So This Is Christmas...

Winter has come to Shanghai, and you know what that means; ’tis the season to be merry folks.

I wasn't sure what to expect out of Christmas in China - the pendulum could have swung both ways but it seems that it has rocked itself into a tizzy and both extremes have found home here. I mean, do the Chinese celebrate Christmas in China? Well, the answer to this question is both YES and NO. In China, it's mainly Christians who celebrate Christmas, although the commercial aspect of the holiday is spreading. For everyone else, the Chinese New Year or Spring Festival is the big event of the season.

Of course different cities celebrate differently; Hong Kong for example was a British colony until 1983 and this had a large impact on the cultural uniform of the city – Christmas is celebrated (in varying degrees) by a large percentage of Chinese there. Shanghai so far shows an appreciation for the commercial aspects of the holiday and I’ve seen most of the western additions of the city adopt the Christmas attire, whether it’s having a big Christmas tree or just a few snowflakes on the windows.

All in all, I’ve enjoyed and appreciated all attempts. Here are a few examples.

Louis doing a good job with the lights.

A fantastic "Christmas Carnival" tree right downtown.

I love this one. The next day that 'A' was missing.

A more modest approach in a cafe on the pedestrian street.

A beautiful card from one of my Grade ones. Adorable!

I start teaching Christmas this week with my kids. Will keep you updated.

Love!

Xox

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is definitely not a holiday the Chinese celebrate, but you can bet the Canadian and American expats will!  I was lucky enough to get an invite from an expat who was kind enough to host Thanksgiving at his place this year (Thanks Annie's Brother!) While there wasn't any turkey at the table, there was delicious Chicken, two kinds of mashed potatoes, gravy and all the fixin's !

mmm xx!

Halloween in China!

Halloween is not a holiday in China, although some of the western restaurants in Shanghai had a few decorations to impress their foreign customers a few weeks coming up to the actual date. Many western holidays are starting to infiltrate Chinese culture and Halloween is coming around, albeit still dragging its heels.

I had the joy of teaching Halloween to my students this October. I was a little daunted at first; not knowing how to approach or introduce the topic but soon got into and had loads of fun with the kids.

And I'm pretty sure they just loved learning about/ acting out the scary monsters.

They learnt Mummy, Vampire, Ghost, Pumpkin, Black Cat, Bat, Witch, Mask, Candy, and of course, Trick or Treat, for which I actually had the kids Trick or Treat for real sweets! Dangle some candy and Canadian pennies in front of class and watch 50 disciplined kids go crazy...!!

Here are a few shots:

The kids and their masks. I printed some blank masks and they coloured them in, cut them out, and tied some string around them. Cute!

The masks I made and used as examples for the kids.

Mmm cheap chinese candy!

These were obviously their favourite! Canadian pennies!

Themed stickers

Scaaary flashcards!

More masks!

Love! xx