[LEFT][FONT=Times New Roman]Chinese Festivals[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial]Held on the first day of each year of the lunar calendar and lasting for weeks, the spring festival is regarded by the Chinese people as the grandest and most important annual festival, similar to Christmas Day for Occidental people. Originating during the Shang Dynasty (16th - 11th century BC), Spring Festival, which celebrates family reunion, is full of rich and colorful activities, and new hopes with the advent of spring and flowers blossoming. People from different regions and different ethnic groups celebrate it in their unique ways.[/FONT]
Spring Festival Traditions: During the period from the 23rd day of the previous lunar month to the event, every family does a thorough house cleaning and purchases enough food, including fish, meat, roasted nuts and seeds, all kinds of candies and fruits, etc, for the festival period. Also, new clothes must be bought, especially for children. Red scrolls with complementary poetic couplets, one line on each side of the gate, are pasted at every gate. The Chinese character 'Fu' is pasted on the center of the door and paper-cut pictures adorn windows. Everyone looks forward eagerly to the New Year.
[FONT=Arial]On New Year's Eve, no matter where he is, every member will try his best to come back to enjoy the family reunion feast in which jiaozi in north China and niangao (a kind of sticky rice cake) in the south are the indispensable foods. Family members chat or watch special TV programs all night. To show respect for their ancestors, some families burn incense and prepare delicious food at home. Fireworks are set continuously, among which the midnight blasts are the most thunderous.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial]On the first day of Spring Festival, wearing their new clothes, people visit relatives and friends to extend New Year's greetings and invite them to visit. Next, people begin to visit their distant relatives. In cities and suburbs, colorful activities include Temple Fairs, Yangge dancing, and lion and dragon dancing.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial]The Spring Festival lasts until the Lantern Festival begins fifteen days later marking the end of the Chinese New Year. It is celebrated by Chinese people at home and abroad. Everyone immerses in the festive atmosphere, and exchanges wishes for a good harvest year. [/FONT]
Important Customs and Activities: Various customs and activities are handed down by Chinese people such as pasting Spring Festival scrolls, the character 'Fu', paper-cuts pictures, displaying firecrackers and fireworks, paying New Year visits, and eating jiaozi.
[IMG]file:///C:/DOCUME~1/3B5D~1/LOCALS~1/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip_image001.gif[/IMG][FONT=Arial]Pasting Spring Festival Scrolls, Character 'Fu', and Paper-Cut Pictures[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial]Originating during the Song dynasty (960 - 1279) and continuing through the Ming dynasty (1368 - 1644), creating spring scrolls or couplets is a special literary form characterized by concise, ingenious sentences to express people's wishes. A few days before the Spring Festival, people paste red scrolls with complementary poetic couplets with one line on each side of the gate to add festive atmosphere.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial]Pasting the Chinese Character 'Fu' is also a popular custom. Because 'Fu' in Chinese means 'Good Luck' or 'Happiness', by pasting this character on the center of the door, people show great hope to be happy. Nowadays, people like to paste it backward, for this means 'Fu' has come. Many beautiful design variations on the character 'Fu' can be found in markets and shopping malls.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial][URL="http://www.travelchinaguide.com/intro/arts/paper_cut.htm"][COLOR=#3366cc]Paper-cut[/COLOR][/URL] is a famous Chinese traditional craft. During Spring Festival, people paste favorite paper cuts on windows not only for decoration and appreciation but also for delivering hope.[/FONT]
[IMG]file:///C:/DOCUME~1/3B5D~1/LOCALS~1/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip_image001.gif[/IMG][FONT=Arial]Setting Firecrackers and Fireworks[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial]Regarded as the most exciting event, especially to children during the festival, setting firecrackers means biding farewell to the past year and welcoming the New Year. Fireworks have been popular for over 2,000 years, and have become a festival essential. When the clock announces the New Year, numerous households set off fireworks at almost the same time, creating a thunderous sound. Various multicolored fireworks are also displayed by official organizations. Today fireworks have become an indispensable part of celebrating grand festivals, of marriage, even of opening a new shop.[/FONT]
[IMG]file:///C:/DOCUME~1/3B5D~1/LOCALS~1/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip_image001.gif[/IMG][FONT=Arial]Paying New Year Visits[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial]Paying New Year visits is a special way for people to express good wishes to each other. On the first day of the festival, in ancient times younger people had to salute the elderly by kowtowing; today they salute them by offering good wishes. In response, the older generation gives money wrapped in red paper. People also drop in at friends' houses, greeting one another with 'Happy New Year'. Recently, greetings sent by telephone or e-mail have become popular.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial][IMG]file:///C:/DOCUME~1/3B5D~1/LOCALS~1/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip_image001.gif[/IMG][FONT=Arial]Eating Jiaozi[/FONT][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial]The indispensable food during spring festival is jiaozi. Made with flours and stuffed with different fillings, Jiaozi is usually eaten on New Year's Eve. Because its shape resembles the Chinese Yuanbao (a kind of money used in ancient times), eating jiaozi means wealth in the coming year. Also because different symbols for luck can be wrapped in them, great hope can be expressed. People wrap coins, candy, peanuts, or chestnuts in the jiaozi. People who eat one will be blessed with receiving different wishes, such as a coin for wealth, candy for sweet life, peanuts for health and longevity, and chestnuts for vigor.[/FONT][/LEFT]