Eat a piece of candy every day and tell yourself the day is sweet again.
Happy New Year! My Dear Friends, wish you own a sweet 2012 and a smile future...
* Original address of this China gift post: Happy New Year! Happy 2012!
2011-12-30
Happy New Year! Happy 2012!
Eat a piece of candy every day and tell yourself the day is sweet again.
Happy New Year! My Dear Friends, wish you own a sweet 2012 and a smile future...
* Original address of this China gift post: Happy New Year! Happy 2012!
2011-11-30
Happy The Thanksgiving Day! - 8 Ways to Stay Thankful in Hard Times
Being thankful is especially valuable in challenging times. Gratitude is actually medically proven to lift our spirits and improve our health. Discover how a little gratitude can create a lot of happiness in our lives.
1. Find What You're Grateful for
The real uncertainty we face about our economic future can make us quite fearful and sad. Locating those things for which we can still be grateful, brings joy even in the face of those challenges without pretending they are not real.
2. Articulate it
Tell a friend or loved one a story about something for which you are grateful. Don’t be surprised to find yourself smiling by the end of that story.
3.There's Always More to be Grateful for
Consider the difference between wealth and value. While material wealth is important, it is not the only source of real value in our lives. We can all celebrate value, even when the material wealth in our lives is taking a beating.
4. Wealth Begins within
An ancient rabbinic teaching reminds us that we are wealthy when we are happy with what we possess.
5.Happiness and Satisfaction are Different
We can want more than we currently have and still be happy with what we've got. Wanting more does not have to get in the way of enjoying what we already have. If it does, we will never have enough.
6. It's All Relative
A person who lives in a $100,000 house in a neighborhood of $75,000 homes experiences living in a mansion. The same house in a neighborhood of $500,000 homes may feel like a hovel.
7. Help yourself by Helping Others
The holidays are a great time to reach out to other people in need. And helping others address their needs is one of the best ways to relieve the anxiety we may feel about our own.
8. We all have Something to Give
No matter how difficult our circumstances may be, we can all offer support to those around us. Whether it’s a penny, a dollar, or much more, the act of giving always makes us feel as if we have more than we thought we had.
ps: Dear All here, Happy The Thanksgiving Day!
* Original address of this China gift post: 8 Ways to Stay Thankful in Hard Times
1. Find What You're Grateful for
The real uncertainty we face about our economic future can make us quite fearful and sad. Locating those things for which we can still be grateful, brings joy even in the face of those challenges without pretending they are not real.
2. Articulate it
Tell a friend or loved one a story about something for which you are grateful. Don’t be surprised to find yourself smiling by the end of that story.
3.There's Always More to be Grateful for
Consider the difference between wealth and value. While material wealth is important, it is not the only source of real value in our lives. We can all celebrate value, even when the material wealth in our lives is taking a beating.
4. Wealth Begins within
An ancient rabbinic teaching reminds us that we are wealthy when we are happy with what we possess.
5.Happiness and Satisfaction are Different
We can want more than we currently have and still be happy with what we've got. Wanting more does not have to get in the way of enjoying what we already have. If it does, we will never have enough.
6. It's All Relative
A person who lives in a $100,000 house in a neighborhood of $75,000 homes experiences living in a mansion. The same house in a neighborhood of $500,000 homes may feel like a hovel.
7. Help yourself by Helping Others
The holidays are a great time to reach out to other people in need. And helping others address their needs is one of the best ways to relieve the anxiety we may feel about our own.
8. We all have Something to Give
No matter how difficult our circumstances may be, we can all offer support to those around us. Whether it’s a penny, a dollar, or much more, the act of giving always makes us feel as if we have more than we thought we had.
ps: Dear All here, Happy The Thanksgiving Day!
* Original address of this China gift post: 8 Ways to Stay Thankful in Hard Times
2011-10-31
Happy Halloween!
The Candy King
There was a king who loved Halloween
He waited each year for this scary scene.
He sneaked out to hang on his door
Black bats and witches and spooks galore.
The midnight hour was his favorite time
With monsters covering snakes with slime.
As twelve o'clock chimed through the stars
He opened up his snickers bars.
The Cats and The Bats
The cats scare me and so do the bats
And both of them wear funny hats.
The bats hang upside down at night
They are a silly crazy sight.
The cats all like to hiss and fight.
They sit on the steps in the bright moonlight.
My favorite creature is a ghost
Because he's so spooky on a post.
Happy Halloween all my dear friends!:)
* Original address of this China gift post: Happy Halloween!
2011-10-24
A Healing Cuisine – The Eating Art in China
Chinese cuisine is widely known and enjoyed in all four corners of the
world. Who could not confess to longing for a favorite Chinese dish? But
there is one interesting concept concerning Chinese food which is
almost unheard of in the West, and which is becoming increasingly
ignored by the youth of the East—the ancient custom of "tonic food."
Tonic food is food which is consumed to improve one's well-being, or stave off sickness, particularly at times when one is more prone to illness. For instance, it was once the custom for new mothers to eat a sesame- oil hot pot every day for the first month after giving birth. It was believed that this dish would benefit the muscles, reduce pain, improve circulation, stimulate sweating, and warm the body.
In fact, these Chinese beliefs parallel some Western theories of health, although each takes a different path toward the very same goal. Western medicine actually recommends some of the exact same ingredients that make up the chicken hot pot dish. Sesame oil has been found to promote contraction of the womb while providing lots of calories, and chicken meat is particularly high in protein. Any Western doctor should be happy to suggest such a Chinese dish after childbirth.
The elderly, weak, and young can also benefit greatly from tonic foods, especially during the winter. Some foods, such as goat meat and spinach, are seen as "hot", while others, such as Chinese cabbage and radish, are seen as "cold".
One should be careful not to eat too much of either "hot" or "cold" food. However, how much "hot" or "cold" food one should eat depends on the time of the year, how the food is prepared and what it is prepared with, and the individual’s health.
"Warm" or "cool" tonic foods are strongly recommended. The choices for "warm" and "cool" foods range from simple sea cucumber to the delicacy of bird’s nest soup, depending on the individual’s economic circumstances.
The concept of tonic food is far from losing credibility, either with Westerners or practitioners of modern medicine. For example, up until two years ago, tonic foods were added to the meals served at a renowned hospital.
The custom of prescribing tonic foods for a healthier life also spills over into the catering industry. Although tonic foods themselves are losing popularity among the younger generation, Chinese herbal medicines, such as wolfberry fruit, can be found on many a restaurant menu, either added to fruit tea or as a beneficial addition to a dish. These herbs attract customers, such as over-worked office staff, in need of a modest pick-me-up.
So, whether you need to boost your masculinity with a large helping of bull penis, or increase your mental powers with a serving of pig's brain soup, you may find that this ancient Chinese custom could be just the tonic you were looking for.
* Original address of this China gift post: A Healing Cuisine – The Eating Art in China
Tonic food is food which is consumed to improve one's well-being, or stave off sickness, particularly at times when one is more prone to illness. For instance, it was once the custom for new mothers to eat a sesame- oil hot pot every day for the first month after giving birth. It was believed that this dish would benefit the muscles, reduce pain, improve circulation, stimulate sweating, and warm the body.
In fact, these Chinese beliefs parallel some Western theories of health, although each takes a different path toward the very same goal. Western medicine actually recommends some of the exact same ingredients that make up the chicken hot pot dish. Sesame oil has been found to promote contraction of the womb while providing lots of calories, and chicken meat is particularly high in protein. Any Western doctor should be happy to suggest such a Chinese dish after childbirth.
The elderly, weak, and young can also benefit greatly from tonic foods, especially during the winter. Some foods, such as goat meat and spinach, are seen as "hot", while others, such as Chinese cabbage and radish, are seen as "cold".
One should be careful not to eat too much of either "hot" or "cold" food. However, how much "hot" or "cold" food one should eat depends on the time of the year, how the food is prepared and what it is prepared with, and the individual’s health.
"Warm" or "cool" tonic foods are strongly recommended. The choices for "warm" and "cool" foods range from simple sea cucumber to the delicacy of bird’s nest soup, depending on the individual’s economic circumstances.
The concept of tonic food is far from losing credibility, either with Westerners or practitioners of modern medicine. For example, up until two years ago, tonic foods were added to the meals served at a renowned hospital.
The custom of prescribing tonic foods for a healthier life also spills over into the catering industry. Although tonic foods themselves are losing popularity among the younger generation, Chinese herbal medicines, such as wolfberry fruit, can be found on many a restaurant menu, either added to fruit tea or as a beneficial addition to a dish. These herbs attract customers, such as over-worked office staff, in need of a modest pick-me-up.
So, whether you need to boost your masculinity with a large helping of bull penis, or increase your mental powers with a serving of pig's brain soup, you may find that this ancient Chinese custom could be just the tonic you were looking for.
