Lantern Festival Three-Fer

1: Lanterns within the center court of Yu Gardens (note the Dairy Queen)
2: The massive lines for tickets at only one entrance gate of several
3: Glowing zodiac animals on the water

This could have easily been a 20-fer post; I took so many photos that night. Yu Gardens was so grandly lit you could see it from blocks away, and they had set up entrance gates and charged 50 RMB for tickets to get in (usually it's free).

The place was ridiculously packed with people- imagine Times Square on New Year's Even, then multiply that by about 13. I probably could have just moshed on all their heads to get around, instead of trying to fight my way through the crowds.

Zodiac Animal Lanterns

Nothing says cute like zodiac animals made of wire and lights. Look at that fat green snake. Look at Mr. Rooster. Adorable.

Cheng Huang Miao, Shanghai, Feb 2008

Flashback: New Year Decorations at 城隍庙

Flashback time!

Over the next few days, my posts will be from Shanghai during Chinese New Year 2008, the first and only time I've actually experienced the holiday in China.  

(While the New Year began on Feb 14, the holiday technically lasts 15 days, so I'm still right on time! Technically.)

This photo comes from the famous tourist trap landmark, the Old Temple outside Yuyuan Gardens. 2008 was the Year of the Rat, so those decorations in the water are blowup zodiac animals, surrounded by many friendly-looking, red-wearing, celebratory rats.

Alleyway, Cheng Huang Miao

A wintry day in Cheng Huang Miao, right around the time of Chinese New Year (Feb 2008). CHM is supposed to be this 'old temple' area; in reality, the actual temple takes up about the same amount of space as an American park pavilion, and the rest of the place is a twisty windy tourist trap.

Paper Cuts

Vendor at the Muslim street market in Xi'an, February 08. I believe the woman cut at least some, if not all, of these herself. Paper cutting is an incredible art, especially at such a large scale, because it requires a good deal of foresight and nimble dexterity.

Anachronism

Western Sichuan province over Chinese New Year, visiting relatives (not mine) who lived high in a remote mountain. Their humble abode had very simple living conditions- dirt floors, no electronics, a stove that required someone to continuously feed and stoke the fire when in use- so I was surprised to see this satellite dish nestled in the bricks.

This would have been no big deal, I mean mountain residents deserve HBO too, but what confused me was that I saw neither a television nor any outlets or signs of electricity.

Photo of the Day: Soup for sale, Xi'an

February 08; on Xi'an's Muslim Street- My relatives and I had stopped in Xi'an on our way home to Shanghai after spending Chinese New Year in Sichuan.

For about 50 US cents you'd get in a bowl the sweet date broth, as well as lemons, dates, kiwis, sweet fungus, etc. and a freshly cut up pear (though it tasted like a pear/apple hybrid). Sugary and warm, and perfect for a winter stroll.

(As an added bonus, but more because I find it hard to describe, here's what the final result looked like:)

Photo of the Day: Temple in the Mountains

(The woman walking is my aunt)

In Guangyuan, Sichuan Province, with my extended relatives, who were visiting some of their extended relatives in the mountains. We drove further into the mountains after lunch to play in the freshly fallen snow; after they parked the trucks they stopped into this Buddhist temple to offer some prayers since it was around Chinese New Year's. I don't know that it was frequented often but it looked well-maintained enough. I was politely told I couldn't participate because I wasn't a Buddhist, so I just took pictures.

Photo of the Day: Mountains in Sichuan

My cousin's uncle (my uncle-in-law? His sister is my aunt but we're related by marriage....) taking a rest in front of the gorgeous view of a VERY remote village in Sichuan Province.

We'd brought the whole family out to visit distant relatives in these mountains for Chinese New Year, and spent hours after lunch making snowmen, falling down hills, and having snowball fights. I realize now I should have appreciated the pure beauty I was in a bit more...but at that point I was still adjusting to living in China, and being in such cold weather!

Photo of the Day: Temple to Guanyin

Guanyin was a female boddhisatva associated with compassion and in the West is known as the Goddess of Mercy. This temple or museum (I'm not really sure what it was actually but it did have MASSIVE old rock carvings) was in Guangyuan, Sichuan Province; which was where I spent a week for Chinese New Year 2008 with some extended relatives.

Xi'an

Yeah I've been seriously slacking on the blogging front.

This is partly because so much happened that I didn't feel like writing about it every day, but at the same time, every day was kind of the same in Sichuan.

