ChunJie Begins!

You are getting two reports of the festivities here, one from each of us. Things are crazy here right now. I think any evil spirits they thought were about have all been chased away by the fireworks last night, this morning and now, noon. Earplugs are a must have this time of year. Last night it was impossible to sleep since it was the first day of ChunJie. We decided to brave the cold and walk around outside for a little while. Armed with earplugs, ear muffs and a hat that covered them, we set out. I was immediately grateful for the mufflers as the noise was so loud, it made the ground beneath our feet rumble and our stomachs quiver. From our apartment, we could feel the vibrations too, as if our city were under attack, but not like this! There were officers standing nearby but only to make sure that certain types of fireworks were placed in a box before lit, since they danced and sent sparks everywhere. They did not however, keep little children from standing amongst the lit pipes. One child was hitting the ones that had been set off already. I had to turn my head so I would not witness him losing a finger or two. Where were his parents? Nothing happened to him thankfully and finally a lady told him to get away. There were little unsupervised pyros everywhere. The bouquets of colors that exploded right over our heads were beautiful and frightening at the same time. All that firepower, how do more people not get injured? I know, I sound like my mother. But one man who spoke pretty good English told us that some people go blind on this night and even die. Am I the only one who sees a problem with this? There were many fireworks used that I know would be illegal in the US. We got tired of the noise and decided to sit in McDonalds for awhile with a cup of coffee. There were more people there than I had ever seen! Staying open on this night was a genius financial decision. We warmed up and decided to head back to our apartment when the whole building began trembling. Everyone ran outside to see what was happening. The government had set up their own display in the park across the road. Wow! It was like the finales of all US fireworks displays put together, and then some. It must have lasted an hour. It ended as we reached the first floor balcony of our apartment building. Traffic was backed up as people just parked in the road and stood and watched. Why do we have such a fascination with fireworks? Is it the noise or is it the amazing ability to create stunning artwork in the sky with the light of a match? Whatever the reason, I wonder how fascinated we will be after the next week and a half? The noise continued all morning and our apartment often smells like the building is on fire since our neighbors light the loud popping ones right in the hallway. Welcome to China!
Mandy

ChunJie 春节

China has begun to celebrate its Spring Festival or Chunjie. It is perhaps the most important of all the celebrations here. Tradition holds that the Nian (Chinese for year) was a mythical beast terrorizing a village. The villagers put out food to appease it, as it devoured crops and even children when it appeared. Once, it was seen shying away from a child wearing red. From then on, the people knew to put up red banners on their doors and red lanterns to scare him away. They used fireworks to frighten him as well. The Nian never returned to the village. Eventually, he was conquered by a monk who used him as his mount. This festival is full of such superstitions and traditions that are followed by over a billion Chinese all over the world. Chunjie is traditionally 15 days long and each day has special significance with a certain food and activity to be carried out. You can do research on it further if you are interested. The fireworks have begun already although the official start date is the 25th this year. I have been told what we have seen is nothing compared to what it will be. I think I know what it sounds like in Iraq as mortars and shells explode overhead. Thankfully, there is no carnage here but the explosions often sound like gunfire and bombs. From our kitchen and bedroom windows we will have a front row seat to the fireworks as they begin to blossom in the night sky. Right now though, we mostly just hear them. Every night. All night.

Many Chinese use this holiday to return to their home villages and many foreigners use it as an excuse to get out of town to escape the noise. We have been told to get as many pictures and as much footage as possible now, before we can no longer stand the sight and sounds. This will be an interesting next two weeks. Many of the people we have met so far are headed out of the city. Somehow, though, there are more people here than ever before. I made the crazy mistake of going to the grocery store on the way home today. What was I thinking? We barely escaped unscathed. All the stores are packed to the hilt. Families with bags and bags of candy and gifts. I saw a woman stooped over dragging a basket full of goodies across the floor because it was too heavy to pick up. Apparently, buggies were scarce. I need to stock up and stay low. Here is a video of our evening as we head to bed. We wish everyone the pleasant, quiet night we will soon be wishing for. Sweet Dreams!

mandy

The amount of noise which anyone can bear undisturbed stands in inverse proportion to his mental capacity.
Arthur Schopenhauer (1788 - 1860) (Things that make you say "hmmmm...")