* Original address of this China gift post: A Healing Cuisine – The Eating Art in China
2011-09-08
Wish You Have a Happy Mid-Autumn Festival Travel in China
China's Mid-Autumn Festival is traditionally celebrated on the fifteenth day of the eighth lunisolar month (see Mid-Autumn Festival Dates), which is in September or October. The festival is the second most important festival after the Spring Festival to Chinese people. Every year, when the festival comes people go home from every corner of the country and the world to meet their family and have dinner with them.
China's Mid-Autumn Festival 2011
The festival is celebrated extensively across the country, and is one of the few reunion holidays for Chinese families. (see Chinese public holiday schedule 2011). On that day, Chinese family members stay together, admiring the full moon and eating mooncakes.
Recommended Places to Celebrate the Festival in China
The Mid-Autumn Festival is a family celebration and usually many outdoor activities are arranged especially for the event. On the evening of a Mid-Autumn Festival, families stay up late and get together eating moon cakes and gazing at the moon. If you want to take part, invite a few friends and check out places to celebrate the festival in the following cities: Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Guangzhou and Hangzhou, to celebrate the festival. China Highlights' Mid-Autumn Festival tours allow you to have an authentic Chinese festival as the Chinese people do.
Places to Celebrate the Festival in Beijing
1. Lugou Bridge
Temple fairs are held at Wanping Town east of Lugou Bridge each year to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival.
2. Beihai Park
Beihai Park was chosen by generations of Chinese emperors and high officials to watch the moon during the Mid-Autumn Festival
3. Dajue Temple
During the Mid-Autumn Festival visitors can enjoy themselves with good food and sweet tea in Dajue Temple under the full moon.
4. Yangtaishan
Yangtaishan is well-known for its full moon during Mid-Autumn Festival evening. Friends and family can walk along the trees-lined path and enjoy the fresh air.
Places to Celebrate the Festival in Shanghai
1. Oriental Pearl TV Tower
The tower is 468 m high, the highest in Asia and the third highest in the world. On almost any level above the base of the tower, one can get a fabulous view of the city as it stretches out toward the horizon.
2. The Bund
The Bund is probably the most popular place to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival, partly due to its relatively tranquil atmosphere, and partly due to the many restaurants and tea houses along it.
3. Sheshan
Locals like to enjoy a fun day time at Happy Valley, stay at the Le Royal Meridien Shanghai, and watch the moon at the lakeside at night. In addition, there is an observatory at the top of the mountain for astronomy lovers to have a closer and clearer look at the moon.
4. Zhujiajiao
The town is lit by lanterns hanging by old houses on Mid-Autumn Festival nights. Spend a quiet Mid-Autumn Festival by sipping tea at one of the small riverside tea houses with family or friends.
Places to Celebrate the Festival in Hong Kong
1. Victoria Peak
Victoria Peak is the highest peak on Hong Kong Island with an altitude of 554 meter. On festival night, viewed from the peak, the island becomes a fairyland with the spectacular lights of its immense towers setting a stage for the rising moon.
2. Avenue of Stars
Avenue of Stars is a good alternative, if you do not want to ascend Victoria Peak. It is a wonderful place to view the night scenery of Hong Kong Island.
3. Repulse Bay
It is considered as one of the most romantic places in Hong Kong by young people because of the young Chinese writer, Zhang Ailing (Eileen Chang).
4. Lantau Island
Lantau Island is a sparsely populated island of mainly theme parks, tourist sites, parks and natural areas. It has become a refreshing destination for local Hong Kongers who come here for a weekend's rest.
* Original address of this China gift post: China Gift and Fine Arts & Crafts in China
China's Mid-Autumn Festival 2011
The festival is celebrated extensively across the country, and is one of the few reunion holidays for Chinese families. (see Chinese public holiday schedule 2011). On that day, Chinese family members stay together, admiring the full moon and eating mooncakes.
Recommended Places to Celebrate the Festival in China
The Mid-Autumn Festival is a family celebration and usually many outdoor activities are arranged especially for the event. On the evening of a Mid-Autumn Festival, families stay up late and get together eating moon cakes and gazing at the moon. If you want to take part, invite a few friends and check out places to celebrate the festival in the following cities: Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Guangzhou and Hangzhou, to celebrate the festival. China Highlights' Mid-Autumn Festival tours allow you to have an authentic Chinese festival as the Chinese people do.
Places to Celebrate the Festival in Beijing
1. Lugou Bridge
Temple fairs are held at Wanping Town east of Lugou Bridge each year to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival.
2. Beihai Park
Beihai Park was chosen by generations of Chinese emperors and high officials to watch the moon during the Mid-Autumn Festival
3. Dajue Temple
During the Mid-Autumn Festival visitors can enjoy themselves with good food and sweet tea in Dajue Temple under the full moon.
4. Yangtaishan
Yangtaishan is well-known for its full moon during Mid-Autumn Festival evening. Friends and family can walk along the trees-lined path and enjoy the fresh air.
Places to Celebrate the Festival in Shanghai
1. Oriental Pearl TV Tower
The tower is 468 m high, the highest in Asia and the third highest in the world. On almost any level above the base of the tower, one can get a fabulous view of the city as it stretches out toward the horizon.
2. The Bund
The Bund is probably the most popular place to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival, partly due to its relatively tranquil atmosphere, and partly due to the many restaurants and tea houses along it.
3. Sheshan
Locals like to enjoy a fun day time at Happy Valley, stay at the Le Royal Meridien Shanghai, and watch the moon at the lakeside at night. In addition, there is an observatory at the top of the mountain for astronomy lovers to have a closer and clearer look at the moon.
4. Zhujiajiao
The town is lit by lanterns hanging by old houses on Mid-Autumn Festival nights. Spend a quiet Mid-Autumn Festival by sipping tea at one of the small riverside tea houses with family or friends.
Places to Celebrate the Festival in Hong Kong
1. Victoria Peak
Victoria Peak is the highest peak on Hong Kong Island with an altitude of 554 meter. On festival night, viewed from the peak, the island becomes a fairyland with the spectacular lights of its immense towers setting a stage for the rising moon.
2. Avenue of Stars
Avenue of Stars is a good alternative, if you do not want to ascend Victoria Peak. It is a wonderful place to view the night scenery of Hong Kong Island.
3. Repulse Bay
It is considered as one of the most romantic places in Hong Kong by young people because of the young Chinese writer, Zhang Ailing (Eileen Chang).
4. Lantau Island
Lantau Island is a sparsely populated island of mainly theme parks, tourist sites, parks and natural areas. It has become a refreshing destination for local Hong Kongers who come here for a weekend's rest.
* Original address of this China gift post: China Gift and Fine Arts & Crafts in China
2011-08-04
Chinese Valentine's Day - Double Seventh Festival is Coming!
In China, the Double Seventh Festival, or Ingenuity-begging Festival (the festival to plead for skills) falls on the seventh day of the seventh month of the lunar calendar. The festival originates from the legend of the loyal love between Niulang (cowherd) and Zhinv (weaving girl).
The Double-Seventh Day refers to the seventh day of the seventh month on the Chinese lunar calendar. The day is not as well-known as many other Chinese festivals. But almost everyone in China, young and old, is very familiar with the story behind this festival.
On the festival in China, girls beg for bright heart and knitting and needlecraft skills from the goddess in heaven. There are various folk customs of ingenuity tests in ancient China. And the maids in palace also paid great attention to the activities, which are usually supported by the emperor.
Celebrations are also held in the theme of the Double Seventh Festival everywhere in China, such as the customs of "seed plant for child", "catch dew" and "sworn sisterhood under the moon". In the romantic evening, girls prepare melons and seasonal foods under the moon before worship and prayers for skills and a good marriage.
In the Tang Dynasty about 1,000 years ago, rich families in the capital city of Chang'an would set up a decorated tower in the courtyard and name it :Tower of Praying for Ingenuity. They prayed for various types of ingenuity. Most girls would pray for outstanding sewing or cooking skills. In the past these were important virtues for a woman.
Girls and women would gather together in a square and look into the star-filled night sky. They would put their hands behind their backs, holding needle and thread. At the word,Start,they would try to thread the needle. The one who succeeded first would be granted her wish by Zhinu, the Girl Weaver.
The same night, the girls and women would also dislpay carved melons and samples of their cookies and other delicacies. During the daytime, they would skillfully carve melons into all sorts of things. Some would make a gold fish. others preferred flowers, still others would use several melons and carve them into an exquisite building. These melons were called Hua Gua or Carved Melons.
The ladies would also show off their fried cookies made in many different shapes.They would invite the Girl Weaver to judge who was the best. Of course, Zhinu would not come down to the world because she was busy talking to Niulang after a long year of separation. These activities gave the girls and women a good opportunity to show their skills and added fun to the fesstival.