The day would usually start around noon, we'd head up to the Second Uncle's home, maybe tour somewhere in the afternoon, and then every night we would go out to a restaurant for dinner. [We ate out six nights in a row; I feel ridiculously overweight.] Two of the evenings, after dinner, everyone went out for karaoke. Usually I would go home after dinner to be online, and they would come home after midnight sometime.

Some days we went shopping in the afternoon; another day we spent in the mountains (and left right before dinner, of course) with some distant relatives- that day was really fun because we went hiking in the mountains and played in the snow. Another afternoon I went to the temple of the only female empress of China. Our last dinner (last night) was at a Mongolian style outdoor restaurant where we all danced around a campfire and sang karaoke. I started out miserable, but when we left this morning the Second and Third Aunt were crying, and I actually did feel a little sad to be leaving Guangyuan. They made me feel like a part of their family so in the end, I'm glad I came and stuck it out.


Anyway so now I'm in a very nice hotel room in Xi'an (that's why I'm still up at 2 in the morning on the internet). It was a four hour drive here from Guangyuan, and coming from that town in the mountains of Sichuan, Xi'an feels like Shanghai with its malls and city life and whatnot. We ate at a hotpot restaurant and then walked down to the Islamic Street Market which was packed with people and vendors selling food and souveneirs and all sorts of things in between. Tomorrow we're going to see the Terra Cotta Soldiers and I am extremely excited about that, then we're making the two day drive home to Shanghai, arriving home on the 14th.

More adventures will ensue from there; hopefully I get some decent rest in the next week!

New Year's Eve

I'm tired so I'll make this quick....

Today was New Year's Eve so we went to my cousin's grandfather's grave (on her mother's side, not related to me) and set off fireworks and burned paper money and offered food, etc- the reason why, I didn't quite catch, but I figure it was because it's the last day of the calendar year....?

Then we skipped lunch in order to really feast at dinner that night- we went to a restaurant, 16 of us, and had about 30 dishes total, including an endangered fish that is toxic if cooked improperly...

...There was also much wine and warm Coke (that's right. they served us heated coke.) and bai jiu -a very concentrated liquor. People were standing and making toasts about every five-ten minutes but it was fun. It was loud. Eveyone's faces were already red after the first couple toasts were made! I actually felt comfortable and welcome, for this little while.

We went back home and watched soccer- Iraq vs. China (they tied 1-1) and then around 11:45 the fireworks started- it's not like Fourth of July fireworks here; it's every man for himself fireworks- I came thisclose to getting my feet blown off by a firework set by a 14 year old when it turned on its side at the last minute and flew towards the wall instead of the sky.
I did set off a couple by myself though- about five or six, evenly timed, came out of what seemed like an enormous spitball shooter. For being a whole bunch of fire and gunpowder, it was enormously exciting.

It reminded me very much of American New Year; there's much anticipation (and a spectacular tv special) and it seems as if the Eve is much more fun than the actual day- although I know tomorrow we're going clothes shopping (of course, per tradition) and we're going to be doing Karaoke after dinner. Things are looking better here in Sichuan, but I'm still not sure how we're going to pass six more days.

Sichuan

So after two days of driving (about 12 hours both days) we're finally in some city in Sichuan (I forget the name) and I am so. Miserable.

I would type out why, but my hands are too numb to continue. Basically I hate every aspect of this trip and feel very much trapped and alone; I would have been sooo much better off staying in a hostel by myself, chilling with expats and visiting more of MY family. We're leaving the 11th or 12th, and I am -almost literally- counting down the minutes. I hate it here.

Oh China.

So I've learned that this horrible weather I've been speaking of is not just me exaggerating; it's being called the "Chinese Katrina"- the English paper Shanghai Daily (shanghaidaily.com) has pictures of thousands of people on the platform on the Guangzhou station; as trains and planes are being delayed and cancelled. The Prime Minister even flew from Beijing to apologize to the stranded people at the station; ironically he was delayed because he had to fly around some of the bad weather (http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/01/29/china.weather.apology).

Of course, this is the week before Chinese New Year, which is like the US Thanksgiving and EVERYONE goes home to be with their family. Seriously, what are the odds? The snow alert was raised to "orange," which is the second highest level; Apo isn't going home until the 4th (maybe). Probably the craziest thing about this all- the amount of snow (10-15 cm) is probably enough to call for a two hour delay or one day off of school back in York. But since it does not snow often, they're not used to it- today at Nanjing Lu I saw a worker shoveling snow, using what looked like a skateboard, minus the wheels, attached to a stick. Snowmen are popping up everywhere.

