Xmas & New Year

Some people have asked me if Xmas and New Year is celebrated in China as well. Before I came here I did not really know.
For sure, these festivities are traditionally not celebrated in China, but with the embracing of the globalisation by the Chinese I expected that it would have at least been partly adopted.

Right now, Xmas and New Year lie behind us, and I can say a bit more about it now.

Well before Xmas, you could see quite a lot of decoration in the city. Some people even bought a Xmas tree. The decorations were in Chinese style of course, meaning lots of different colours, flickering lights, and electronic Xmas songs integrated in all pieces of decoration. As I wrote before, the Shangrila hotel was especially nicely decorated. All in all, enough to think that Xmas is celebrated in China on large scale as well.

This, however, is not yet the case. Xmas is not an official holiday in China, and practically everybody is going to work. Asking my colleagues who did something special during Xmas, most of them answered ‘nothing special’. Yet, there are quite a few Christians in Fuzhou who do celebrate. So, Xmas really seems to be a mostly religious event here, other than in Europe, where Xmas has more and more developed into a traditional family get-together.

Also the New Year on 31 December is not celebrated by many people. The Chinese traditionally celebrate the new year according to the moon calendar. The beginning of the lunar new year is the time for the Spring Festival, during which most Chinese return to their home towns to celebrate with their families. This is the most important yearly celebration in China, in which practically everyone takes place. Because so many people work in other places than their home towns, travelling during this period of time is usually a horror. This year, it is expected that over 150 million people will be travelling by train.

Therefore, on the 31 December relatively few people celebrate extensively. Even in Shanghai, there was nothing like the New Year’s eve as we know it from Europe. We did feel like doing something, but had a hard time finding a good location and some friends to accompany us. There were some parties, but only in several bars and clubs. Of course, the uptown foreigner hangout in Shanghai, Xin Tian Di, did throw a party. But for an entrance fee of 600 RMB (60 Euro), no drinks included, and no special organised entertainment, this was hardly an attractive option. In the end, we did find two friends of Shiqi willing to join us, and one of them had arranged tickets in a club (150 RMB entrance fee, including two Bacardi Breezers). We had a very nice evening. The atmosphere was super, the entertainment very nice, and the company excellent. A shame we couldn’t stay a bit longer … at five minutes past twelve we had to go home again quickly, as Mylène woke up and had started to cry.

Apparently she also wanted some attention on this New Year’s eve in Shanhai. How right she was.