Happy New Year

...if you live in China. Chinese New Year is the longest and most important festivity in the Chinese lunar calendar. The origin of it 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.

Within China, regional customs and traditions concerning the celebration of the Chinese new year vary widely. People will pour out their money to buy presents, decoration, material, food, and clothing. It is also the tradition that every family thoroughly cleans the house to sweep away any ill-fortune in hopes to make way for good incoming luck. Windows and doors will be decorated with red color paper cuts with popular themes of "happiness", "wealth", and "longevity". These can be incredibly intricate and detailed. It's really fun to watch a traditional paper artist make one of these with just a piece of construction paper and scissors.

On the Eve of Chinese New Year, supper is a feast with families. Food will include such items as ham, ducks, chicken and sweet delicacies. The family will end the night with firecrackers. Early the next morning, children will greet their parents by wishing them a healthy and happy new year, and receive money in red paper envelopes. One of the best things about Chinese New Year, is that it is a tradition to reconcile; forget all grudges, and sincerely wish peace and happiness for everyone. Then everyone goes outside and lights firecrackers and fireworks. On that day and the next, and the next, and the next, until every foreigner steadily goes crazy.

Although the Chinese calendar traditionally does not use continuously numbered years, outside China its years are often numbered from the reign of the Yellow Emperor (which sounds vaguely racist, if you ask me) But at least three different years numbered 1 are now used by various scholars, making the year 2011 "Chinese Year" 4709, 4708, or 4648.

I will be spending this New Year's in Beijing, but shortly thereafter will go to Xi'an as we (finally) got tickets.

That takes some cajones, China...

As you probably know, Hu Jintao, the President of China was in Washington DC for a bit. There was a state dinner held and a pianist named Lang Lang entertained the mixed American/Chinese crowd with his impressive talent on the piano. One of the songs he played in front of Hu Jintao and Obama was called ""My Motherland" -- the theme song from the Chinese-made Korean War movie "Battle on Shangangling Mountain."

Hu, the guest of honor at the dinner, surely recognized the melody. The song has been a favorite anti-American propaganda tool for decades. Lang apparently knew exactly what he was playing.

A White House spokesman declined to comment on the song selection, instead directing questions about Lang's performance to the National Security Council staff, which surprise, surprise, was not available to comment.

The 1956 film "Battle on Shangangling Mountain" depicts Chinese troops pinned down under enemy fire on the mountain. Then reinforcements arrive and the troops gallantly attack the US soldiers, whom the Chinese refer to as "jackals."

The song Lang played in front of Hu and President Obama includes the verse: "When friends are here, there is fine wine/But if the jackal comes/What greets it is the hunting rifle."

Lang said in a TV interview that he played the song to reflect Chinese pride.

"I think playing the tune at the White House banquet can help us, as Chinese people, feel extremely proud of ourselves and express our feelings through the song," he told the Chinese network Phoenix TV.

"I think it's especially good. Also, I like the tune in and of itself. Every time I hear it, I feel extremely moved."

Lang, who performed for the state-dinner music program that the White House billed as "quintessentially American," was more blunt in a blog.

"Playing this song praising China to heads of state from around the world seems to tell them that our China is formidable, that our Chinese people are united; I feel deeply honored and proud," Lang wrote, according to a report by Epoch Times.

The anti-US musical interlude at the White House touched off some patriotic chest-thumping on Chinese blogs.

"Those American folks very much enjoyed it and were totally infatuated with the melody!!! The US is truly stupid!!" wrote one blogger.

Yeah...."Quintessential American", indeed there Obama.

Skype

Skype is a wonderful thing. Last night we had a wonderful video chat with several former coworkers who are in various parts of America. This is a screen shot that our friend Syrena took while we were talking and catching up with one another.

From top left, clockwise: Beijing, China -Chicago, Illinois - Los Angeles, California, - Lancaster, Pennsylvania - Brookings, South Dakota - Portland, Oregon.

We were able to talk to all of these people at the same time for free. (Although it does require a trial version of an upgrade which will charge in the future.) When you can do stuff like this, you have to realize that at some point, we stopped living in the present and entered the future.

train tickets

We have an extra long break coming up for the observance of Spring Festival, a major holiday time. (think Christmas season) So a few of us decided to go to the ancient city of Xi'an for a while and take in the sights. Normally you can go and book your train tickets and then go. They don't have online booking or expedia for trains, so you have to physically go and book them. It's not usually bad....but apparently right before Spring Festival, it is.

My coworker Pip and I got to the train station ticket counter at 7, believing it to open at 8. At 7 the line was already about twenty yards and the temperature was a balmy 24 degrees. So we waited...and stood. And waited.

And stood.

And froze.

And waited some more

Around 9, I went back to the campus to grab some warmer clothes and clear some things up with the Chinese AA who told us to go there and I grabbed a thermos of hot water for Pip and headed back.

And then waited.

And stood.

And waited.

At 1120, we finally reached the front and merging both of our Chinese and gestures asked for hard sleeper tickets to Xian on the 30th of January.

The conducter told us that there were no more sleeper berths available but he could offer us Zhan tickets.

Pip: "zhan? zhan? what is zhan?"

Me: I don't know either....let me look it up. ah here we go zhan, third tone,...."to stand."

Wait....he's trying to sell us tickets to STAND the whole way there?

Apparently so....

I hate taking the subway across Beijing when its crowded for 20 minutes, and this guy wants us to stand for 12 hours across China?

So we left empty handed. We'll try again after Spring Fesitival, hopefully the lines will be shorter and the (good) tickets more plentiful.

next month

February is the biggest holiday month on the Chinese calendar, so as such I was expecting few (if any) students next month a more relaxed session. Wrong. Turns out it will be our biggest session in several months with around 300 students.

Update

Finally back from Europe. It was a great trip all around. I spent most of my time in Zilina, Slovakia with Darya, and then her and I took side trips to Bratislava and Trencin, as well as Ostrava in the Czech Republic. The scenery was absolutely fantastic. Castles, museums, art galleries and gorgeous snow covered countryside. I have a few pictures below, however over a hundred more can be found here:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2012848&id=91300146&l=3a99725150

I came back to Beijing to find that we have a very small session, only a few dozen students, so I will be working along with others, to develop a Mandarin TIP. We had one last year but I missed it when I went back to PA, so this will also be a new experience for me as well.

Darya and I outside of a castle in Zilina

Trencin Castle

Vacation

For those who don't know, I am on vacation in eastern Europe. Normal posting, as well as pictures, shall resume when I return on January 7th.