Which leads me to my bigger realization today: I am incredibly lucky to live in the States. I claim to dislike it; Americans are ignorant and bullies and the government is run by morons. But after talking with Kelly today, I've realized that (CHEESY WARNING:) freedom is really actually something not to be taken for granted.

The snow had damaged some construction work at Nanjing Lu; it had become too heavy for the bamboo structure to hold it and it collapsed- a minor little roof, actually. But the police taped it off and put like 20 guards in front of it; naturally a crowd gathered and someone took a picture. Instantly, three policemen were on this Caucasian; then they made him go through the pictures on his camera one by one. I assume they made him delete the ones they didn't appreciate being taken.

Seriously though, it just looked like he took a picture of some snow. There was a mini snowman right in front too; I mean he could have been taking a picture of that. I did; in fact, I took the picture right in front of the tape, with like five officers in front of me- how they couldn't have noticed me, I have no idea, yet I didn't even get a dirty look. Did they really not notice or was it because I look Chinese? I'll never know.

Another thing- Kelly and I were discussing cultural differences over our lunch of Shanghai cuisine and she told me that here, there is a law stating how old one can be to get married: Men, 21; Women, 20. I mean they're reasonable ages, but the fact that it's a law seems unfair to me; isn't it a personal choice? It's the same with the one child policy; how can the government dictate what you can do with your body and your life? I was told that recently the law has been changed; if you are an only child and your spouse is as well; you may have two children- this is because the law is 28 years old; and those who first grew up under it are now getting married and having children. Yet, Kelly said many are choosing not to because they are used to being 'spoiled' as only children and are scared of not being able to properly raise two children. Or something like that- sometimes our talks get lost in translation.

She also told me that last year, or maybe the year before, a couple at a college campus were caught kissing, and they were expelled.

And the whole 'free speech' thing- the government censors everything. Obviously there was controversy over when Google went along with it a few years ago; but I didn't think it'd be a big deal until I got here. I mean, Wikipedia is blocked! Wikipedia!! How am I supposed to do any research?!?! (I'm kidding. Kind of.)

This one's kind of trivial, but Kelly also told me when we passed police officers on the highway that they were checking plates. Apparently, Shanghai has so many cars that during rush hour it is illegal for cars from other cities to come through; however some people have other city plates because it is cheaper to buy. Plates, she said, are about 50,000 yuan. I don't know how much cars cost, but she said hers goes for 100,000 yuan when new. Can you imagine buying a $20,000 Honda or Toyota and paying $10,000 just for the license plate?

So although I do enjoy being here, and China is becoming a world power and all that, I still think I prefer to live in the States. Maybe I could move to Europe, but the dollar is just becoming too weak; I'd have to be poor for a while I think before being able to live comfortably in the EU. And here, the exchange rate is now (barely) 7.2 Yuan to 1 dollar. In 2002, it was around 8.5; summer of 2006, when I was here last, it was about 8.2. I don't even know how to end this post, I'm just so disgusted with economics and politics right now.

Seriously though. ShanghaiDaily.com, check out the pictures. It's ridiculous.


OH OH important note though: we also went to the Shanghai Ocean Aquarium this morning...and I SAW PENGUINS REAL LIVE PENGUINS THEY WAVED AT MEEEEE and it made my life. The end.

[no title]

Not much has happened since I have arrived. We have all been preparing for the fifth seventh of my grandmother's passing, which is the end of the mourning period. It went off very well; and most of my relatives came to be here for the occasion. It was very sad, but also an enlightening experience since Chinese funeral customs are so different from American ones. For one, Americans don't mourn for 35 days (personally, I'm sure, but not publicly).

So other than that, it has also been snowing outside. The weather has made headlines I've heard; even those back in Pennsylvania have heard news of how the weather is tampering with everyone's travel plans for Chinese New Year. Even my trip to Sichuan Province is looking sketchy; we're just going to wait and see how things look by the 4th, which was the day we were supposed to leave.

So now I am in my cousin's home for the next day or two; she is taking me out shopping today. I think we're also going to play in the snow; everywhere you look there are snowmen. I mean everywhere: parks, streets, in front of the grocery store....

I have less than a month before I go to Dalian, and I don't want to say that I'm bored- because I'm not. There are so many, many things to do in Shanghai. I just know that I would be much more active exploring it all if it weren't for this weather- I mean, I woke up and could see my breath in the air. I laid in bed for a good three hours before actually getting up.

...At least shopping malls are heated.