method.

It’s said that the local people threw zongzi into the river to feed the fish, so they wouldn’t eat Qu Yuan’s body, and paddled their ‘dragon boats’ out to scare the fish away. The Dragon Boat Festival recreates this.

Dragon Boat Festival Now A Public Holiday

This is the first year, in recent times, where the Dragon Boat Festival has been awarded the status of national public holiday.

Because there hadn’t been a day off, the festival had been losing it’s importance in modern Chinese life. Most people had to work over the festival and didn’t have time to celebrate it properly.

The China People’s Daily carries an article discussing this (and the origins of the Dragon Boat Festival). It highlights this through the story of a young Beijing office worker:

She only learned about the festival from school textbooks and in her more than 20 years of life, she never celebrated such an occasion except by eating zongzi bought from the supermarket.

But this year, she made the zongzi together with her friends. “We have time this year due to the holiday,” she said.

It also discusses the decision to make the day a national holiday:

On Dec. 16, the State Council, China’s Cabinet, revised the nation’s official holiday schedule to add three traditional festivals — “Tomb-Sweeping Day,” “Dragon Boat Festival” and “Mid-Autumn Festival” — in response to public demand. It also changed the length of other holidays.

What this doesn’t say is that the real reason for the change in holiday dates is to avoid the chaos created by the Golden Week holidays. The May and October Golden Weeks no longer exist. Chunyun will still exist around Spring Festivals – there’s no way that can be removed.

When they were looking at how they could rearrange the Golden Week holidays, the obvious choice was to move the days to the traditional festivals.

For foreigners working in China, this does mean you get a smattering of days off, sometimes in mid-week, instead of a week off, but it’s an excellent chance to experience occasions such as the Dragon Boat Festival.

In any case, the week off was complicated by the fact that there were only 3 holiday days. Chinese workers were expected to work on Saturday and Sunday to make up the two days. In some cases, I’ve had to work the Saturday and Sunday, in other cases I didn’t have to work, but was docked two days pay. I’ve even been given the extra two days off as paid holidays!

All in all, I think this is a good move, which will promote these festivals, which were slowly fading in the face of modernisation.

Zongzi

Zongzi are pyramid shaped glutinous rice dumplings, wrapped in bamboo leaves. They contain different fillings: everything from pork to bean paste. I like zongzi, but not too often – I’m not a huge fan of glutinous rice. They’re very filling, perhaps too much so. Glutinous rice is very heavy food.

While reading about the Dragon Boat Festival, I came across an article from The China People’s Daily that has more information about Zongzi:

Southerners generally wrap them in bamboo leaves, while northerners use reeds. They are generally pyramid shaped, but sometimes molded into rectangles.

It goes on to talk more about the fillings:

Fillings also vary. People from North China typically stuff their dumplings with glutinous rice and Chinese jujube, while those from South China cram theirs with pork and mashed red beans.

It also mentions that certain areas specialise in certain types of zongzi:

Jiaxing in Zhejiang province, for example, makes the best zongzi with fresh pork stuffing, while Shanghai is famous for ham-stuffed zongzi.

I haven’t tried either of these, but I used to live in Zhaoqing (Guangdong) which is also famous for it’s zongzi:

A special food is only available here called “guo zheng zong” , a kind of Zongzi which is made of meat ,green bean,and glutinous rice. My advice is to devour one before you leave.

It’s my belief that they actually use lotus leaf in Zhaoqing, but I can’t be certain of that. They’re certainly common, cheap and delicious and available all year round, not just during the Dragon Boat Festival.

If you ever travel to China, make sure you try the zongzi.

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Image Source: Blackpool Fireworks 2006 (China)License

Spring Festival, or Chunjie as it is called here, has begun! Tonight is Chinese New Year’s Eve. I thought I’d write a little bit about what happens in China during the Spring Festival.

Chunyun

Chunyun started around a week ago. This is the time around Spring Festival, when people travel home to spend Spring Festival with their families. Hundreds of millions of people are on the move during this period.

This year has seen exceptionally bad weather wreak havoc with Chunyun travel: Around 6 million people were stranded at train stations around the country – 800,000 at Guangzhou alone.

My thoughts go out to those people who have been stranded during this time. I hope they make it home safely and in time for New Year’s Eve.

Spring Festival Customs

Bear in mind that different parts of China have different customs, but some of the common elements that are part of Spring Festival are:

Fire Crackers: People set fire crackers off to frighten away evil spirits. They set off fireworks as well, for fun, but a long string of fire crackers is used to keep the evil spirits away for the next year. If you live in China, expect to hear whooshes and bangs for a week or so, either side of New Year’s Eve.

Eating: A big family reunion dinner is normally held on New Years Eve. Fish is commonly eaten, as are dumplings (Jiaozi). This meal is normally held at the family home. As well as this meal, there will be many others on the days leading up to, and after, New Year’s Eve.

Visiting Friends and Relatives: People will visit their friends and relatives, taking gifts such as tea, alchohol, breakfast cereal, fruit, etc, done up in gift packages. The host will normally have tea, fruit and nuts ready for the visitors and basically they will sit around and chat for hours. Various people will pop in, seemingly at random, then it’s your turn to go visiting.

Lucky Money: People who are not yet married can expect to receive little red envelopes filled with lucky money. The amount of money can range from 10 yuan to 1000 yuan or more, depending on the closeness of the relationship and the affluence of the giver. Once you’re married, it’s your turn to do the giving, although your children will then receive lucky money from other people.

Cleansing: In the days leading up to New Year’s Eve, people will clean their houses thoroughly, so they can start the new year fresh and clean. People decorate their homes with posters and phrases which are thought to bring good luck. New clothes are bought for children. Basically, all of this is to ensure a fresh start to the new year, which is thought to be lucky.

New Year’s Eve TV: On New Year’s Eve, CCTV broadcasts a TV program which is watched by hundreds of millions of people. It is basically a variety act, with singing and dancing, comedy acts, etc. Expect acts representing all 56 of China’s ethnic nationalities. This will be on in most households.

What I’ll Be Doing This Spring Festival

We were supposed to spend this Spring Festival with family, but the terrible weather meant we couldn’t travel. So we’ll be having a quiet one in front of the TV, eating lots of food and watching fireworks out the window.

Final Thoughts

This is just Spring Festival, from my point of view. If you want to find out more about Spring Festival, there are hundreds of sites on the Internet. Wikipedia’s Chinese New Year page is probably a good place to start.

Wherever you are and whatever you’re doing, Happy Chinese New Year! Or as they say here, Xin nian kuai le (新年快乐)!

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