Chinese people nowadays, especially city residents, no longer hold such activities, Most young women buy their clothes from shops and most young couples share the housework. More and more men are learning to cook, so it is perhaps not so important for the woman to develop her cuisine skills. In fact, many men can cook better than their wives.
The food customs in each place for the festival are not necessarily the same but are all called having propitious food. Dumplings, noodles, deep-fried twisted dough sticks and wontons are mostly included, among which the most famous is the Qiaoguo (Fried Thin Paste).
The Double-Seventh Day is not a pulic holiday in China. However, it is still a day to celebrate the annual meeting of the loving couple, the Cowherd and the Girl Weaver. Not surprisingly, many people consider the Double-seventh Day the Chinese Valentine's Day.
In the Chinese cities, the Western Valentine's Day is more favored than the Double Seventh Festival by young people. They spend the latter as the Valentine's Day. Although some traditional customs have been changed or been lost, the legend of Niu Lang and Zhi Nu is still passed down from generation to generation. Like the presents of Valentine's Day, flowers and chocolates are also the popular ones.
Whatever way the festival is spent, great love is expressed between the young.
* Original address of this China gift post: China Gift and Fine Arts & Crafts in China
2011-07-05
West Lake(Hangzhou), The 41th World Heritage Site in China
On June 24, 2011, The 35th World Heritage Committee held in Paris(France) include China's "Cultural Landscape of West Lake in Hangzhou” in the "World Heritage List" officially.
West Lake (Chinese: Xi Hu) is a famous fresh water lake located in the historic center of Hangzhou, the capital of Zhejiang province in eastern China. The lake is divided by the causeways of Sū Tí, Bái Tí, and Yánggōng Tí. There are numerous temples, pagodas, gardens, and artificial islands within the lake.
Now, today, after a 12-year wait, West Lake,Hangzhou, has finally made the list of World Heritage Sites. UNESCO recognized the West Lake as a classic landscape reflecting traditional Chinese esthetics.
The West Lake of Hangzhou in East China has been named as a World heritage site. The 35th UNESCO World Heritage Committee made the unanimous decision on Friday to approve the area, bringing to an end the long application process, that began in 1999. This is China's 41st World Heritage Site, and the 29th Cultural Heritage Site.
As part of the recognition process, Chinese officials have made 6 promises to preserve the authenticity, integrity and outstanding universal value of the West Lake.
Wang Guoping, Director, West Lake Heritage Committee, said, We will not change our objective of returning the lake to people; we will not increase ticket prices, or charge for gallery entries; we will not sell any land that belongs to the heritage site, nor will we damage any cultural relics, or use any as public resources. I believe people in Hangzhou are certain to keep these promises.
Francesco Bandarin, the director of the WHC, encouraged the on-going protection of the heritage site.
Francesco Bandarin said, The city of Hangzhou has already realized the importance of protecting the West Lake, it has also protected the environment well. This effort needs to be continued, and we will continue the protection work together with you.
The West Lake landscape was initially developed in the 9th century during the Tang Dynasty. Now, after 12 centuries, it has finally become a treasure for the whole world. For a nation that recognizes 12 as a cycle of heaven and earth, maybe it's appropriate after all that the nation waited 12 years for the West Lake to get the recognition it deserves.
* Original address of this China gift post: China Gift and Fine Arts & Crafts in China
West Lake (Chinese: Xi Hu) is a famous fresh water lake located in the historic center of Hangzhou, the capital of Zhejiang province in eastern China. The lake is divided by the causeways of Sū Tí, Bái Tí, and Yánggōng Tí. There are numerous temples, pagodas, gardens, and artificial islands within the lake.
Now, today, after a 12-year wait, West Lake,Hangzhou, has finally made the list of World Heritage Sites. UNESCO recognized the West Lake as a classic landscape reflecting traditional Chinese esthetics.
The West Lake of Hangzhou in East China has been named as a World heritage site. The 35th UNESCO World Heritage Committee made the unanimous decision on Friday to approve the area, bringing to an end the long application process, that began in 1999. This is China's 41st World Heritage Site, and the 29th Cultural Heritage Site.
As part of the recognition process, Chinese officials have made 6 promises to preserve the authenticity, integrity and outstanding universal value of the West Lake.
Wang Guoping, Director, West Lake Heritage Committee, said, We will not change our objective of returning the lake to people; we will not increase ticket prices, or charge for gallery entries; we will not sell any land that belongs to the heritage site, nor will we damage any cultural relics, or use any as public resources. I believe people in Hangzhou are certain to keep these promises.
Francesco Bandarin, the director of the WHC, encouraged the on-going protection of the heritage site.
Francesco Bandarin said, The city of Hangzhou has already realized the importance of protecting the West Lake, it has also protected the environment well. This effort needs to be continued, and we will continue the protection work together with you.
The West Lake landscape was initially developed in the 9th century during the Tang Dynasty. Now, after 12 centuries, it has finally become a treasure for the whole world. For a nation that recognizes 12 as a cycle of heaven and earth, maybe it's appropriate after all that the nation waited 12 years for the West Lake to get the recognition it deserves.
* Original address of this China gift post: China Gift and Fine Arts & Crafts in China
2011-06-30
Tradtitonal Chinese Art Treasure - Xuan Paper
Xuan paper is a kind of paper originating in ancient China used for writing and painting. Xuan paper is renowned for being soft and fine textured, suitable for conveying the artistic expression of both Chinese calligraphy and painting.
Xuan paper is produced in Jing County of East China's. Anhui Province. The county was under the jurisdiction of Xuanzhou Prefecture in the Tang Dynasty (618-907). Jing County paper was first shipped to Xuanzhou. and then transshipped to other ports. hence the name of Xuan paper.
Due to different producing methods, Xuan paper can be classified into Shengxuan, Shuxuan, and Banshuxuan. Shengxuan (literally "Raw Xuan"), which is not specially processed, excels in its ability to absorb water, causing the ink on it to blur. Shuxuan (literally "Ripe Xuan"), however, is smeared on by Potassium alum during its production, which results in its texture being harder and its ability to absorb water weaker. This feature makes Shuxuan more suitable for Xieyi rather than Gongbi, and more easily torn at the same time. Banshuxuan (literally "Half-ripe Xuan") has intermediate absorbability, between Shengxuan and Shuxuan.
The paper is soft and fine in texture. suitable for both Chinese calligraphy and painting. Xuan paper has the reputation of being able to last for a thousand years as it can be kept for a long time.
There are numerous kinds of Xuan paper. such as dan. jia. luowen. coral. tiger-skin. and jade-plate. The quality depends on whether the paper is unprocessed. processed. or half-processed.
Unprocessed paper absorbs water easily. Ink filters through this paper easily, too. People must put their brush on this paper to make sure the thickness or thinness of their liquid ink is suitable.
=
Processed paper goes through a process whereby gelatin made from bones and alum (a kind of sulfate) is added. This kind of paper does not absorb water easily and is stiff or hard to the touch.
Half-processed paper has a neutral character. in that it absorbs water. but it does not filter through easily.
* Original address of this China gift post: China Gift and Fine Arts & Crafts in China
2011-06-02
Happy The Chinese Dragon Boat Festival!
Guide: One of the most important tratidional Chinese festivals - Dragon Boat Festival now is coming soon, now let's know something interesting and unique customs about this Chinese festival and the same time make a warm celebration with all Chinese people in home and overseas.
Origins
The Chinese Dragon Boat Festival is a significant holiday celebrated in China, and the one with the longest history. The Dragon Boat Festival is celebrated by boat races in the shape of dragons. Competing teams row their boats forward to a drumbeat racing to reach the finish end first.
The boat races during the Dragon Boat Festival are traditional customs to attempts to rescue the patriotic poet Chu Yuan. Chu Yuan drowned on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month in 277 B.C. Chinese citizens now throw bamboo leaves filled with cooked rice into the water. Therefore the fish could eat the rice rather than the hero poet. This later on turned into the custom of eating tzungtzu and rice dumplings.
The celebration's is a time for protection from evil and disease for the rest of the year. It is done so by different practices such as hanging healthy herbs on the front door, drinking nutritious concoctions, and displaying portraits of evil's nemesis, Chung Kuei. If one manages to stand an egg on it's end at exactly 12:00 noon, the following year will be a lucky one.
The Modern Dragon Boat Festival in China
Starting from that time to this day, people commemorate Qu Yuan through Dragon Boat Races, eating zong zi, and several other activities, on the anniversary of his death: the fifth day of the fifth lunar month.
