Happy Chinese New Year and fireworks everywhere! In Chinese tradition, fireworks are supposed to ward off evil spirits. Honestly, unless you’ve been here during Chinese New Year you can’t imagine what it’s like. Unfortunately it’s really hard to take good photos of fireworks so instead here’s a video from the apartment window with a 180 degree pan. Unless you want to hear about the weather, ignore the sound, apparently I was talking to Odis and I’d had a few drinks ;-)
This photo is one of many aftermaths of a set of fireworks right outside my apartment. This box is about 2’ x 2’ and the aerial show lasted about 10 minutes. You can buy these on any street corner. Also, people let fireworks off anywhere, including their balconies in horizontal fashion. My neighbor below me seemed to enjoy horizontal fireworks. There were notices posted in the lobby of my building with photos of firework damage and how a person is breaking the rules if they light fireworks off in the building.
This photo is one of many aftermaths of a set of fireworks right outside my apartment. This box is about 2’ x 2’ and the aerial show lasted about 10 minutes. You can buy these on any street corner. Also, people let fireworks off anywhere, including their balconies in horizontal fashion. My neighbor below me seemed to enjoy horizontal fireworks. There were notices posted in the lobby of my building with photos of firework damage and how a person is breaking the rules if they light fireworks off in the building.
Fireworks have been going on all week, pretty much 24 hours a day, and for some reason, 7:00am also seems to be an important time. I’m not sure why, but I don’t need an alarm clock right now.
Living in the midst of tradition I became really curious about the 15 day holiday and did some research on the internet. My favorite part is about the superstitions, if the US was 5000 years old, we would also have this many oddities. (We chase a rabbit and a fat man in a red suit!) For instance, wearing red will scare away evil spirits and bad fortune. On day 2 be extra kind to dogs and feed them well. Zhang’s parents received a dog as a gift from a relative for the new year.
This is the Year of the Ox and Zhang was born in 1973. I think my guys in Idaho would agree this fits him to a tee! Especially with our family….
“The Ox is thought to be the sign of prosperity through fortitude and hard work. The Ox is a power sign, like the Rat, Snake, Dragon, Tiger, and Monkey. They're quite dependable and possess an innate ability to achieve great things. As one might guess, such people are dependable, calm, and modest. Like their animal namesake, the Ox is unswervingly patient, tireless in their work, and capable of enduring any amount of hardship without complaint.”
If you’re interested in learning more, here’s a pretty good link http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_New_Year
Gōngxi fācái
Congratulations and be prosperous!
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