Dragon boat races date back more than 2,000 years as a Chinese ceremony to celebrate the summer rice planting and to venerate the dragon water deity. In Chinese folklore, there’s another story: In 278 BC, during the Warring States period, popular statesman and poet Qu Yuan tied himself to a rock and walked into the Miluo River, in today’s Hunan province, to drown himself when he learned of an impending invasion. When the local villagers found out, they rushed to their fishing boats to save him while beating a drum to scare the fish away from his body. Every year since (or so the story goes) there’s been a Dragon Boat Festival to mark Qu Yuan’s death.
Custom Fine Food：Zong Zi
The traditional food for the Dragon Boat Festival, Zong zi is a glutinous rice ball, with a filling, wrapped in corn leaves. The fillings can be egg, beans, dates, fruits, sweet potato, walnuts, mushrooms, meat, or a combination of them. They are generally steamed.
Talisman and Charms
Another aspect of the Double Fifth Day is the timing: at the beginning of summer, when diseases are likely to strike, people also wear talisman to fend off evil spirits. They may hang the picture of Zhong Kui, guardian against evil spirits, on the door of their homes, as well. Adults may drink Xiong Huang Wine, and children carry fragrant silk pouches, all of which can prevent evil. It is said that if you can balance a raw egg on its end at exactly noon on Double Fifth Day, the rest of the year will be lucky.
* Original address of this China gift post: China Gift and Fine Arts & Crafts in China
2011-05-30
May 31 2011: The World No Tobacco Day
31 May:World No Tobacco Day
The World Health Organization (WHO) selects "The WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control" as the theme of the next World No Tobacco Day, which will take place on Tuesday, 31 May 2011.
The WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) is the world's foremost tobacco control instrument. The first treaty negotiated under the auspices of WHO, it represents a signal achievement in the advancement of public health.
At the same time, WHO recognizes that challenges remain for the public health treaty to reach its full potential as the world's most powerful tobacco control tool.
In force only since 2005, it is already one of the most rapidly and widely embraced treaties in the history of the United Nations, with more than 170 Parties. An evidence-based treaty, it reaffirms the right of all people to the highest standard of health and provides new legal dimensions for cooperation in tobacco control.
Implementing the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control
Since it was adopted by the World Health Assembly in 2003, 172 countries and the European Union have become Parties to the WHO FCTC. Among other measures, the Parties are obliged over time to:
- protect people from exposure to tobacco smoke
- ban tobacco advertising and sales to minors
- put large health warnings on packages of tobacco
- ban or limit additives to tobacco products
- increase tobacco taxes
- create a national coordinating mechanism for tobacco control.
This year, the tobacco epidemic will kill nearly 6 million people, including some 600 000 nonsmokers who will die from exposure to tobacco smoke. By 2030, it could kill 8 million.
"The treaty's ultimate success against the tobacco industry depends on the extent to which the Parties meet all of their obligations," says the WHO Director-General, Dr Margaret Chan. "More needs to be done for the treaty to achieve its full potential. It is not enough to become a Party to the treaty. Countries must also pass, or strengthen, the necessary implementing legislation and then rigorously enforce it."
Tobacco use is one of the biggest contributors to the epidemic of noncommunicable diseases - such as heart attack, stroke, cancer and emphysema - which accounts for 63% of all deaths, nearly 80% of which occur in low- and middle-income countries. Up to half of all tobacco users will eventually die of a tobacco-related disease.
World No Tobacco Day 2011 Event: Supporting the FCTC
Time: 18.00 - 20.00, 31 May 2011
Avenue: Members’ Salon, European Parliament, Brussels
Host: Glenis Willmott MEP
Event Brief:
This event will provide an opportunity to celebrate World No Tobacco Day 2011 in a relaxed atmosphere over drinks and food and to acknowledge all EU officials and Parliamentarians that have supported the aims of the WHO FCTC.
The FCTC is the world's foremost tobacco control instrument. The first treaty ever negotiated under the auspices of WHO, it represents a significant achievement in the advancement of public health. In force only since 2005, it is already one of the most rapidly and widely embraced treaties in the history of the United Nations, with more than 170 Parties. An evidence-based treaty, it reaffirms the right of all people to the highest standard of health and provides a new legal dimension for cooperation in tobacco control.
* Original address of this China gift post: China Gift and Fine Arts & Crafts
The Art and Life of Chinese Great Artist Master Wu Guanzhong
Wu Guanzhong Painting Work Appreciation - Hometown of Lu Xun
Art is for EveryoneA pure artist who devoted his entire life to artistic exploration, Wu's works have been hotly pursued on the domestic and international art markets, however, he never considered art as a way to make money, or as a legacy that he would leave his children.
Wu Guanzhong donated almost all of his work to museums, even the ones he loved the most. Although many pieces have fetched high prices and commanded tens of millions of yuan each (more than $1.5 million), he still lived a very simple life, never trying to make a fortune.
Through his true belief that his work should be seen and enjoyed by most people, Wu always insisted that it should never fall into the hands of collectors, but instead be hanging in museums.
His philosophy is part of the reason why such a large-scale retrospective could be organized without much effort as almost all of the items are owned by domestic and overseas museums and could be borrowed, according to Li Wen from the education department of Zhejiang Art Museum.
Aside from the 72 pieces that Wu donated to Zhejiang Art Museum and a series of sketches in Yunnan that he painted in 1978, the rest of the exhibition was borrowed from seven museums, with all works previously donated by Wu himself.
Always Innovative
Just as he insisted that his work should be seen and enjoyed by many, Wu also considered that his work should be judged by everyday people, while at the same time he pursued difficult techniques that belonged to Western art.
In one of his essays he once compared art conceptions of the modern West and ancient China to "a couple who are both deaf," who cannot communicate with each other but are still deeply in love.
"They have many similarities, many times," he wrote, spending his whole life trying to perfectly integrate the two different art approaches.
He used oil painting techniques to reflect Chinese landscapes, many of which are about the beautiful jiangnan (the area south of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River), capturing the essence of the area with visual effects that were magically similar to traditional ink paintings created by ancient Chinese art masters.
"He was one among the few great artists ever in China that was devoted to making the two different styles integrated," commented Xu Jiang, director of China Academy of Art. "He made his own achievements in this way and thus made great a contribution to the Chinese art world."
* Brief of Artist Wu Guanzhong:
Mr. Wu Guanzhong, alias Tu, who was born in 1919, and come from Yixing city, Jiangsu province, China.
In 1942, Wu Guanzhong graduated from the Hangzhou National College of Art, during this period, Wu very fond of Van Gogh, Gauguin, and prefer to use strong colors such as red and purple in his oil painting works, and he entitled a pen name for himself as “Wu Tucha”, later changed as “Tu”.
In 1947, Wu went to France to study abroad on state scholarship, and studied in the Paris National Higher School of Fine Arts.
In 1950, Wu returned home and acted as a teacher at the Central Academy of Fine Arts.
In 1953, he was appointed as an associate professor of architecture at Tsinghua University.
In 1956, he acted as teacher at the Beijing Academy of Fine Arts.
In 1964, he taught at the Central Academy of Arts and Crafts.
In 1970, Wu was been sent to villages in Hebei province for labor practice in the famous Chinese “Cultural Revolution” term.
In 1973, he was been transferred back to Beijing and to attend the hotel drawing creation.
In 1978, The Central Institute of Arts and Crafts held an individual exhibition of Wu Guanzhong Works.
In 1979, Wu was elected as an executive director of the Chinese Artists Association
In 1987, the Hong Kong Arts Center hosted “Wu Guanzhong Art Retrospection Exhibition”
In 1991, the French Ministry of Culture awarded Wu Guanzhong “The Highest Order of French Literature and Art”
In 1992, The British Museum broke its routine practice that only antique relics can be shown, and held it first art exhibition for living artist Wu Guanzhong, which named as “Wu Guanzhong – Chinese Artist in The Twentieth Century”, and collected a huge size color painted oil painting work titled “Birds Paradise” finished by Wu Guanzhong lately seriously.
In 1993, France Paris Sayniuche Museum held an art show titled “Walk to The World – Wu Guanzhong Sketch of Ink Painting Show”, and presented him a “Gold Medal of Paris”.
In 1994, Wu Guanzhong was selected one Standing Committee Members of the Chinese People & Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).
In 1999, the National Cultural Ministry held “Wu Guanzhong Paintings Exhibition”
In 2000, Wu Guanzhong was elected as a communication academician at The Art Academy at the French Institute, and he is the first Chinese artist who obtained this laurel, and he is also the first Asian who obtained this occupation in nearly two hundred years since the set up of the French Institute.
* Original address of this China gift post: China Gift and Fine Arts & Crafts2011-04-28
China Clay Figurine Museum will Open to Public in the Coming May
As reported recently, China Clay Figurine Museum lied in the "Clay Village" – Wuxi in China will complete construction soon and well be officially opened in May of this year.
The recorded history of clay figurine in China can be traced back from four thousand years ago, clay figurine is one of the most ancient and common folk arts in China, in domestic Tianjin, Beijing, Shaanxi, more than a dozen provinces and municipalities, all has its own representative heritage genre of clay color figurines.
Among them, Wuxi Huishan clay figurines, Tianjin clay figurine Zhang, Beijing Han’s color clay figurines and so on, all have a history more than one hundred years, and since the Ming Dynasty, Wuxi have been reputed as "Huishan Street, five miles long, return with riding flowers and fragrant soles” to praise the fragrance of the soil of Wuxi.
As the main genre of clay figurine art in China, Wuxi Huishan clay figurines was been listed in the first batch of the National Intangible Cultural Heritage of China.
Wuxi Huishan Clay Figurines
It is understood, The China Clay Figurine Museum that located in Huishan ancient town Beitang District, Wuxi city Museum composed by four exhibition halls, a temporary exhibition hall, a clay figurine workshop and a multi-media theater, the exhibition area has an area of 8,000 square meters.
The Museum equipped with 10 masters studios, among them, there are 8 studios for clay figurine masters, and the other two for masters of tin embroidery and bamboo carving.
Wuxi Huishan Clay Figurines
The more than one thousand pieces of clay figurine works for show collected by the museum, a part of them were obtained from China clay figurine exhibitions, and the other batch were reproductions of fine clay figurines in all ages and reproduced by national & provincial grade industrial arts masters invited by the museum.
The staff worked in the museum introduced that, this time the China Clay Figurine Museum built in Wuxi and China Academy of Clay Figurines, will change the traditional way of heritage transferred in workshops, they will reunion all clay art resource in domestic China, thus to create a cultural and creative industry park with modern aesthetic spice and entertainment elements, and the related clay art industry chains will also be developed since that.
* Original address of this China gift post: China Gift and Fine Arts & Crafts
Wuxi Huishan Clay Figurines
Currently, the museum has recruited one thousands pieces of clay figurine treasures throughout the country for exhibition, so tourists in domestic and came from overseas can enjoy the artistic charm of Chinese colored clay in the entertainment experience.The recorded history of clay figurine in China can be traced back from four thousand years ago, clay figurine is one of the most ancient and common folk arts in China, in domestic Tianjin, Beijing, Shaanxi, more than a dozen provinces and municipalities, all has its own representative heritage genre of clay color figurines.
Wuxi Huishan Clay Figurines
Among them, Wuxi Huishan clay figurines, Tianjin clay figurine Zhang, Beijing Han’s color clay figurines and so on, all have a history more than one hundred years, and since the Ming Dynasty, Wuxi have been reputed as "Huishan Street, five miles long, return with riding flowers and fragrant soles” to praise the fragrance of the soil of Wuxi.
As the main genre of clay figurine art in China, Wuxi Huishan clay figurines was been listed in the first batch of the National Intangible Cultural Heritage of China.
Wuxi Huishan Clay FigurinesIt is understood, The China Clay Figurine Museum that located in Huishan ancient town Beitang District, Wuxi city Museum composed by four exhibition halls, a temporary exhibition hall, a clay figurine workshop and a multi-media theater, the exhibition area has an area of 8,000 square meters.
The Museum equipped with 10 masters studios, among them, there are 8 studios for clay figurine masters, and the other two for masters of tin embroidery and bamboo carving.
Wuxi Huishan Clay FigurinesThe more than one thousand pieces of clay figurine works for show collected by the museum, a part of them were obtained from China clay figurine exhibitions, and the other batch were reproductions of fine clay figurines in all ages and reproduced by national & provincial grade industrial arts masters invited by the museum.
The staff worked in the museum introduced that, this time the China Clay Figurine Museum built in Wuxi and China Academy of Clay Figurines, will change the traditional way of heritage transferred in workshops, they will reunion all clay art resource in domestic China, thus to create a cultural and creative industry park with modern aesthetic spice and entertainment elements, and the related clay art industry chains will also be developed since that.
Wuxi Huishan Clay Figurines
* Original address of this China gift post: China Gift and Fine Arts & Crafts
2011-04-01
Celebration of Tomb Sweeping Day (Qingming Festival) in China is Coming
Celebrated two weeks after the vernal equinox, the Tomb Sweeping Day is one of the few traditional Chinese holidays that follows the solar calendar-- typically falling on April 4, 5, or 6.
Its Chinese name "Qing Ming" literally means "Clear Brightness," hinting at its importance as a celebration of Spring. Similar to the spring festivals of other cultures, Tomb Sweeping Day celebrates the rebirth of nature, while marking the beginning of the planting season and other outdoor activities.
Qingming Festival in Ancient Times of China
In ancient times, people celebrated Qingming Festival with dancing, singing, picnics, and kite flying. Colored boiled eggs would be broken to symbolize the opening of life. In the capital, the Emperor would plant trees on the palace grounds to celebrate the renewing nature of spring. In the villages, young men and women would court each other.
With the passing of time, this celebration of life became a day to the honor past ancestors. Following folk religion, the Chinese believed that the spirits of deceased ancestors looked after the family. Sacrifices of food and spirit money could keep them happy, and the family would prosper through good harvests and more children.
Today, Chinese visit their family graves to tend to any underbrush that has grown. Weeds are pulled, and dirt swept away, and the family will set out offerings of food and spirit money. Unlike the sacrifices at a family's home altar, the offerings at the tomb usually consist of dry, bland food. One theory is that since any number of ghosts rome around a grave area, the less appealing food will be consumed by the ancestors, and not be plundered by strangers.
Qingming Fesitival Custom: Honoring Ancestors
Honoring ancestors begins with proper positioning of a gravesite and coffin. Experts in feng shui, or geomancy, determine the quality of land by the surrounding aspects of streams, rivers, trees, hills, and so forth. An area that faces south, with groves of pine trees creates the best flow of cosmic energy required to keep ancestors happy. Unfortunately, nowadays, with China's burgeoning population, public cemetaries have quickly surplanted private gravesites. Family elders will visit the gravesite at least once a year to tend to the tombs.
While bland food is placed by the tombs on Qingming Festival, the Chinese regularly provide scrumptious offerings to their ancestors at altar tables in their homes. The food usually consists of chicken, eggs, or other dishes a deceased ancestor was fond of. Accompanied by rice, the dishes and eating utensils are carefully arranged so as to bring good luck. Sometimes, a family will put burning incense with the offering so as to expedite the transfer of nutritious elements to the ancestors. In some parts of China, the food is then eaten by the entire family.
Its Chinese name "Qing Ming" literally means "Clear Brightness," hinting at its importance as a celebration of Spring. Similar to the spring festivals of other cultures, Tomb Sweeping Day celebrates the rebirth of nature, while marking the beginning of the planting season and other outdoor activities.
Qingming Festival in Ancient Times of China
In ancient times, people celebrated Qingming Festival with dancing, singing, picnics, and kite flying. Colored boiled eggs would be broken to symbolize the opening of life. In the capital, the Emperor would plant trees on the palace grounds to celebrate the renewing nature of spring. In the villages, young men and women would court each other.
With the passing of time, this celebration of life became a day to the honor past ancestors. Following folk religion, the Chinese believed that the spirits of deceased ancestors looked after the family. Sacrifices of food and spirit money could keep them happy, and the family would prosper through good harvests and more children.
Today, Chinese visit their family graves to tend to any underbrush that has grown. Weeds are pulled, and dirt swept away, and the family will set out offerings of food and spirit money. Unlike the sacrifices at a family's home altar, the offerings at the tomb usually consist of dry, bland food. One theory is that since any number of ghosts rome around a grave area, the less appealing food will be consumed by the ancestors, and not be plundered by strangers.
Qingming Fesitival Custom: Honoring Ancestors
Honoring ancestors begins with proper positioning of a gravesite and coffin. Experts in feng shui, or geomancy, determine the quality of land by the surrounding aspects of streams, rivers, trees, hills, and so forth. An area that faces south, with groves of pine trees creates the best flow of cosmic energy required to keep ancestors happy. Unfortunately, nowadays, with China's burgeoning population, public cemetaries have quickly surplanted private gravesites. Family elders will visit the gravesite at least once a year to tend to the tombs.
While bland food is placed by the tombs on Qingming Festival, the Chinese regularly provide scrumptious offerings to their ancestors at altar tables in their homes. The food usually consists of chicken, eggs, or other dishes a deceased ancestor was fond of. Accompanied by rice, the dishes and eating utensils are carefully arranged so as to bring good luck. Sometimes, a family will put burning incense with the offering so as to expedite the transfer of nutritious elements to the ancestors. In some parts of China, the food is then eaten by the entire family.
Qingming Fesitival Custom: Flying Kites
Besides the traditions of honoring the dead, people also often fly kites on the Tomb Sweeping Day (Qingming Festival). Kites can come in all kinds of shapes, sizes, and colors. Designs could include frogs, dragonflies, butterflies, crabs, bats, and storks.
* Original address of this China gift post: China Gift and Fine Arts & Crafts
2011-03-16
Special Report on The Crisis in Japan: A Fresh Explosion Rocked Reactor 2 at the Fukushima Daiichi Plant
A fresh explosion rocked reactor 2 at the Fukushima Daiichi plant in Japan - 250km (155 miles) north-east of Tokyo - in the early hours of Tuesday.
Prime Minister Naoto Kan has urged those living within 30km (18 miles) of the plant to stay indoors.
The crisis was sparked by a 9.0-magnitude quake and tsunami on Friday.Thousands of people are believed to have died.
"Now we are talking about levels that can impact human health," said the Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano.
In his televised address , Prime Minister Kan said: "There is still a very high risk of more radiation coming out."He added that the last remaining people within a 20km (12 mile) exclusion zone around the plant had to leave, and that those living between 20km and 30km from the site should remain indoors.
Radiation levels around Fukushima for one hour's exposure rose to eight times the legal limit for exposure in one year, said the plant's operator, the Tokyo Electric Power Co (Tepco).
A fire which briefly broke out at the plant's reactor 4 on Tuesday is also believed to have led to radioactive leaks.
Higher radiation levels were recorded on Tuesday south of Fukushima, Kyodo news agency reported.
Levels in Tokyo were higher than normal, but officials said there were no health dangers.
Shares on the Tokyo stock exchange plummeted 14% before recovering slightly. The leading Nikkei index ended the day 10.55% lower. It had already fallen by 7% on the previous day.
On Monday, a hydrogen blast at the Fukushima plant's reactor 3 was felt 40km (25 miles) away. It followed a blast at reactor 1 on Saturday.
All explosions have been preceded by cooling system breakdowns. Engineers are trying to prevent meltdowns by flooding the chambers of the nuclear reactors with sea water.
Japan's nuclear safety agency said it suspects Tuesday's blast may have damaged the vessel that holds reactor 2.
The BBC's Chris Hogg in Tokyo says that would make it a more serious incident than the previous explosions, which were thought just to have damaged the buildings that housed the reactors.
Meanwhile, five days after the tsunami triggered by the earthquake, the relief operation is continuing.
The latest official death toll stands at about 2,400 - but some estimates suggest 10,000 may have been killed.
Thousands are still unaccounted for - including hundreds of tourists - while many remote towns and villages have not been reached.
More than 500,000 people have been made homeless.
The government has deployed 100,000 troops to lead the aid effort.
The UK Foreign Office has updated its travel advice to warn against all non-essential travel to Tokyo and north-eastern Japan. British nationals and friends and relatives of those in Japan can contact the Foreign Office.
* Original address of this China gift post: China Gift and Fine Arts & Crafts
2011-03-10
The Best Song You Must Listen in the Women's Day
Song：I'm a Woman
Singer: Delta Goodrem
I worked late but you don't wait up
My bones ache and I'm cleaning the place up
Sometimes I don't even know i care
I sit down take off my make-up
I lay down but you don't wake up
Sometimes i wonder if you know i'm there
I can't remember the last time you
Told me i'm beautiful, and I can't remember
Last time you said anything at all
I'm a woman
A woman with a heart
And i deserve your all
I'm not some girl who don't know what she wants
I'm a woman
And I need to be touched
And I need to be loved
'cause being just your woman is not enough
Now i hope that you don't wake up
When it's too late to make up
You'll be the one that's alone and that's sad
In time you'll find somebody
The truth is she'll never be me
And that's when you're going to miss what we had
When all i really needed to hear was "you're beautiful"
All i really needed to hear was anything at all
I'm a woman
A woman with a heart
And I deserve your all
I'm not some girl who don't know what she wants
I'm a woman
And I need to be touched
And I need to be loved
'cause being just your woman is not enough
I'm not your friend who only needs you sometimes
And if i'm your lady
You got to treat me like...
I'm a woman
A woman with a heart
And i deserve your all
I'm not some girl who don't know what she wants
I'm a woman
And I need to be touched
And I need to be loved
'cause being just your woman is not enough
A woman needs your heart
A woman needs your all
A woman needs your everything
I'm a woman
And i need to be touched
And i need to be loved
And i deserve your everything
I'm a woman
I'm a woman
I'm a woman
* Original address of this China gift post: China Gift and Fine Arts & Crafts
2011-02-16
Happy the Chinese Lantern Festival!
Falling on the 15th day of the first month of the Lunar Year, the Lantern Festival takes place under a full moon, and marks the end of Chinese New Year - Spring Festival festivities. So this day for Chinese people has special significance, guess riddles, eating rice glue balls and viewing lantern lights to become the main theme of the festival in China.
Legend of the Lantern Festival's Origin
The Lantern Festival dates back to shrouded legends of the Han Dynasty over 2000 years ago.
In one such legend, the Jade Emperor in Heaven was so angered at a town for killing his favorite goose, that he decided to destroy it with a storm of fire. However, a good-hearted fairy heard of this act of vengeance, and warned the people of the town to light lanterns throughout the town on the appointed day. The townsfolk did as they were told, and from the Heavens, it looked as if the village was ablaze. Satisfied that his goose had already been avenged, the Jade Emperor decided not to destroy the town. From that day on, people celebrated the anniversary of their deliverance by carried lanterns of different shapes and colors through the streets on the first full moon of the year, providing a spectacular backdrop for lion dances, dragon dances, and fireworks.
The Modern Lantern Festival in China
While the Lantern Festival has changed very little over the last two millennia, technological advances have made the celebration moreand more complex and visually stimulating. Indeed, the festival as celebrated in some places (such as Taipei, Taiwan) can put even the most garish American Christmas decorations to shame. They often sport unique displays of light that leave the viewer in awe.
Master craftsman will construct multicolored paper lanterns in the likeness of butterflies, dragons, birds, dragonflies, and many other animals; these accentuate the more common, red, spherical lanterns. Brilliantly-lit floats and mechanically driven light displays draw the attention of the young and old alike. Sometimes, entire streets are blocked off, with lanterns mounted above and to the sides, creating a hallway of lamps. Some cities in North China even make lanterns from blocks of ice! And just as in days gone by, the billion-watt background sets the scene for dragon and lion dances, parades, and other festivities.
One local Chinese woman said “Here in China, no matter how far away from our homes we are, during the Spring Festival we make it a point to travel to be reunited with our family members again. The Lantern Festival is one of the most significant holidays in our culture here in China. The lantern is something unique and most representative of our Chinese culture."
The Lantern Festival has remained a Chinese tradition, kindled over the centuries by China's affection for elegant beauty and detail.
Lantern Festival Custom I: "Guess Lantern Riddles"
"Guess lantern riddles" is also know as "playing riddles", it is an activity increased after the Lantern Festival and initially appeared in the Lin’an, the capital of Southern Song Dynasty. At the beginning, there were independent investigators who wrote riddles on scrips and pasted them on resplendent lanterns with bright colors to attract viewers to guess, as riddles are very interesting and the same time it can edify people’s wisdoms, so this custom was welcomed by people in all sectors of the society and spreading wider and wider.
"During the Lantern Festival, there'll be really huge lanterns and also a really big tree that's hung and decorated with a lot of lantern riddles. One wins a prize when he can answer the riddle correctly."
Lantern Festival Custom II: Eating "Yuan Xiao"
In folk, eating “Yuan Xiao” (a kind of rice glue ball) is a custom with long history, “Yuan Xiao” is made of glutinous rice, with or without stuffing, filling with red bean paste, sugar, hawthorn, all kinds of fruits and nuts, when eating after cooked, fried, steamed as well as fried. At first, people called this kind of food "floating dumplings", later called "Tang Tuan" or "Tang Yuan", because the pronunciation of these names are very close to “Tuan Yuan”, which means "reunion" in Chinese, so they also symbolizes the whole family’s unity, happiness and harmony, people also take it to memorize their family members who has died, and the same time express their fine wishes for a better life in the future.
"The Yuanxiao Festival involves the whole process of eating these sweet rice dumplings. From the making of these balls, to cooking them, to enjoying them together as a family, we can really enjoy the warmth of our families and soak in the atmosphere of this joyous occasion."A Chinese woman said.
Lantern Festival Custom III: "Walking Sickness"
In China, some place on the Lantern Festival there is a custom of "walking sickness", also known as the "roasting sickness ", "dispersing sickness ", most of the participants are women, they go hand in hand or go against walls, or pass over bridgse, go outside, with purposes to drive illness and disperse disasters.
Over time, activities of the Lantern Festival in China become more and more varied, in my places there added many traditional festival performances such as playing dragon lanterns, playing the lion, walking on stilt, rowing boats, do the yangko dance, playing drums and so on. The traditional festival in China has a long history more than two thousands years, it is not only popular on both sides of the Taiwan straits, people ever in overseas Chinese gathering area also celebrated this traditional festival very ceremoniously each year..
At last, the author here wish all my friends in home or abroad "Happy the Lantern Festival and a better life and future!"
Legend of the Lantern Festival's Origin
The Lantern Festival dates back to shrouded legends of the Han Dynasty over 2000 years ago.
In one such legend, the Jade Emperor in Heaven was so angered at a town for killing his favorite goose, that he decided to destroy it with a storm of fire. However, a good-hearted fairy heard of this act of vengeance, and warned the people of the town to light lanterns throughout the town on the appointed day. The townsfolk did as they were told, and from the Heavens, it looked as if the village was ablaze. Satisfied that his goose had already been avenged, the Jade Emperor decided not to destroy the town. From that day on, people celebrated the anniversary of their deliverance by carried lanterns of different shapes and colors through the streets on the first full moon of the year, providing a spectacular backdrop for lion dances, dragon dances, and fireworks.
The Modern Lantern Festival in China
While the Lantern Festival has changed very little over the last two millennia, technological advances have made the celebration moreand more complex and visually stimulating. Indeed, the festival as celebrated in some places (such as Taipei, Taiwan) can put even the most garish American Christmas decorations to shame. They often sport unique displays of light that leave the viewer in awe.
Master craftsman will construct multicolored paper lanterns in the likeness of butterflies, dragons, birds, dragonflies, and many other animals; these accentuate the more common, red, spherical lanterns. Brilliantly-lit floats and mechanically driven light displays draw the attention of the young and old alike. Sometimes, entire streets are blocked off, with lanterns mounted above and to the sides, creating a hallway of lamps. Some cities in North China even make lanterns from blocks of ice! And just as in days gone by, the billion-watt background sets the scene for dragon and lion dances, parades, and other festivities.
One local Chinese woman said “Here in China, no matter how far away from our homes we are, during the Spring Festival we make it a point to travel to be reunited with our family members again. The Lantern Festival is one of the most significant holidays in our culture here in China. The lantern is something unique and most representative of our Chinese culture."
The Lantern Festival has remained a Chinese tradition, kindled over the centuries by China's affection for elegant beauty and detail.
Lantern Festival Custom I: "Guess Lantern Riddles"
"Guess lantern riddles" is also know as "playing riddles", it is an activity increased after the Lantern Festival and initially appeared in the Lin’an, the capital of Southern Song Dynasty. At the beginning, there were independent investigators who wrote riddles on scrips and pasted them on resplendent lanterns with bright colors to attract viewers to guess, as riddles are very interesting and the same time it can edify people’s wisdoms, so this custom was welcomed by people in all sectors of the society and spreading wider and wider.
"During the Lantern Festival, there'll be really huge lanterns and also a really big tree that's hung and decorated with a lot of lantern riddles. One wins a prize when he can answer the riddle correctly."
Lantern Festival Custom II: Eating "Yuan Xiao"
In folk, eating “Yuan Xiao” (a kind of rice glue ball) is a custom with long history, “Yuan Xiao” is made of glutinous rice, with or without stuffing, filling with red bean paste, sugar, hawthorn, all kinds of fruits and nuts, when eating after cooked, fried, steamed as well as fried. At first, people called this kind of food "floating dumplings", later called "Tang Tuan" or "Tang Yuan", because the pronunciation of these names are very close to “Tuan Yuan”, which means "reunion" in Chinese, so they also symbolizes the whole family’s unity, happiness and harmony, people also take it to memorize their family members who has died, and the same time express their fine wishes for a better life in the future.
"The Yuanxiao Festival involves the whole process of eating these sweet rice dumplings. From the making of these balls, to cooking them, to enjoying them together as a family, we can really enjoy the warmth of our families and soak in the atmosphere of this joyous occasion."A Chinese woman said.
Lantern Festival Custom III: "Walking Sickness"
In China, some place on the Lantern Festival there is a custom of "walking sickness", also known as the "roasting sickness ", "dispersing sickness ", most of the participants are women, they go hand in hand or go against walls, or pass over bridgse, go outside, with purposes to drive illness and disperse disasters.
Over time, activities of the Lantern Festival in China become more and more varied, in my places there added many traditional festival performances such as playing dragon lanterns, playing the lion, walking on stilt, rowing boats, do the yangko dance, playing drums and so on. The traditional festival in China has a long history more than two thousands years, it is not only popular on both sides of the Taiwan straits, people ever in overseas Chinese gathering area also celebrated this traditional festival very ceremoniously each year..
At last, the author here wish all my friends in home or abroad "Happy the Lantern Festival and a better life and future!"
* Original address of this China gift post: China Gift and Fine Arts & Crafts
2011-02-14
Happy Valentine's Day! My Sweetheart
This is to thank you for being by side
For comforting and caring when I was all confused inside.
This is for the phone calls you make every day
Just to tell me “I love you” every minute of the day.
The way you take my hand in yours
For all the world to see
That this is the woman
Who is most special to me.
You always seem to know
When I need a hug, kiss or smile…
You never cease to amaze me
When you say, “I'm here…let's talk for a while.”
In decades past we've had our share
Of ups and downs and problems galore
But you are the one who remained at my side
Never thinking of walking out the door.
I adore the way you tell me,
“You are my forever best friend,”
I love the way I believe in you…
And that you will be there till the end.
Thank you for all the time you give me
And for saying, “It's never enough…”
Thank you for listening as I ramble on…
When things become rather tough.
We are in the best years of our lives
Thirty four years on our journey together
I want to grow old with you…and you with me
I want to love YOU---FOREVER.
To all my friends here,
Dear, wish you all happy today and happy every day, and wish you All shall be well, Jack shall have Jill.
* Original address of this China gift post: China Gift and Fine Arts & Crafts2011-01-30
Happy 2011 Spring Festival and Happy The Year of Rabbit!
The Spring Festival which also know as ”New Year Festival” in China, it is the most important and most ceremonious traditional festival of the Chinese nation.
Since the first year of in the beginning of Han Wu emperor, the day of January 1 of Lunar calendar each year was been enacted as the "beginning of the year", the date of ”New Year Festival” thus fixed since that and continues to this day. The “New Year Festival” was called as "New Year's Day” in ancient times. 1911, when the Xinhai Revolution taken place, the government began to use the Gregorian calendar to count the year, then January 1 of the Gregorian calendar as reputed as "New Year's Day”, and the first day of the first lunar month was taken as the "Spring Festival. "
Chinese New Year is the longest and most important festivity in the Chinese Lunar Calendar. The origin of Chinese New Year is itself centuries old and gains significance because of several myths and traditions. Ancient Chinese New Year is a reflection on how the people behaved and what they believed in the most.
The Spring Festival is the most important festival for the Chinese people and is when all family members get together, just like Christmas in the West. All people living away from home go back, becoming the busiest time for transportation systems of about half a month from the Spring Festival. Airports, railway stations and long-distance bus stations are crowded with home returnees.
The Spring Festival falls on the 1st day of the 1st lunar month, often one month later than the Gregorian calendar. It originated in the Shang Dynasty (c. 1600 BC-c. 1100 BC) from the people's sacrifice to gods and ancestors at the end of an old year and the beginning of a new one.
Strictly speaking, the Spring Festival starts every year in the early days of the 12th lunar month and will last till the mid 1st lunar month of the next year. Of them, the most important days are Spring Festival Eve and the first three days. The Chinese government now stipulates people have seven days off for the Chinese Lunar New Year.
Many customs accompany the Spring Festival. Some are still followed today, but others have weakened.
On the 8th day of the 12th lunar month, many families make laba porridge, a delicious kind of porridge made with glutinous rice, millet, seeds of Job's tears, jujube berries, lotus seeds, beans, longan and gingko.
The 23rd day of the 12th lunar month is called Preliminary Eve. At this time, people offer sacrifice to the kitchen god. Now however, most families make delicious food to enjoy themselves.
After the Preliminary Eve, people begin preparing for the coming New Year. This is called "Seeing the New Year in".
Store owners are busy then as everybody goes out to purchase necessities for the New Year. Materials not only include edible oil, rice, flour, chicken, duck, fish and meat, but also fruit, candies and kinds of nuts. What's more, various decorations, new clothes and shoes for the children as well as gifts for the elderly, friends and relatives, are all on the list of purchasing.
Before the New Year comes, the people completely clean the indoors and outdoors of their homes as well as their clothes, bedclothes and all their utensils.
Then people begin decorating their clean rooms featuring an atmosphere of rejoicing and festivity. All the door panels will be pasted with Spring Festival couplets, highlighting Chinese calligraphy with black characters on red paper. The content varies from house owners' wishes for a bright future to good luck for the New Year. Also, pictures of the god of doors and wealth will be posted on front doors to ward off evil spirits and welcome peace and abundance.
The Chinese character "fu" (meaning blessing or happiness) is a must. The character put on paper can be pasted normally or upside down, for in Chinese the "reversed fu" is homophonic with "fu comes", both being pronounced as "fudaole." What's more, two big red lanterns can be raised on both sides of the front door. Red paper-cuttings can be seen on window glass and brightly colored New Year paintings with auspicious meanings may be put on the wall.
People attach great importance to Spring Festival Eve. At that time, all family members eat dinner together. The meal is more luxurious than usual. Dishes such as chicken, fish and bean curd cannot be excluded, for in Chinese, their pronunciations, respectively "ji", "yu" and "doufu," mean auspiciousness, abundance and richness. After the dinner, the whole family will sit together, chatting and watching TV. In recent years, the Spring Festival party broadcast on China Central Television Station (CCTV) is essential entertainment for the Chinese both at home and abroad. According to custom, each family will stay up to see the New Year in.
Waking up on New Year, everybody dresses up. First they extend greetings to their parents. Then each child will get money as a New Year gift, wrapped up in red paper. People in northern China will eat jiaozi, or dumplings, for breakfast, as they think "jiaozi" in sound means "bidding farewell to the old and ushering in the new". Also, the shape of the dumpling is like gold ingot from ancient China. So people eat them and wish for money and treasure.
Southern Chinese eat niangao (New Year cake made of glutinous rice flour) on this occasion, because as a homophone, niangao means "higher and higher, one year after another." The first five days after the Spring Festival are a good time for relatives, friends, and classmates as well as colleagues to exchange greetings, gifts and chat leisurely.
Burning fireworks was once the most typical custom on the Spring Festival. People thought the spluttering sound could help drive away evil spirits. However, such an activity was completely or partially forbidden in big cities once the government took security, noise and pollution factors into consideration. As a replacement, some buy tapes with firecracker sounds to listen to, some break little balloons to get the sound too, while others buy firecracker handicrafts to hang in the living room.
The lively atmosphere not only fills every household, but permeates to streets and lanes. A series of activities such as lion dancing, dragon lantern dancing, lantern festivals and temple fairs will be held for days. The Spring Festival then comes to an end when the Lantern Festival is finished.
Chinese New Year or the Chinese Lunar New Year is the most important of the traditional Chinese holidays. Despite its winter occurrence, in China it is known as "Spring Festival," the literal translation of the Chinese name (Pinyin: Chūn Jié), owing to the difference between Western and traditional Chinese methods for computing the seasons.
Now, as the "Spring Festival" in China and the new Lunar Year of Rabbit is coming at the corner of street, we are also on the tiptoe of expecting a long term holiday to stay and enjoy this traditional festival with our family members, it is so happy and exciting! now let me send my best wishes to all Chinese people no matter you are in domestic or go abroad, wish you and your whole family Happy New Year and Happy Spring Fesival!
Since the first year of in the beginning of Han Wu emperor, the day of January 1 of Lunar calendar each year was been enacted as the "beginning of the year", the date of ”New Year Festival” thus fixed since that and continues to this day. The “New Year Festival” was called as "New Year's Day” in ancient times. 1911, when the Xinhai Revolution taken place, the government began to use the Gregorian calendar to count the year, then January 1 of the Gregorian calendar as reputed as "New Year's Day”, and the first day of the first lunar month was taken as the "Spring Festival. "
Chinese New Year is the longest and most important festivity in the Chinese Lunar Calendar. The origin of Chinese New Year is itself centuries old and gains significance because of several myths and traditions. Ancient Chinese New Year is a reflection on how the people behaved and what they believed in the most.
The Spring Festival is the most important festival for the Chinese people and is when all family members get together, just like Christmas in the West. All people living away from home go back, becoming the busiest time for transportation systems of about half a month from the Spring Festival. Airports, railway stations and long-distance bus stations are crowded with home returnees.
The Spring Festival falls on the 1st day of the 1st lunar month, often one month later than the Gregorian calendar. It originated in the Shang Dynasty (c. 1600 BC-c. 1100 BC) from the people's sacrifice to gods and ancestors at the end of an old year and the beginning of a new one.
Strictly speaking, the Spring Festival starts every year in the early days of the 12th lunar month and will last till the mid 1st lunar month of the next year. Of them, the most important days are Spring Festival Eve and the first three days. The Chinese government now stipulates people have seven days off for the Chinese Lunar New Year.
Many customs accompany the Spring Festival. Some are still followed today, but others have weakened.
On the 8th day of the 12th lunar month, many families make laba porridge, a delicious kind of porridge made with glutinous rice, millet, seeds of Job's tears, jujube berries, lotus seeds, beans, longan and gingko.
The 23rd day of the 12th lunar month is called Preliminary Eve. At this time, people offer sacrifice to the kitchen god. Now however, most families make delicious food to enjoy themselves.
After the Preliminary Eve, people begin preparing for the coming New Year. This is called "Seeing the New Year in".
Store owners are busy then as everybody goes out to purchase necessities for the New Year. Materials not only include edible oil, rice, flour, chicken, duck, fish and meat, but also fruit, candies and kinds of nuts. What's more, various decorations, new clothes and shoes for the children as well as gifts for the elderly, friends and relatives, are all on the list of purchasing.
Before the New Year comes, the people completely clean the indoors and outdoors of their homes as well as their clothes, bedclothes and all their utensils.
Then people begin decorating their clean rooms featuring an atmosphere of rejoicing and festivity. All the door panels will be pasted with Spring Festival couplets, highlighting Chinese calligraphy with black characters on red paper. The content varies from house owners' wishes for a bright future to good luck for the New Year. Also, pictures of the god of doors and wealth will be posted on front doors to ward off evil spirits and welcome peace and abundance.
The Chinese character "fu" (meaning blessing or happiness) is a must. The character put on paper can be pasted normally or upside down, for in Chinese the "reversed fu" is homophonic with "fu comes", both being pronounced as "fudaole." What's more, two big red lanterns can be raised on both sides of the front door. Red paper-cuttings can be seen on window glass and brightly colored New Year paintings with auspicious meanings may be put on the wall.
People attach great importance to Spring Festival Eve. At that time, all family members eat dinner together. The meal is more luxurious than usual. Dishes such as chicken, fish and bean curd cannot be excluded, for in Chinese, their pronunciations, respectively "ji", "yu" and "doufu," mean auspiciousness, abundance and richness. After the dinner, the whole family will sit together, chatting and watching TV. In recent years, the Spring Festival party broadcast on China Central Television Station (CCTV) is essential entertainment for the Chinese both at home and abroad. According to custom, each family will stay up to see the New Year in.
Waking up on New Year, everybody dresses up. First they extend greetings to their parents. Then each child will get money as a New Year gift, wrapped up in red paper. People in northern China will eat jiaozi, or dumplings, for breakfast, as they think "jiaozi" in sound means "bidding farewell to the old and ushering in the new". Also, the shape of the dumpling is like gold ingot from ancient China. So people eat them and wish for money and treasure.
Southern Chinese eat niangao (New Year cake made of glutinous rice flour) on this occasion, because as a homophone, niangao means "higher and higher, one year after another." The first five days after the Spring Festival are a good time for relatives, friends, and classmates as well as colleagues to exchange greetings, gifts and chat leisurely.
Burning fireworks was once the most typical custom on the Spring Festival. People thought the spluttering sound could help drive away evil spirits. However, such an activity was completely or partially forbidden in big cities once the government took security, noise and pollution factors into consideration. As a replacement, some buy tapes with firecracker sounds to listen to, some break little balloons to get the sound too, while others buy firecracker handicrafts to hang in the living room.
The lively atmosphere not only fills every household, but permeates to streets and lanes. A series of activities such as lion dancing, dragon lantern dancing, lantern festivals and temple fairs will be held for days. The Spring Festival then comes to an end when the Lantern Festival is finished.
Chinese New Year or the Chinese Lunar New Year is the most important of the traditional Chinese holidays. Despite its winter occurrence, in China it is known as "Spring Festival," the literal translation of the Chinese name (Pinyin: Chūn Jié), owing to the difference between Western and traditional Chinese methods for computing the seasons.
Now, as the "Spring Festival" in China and the new Lunar Year of Rabbit is coming at the corner of street, we are also on the tiptoe of expecting a long term holiday to stay and enjoy this traditional festival with our family members, it is so happy and exciting! now let me send my best wishes to all Chinese people no matter you are in domestic or go abroad, wish you and your whole family Happy New Year and Happy Spring Fesival!
* Original address of this China gift post: China Gift and Fine Arts & Crafts
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)