Children's Day (어린이날)

May 5th is a holiday in Korea, specifically Children's Day. The day has been around for decades, and it was recognized as a holiday off from school in the '70s. (Not everyone gets the day off, especially if you work someplace parents would want to take their kids..!) Children's Day is also celebrated, off the top of my head, in Japan, China, and many other Asian countries. On the holiday, parents take kids to zoos, theme parks, mountains, beaches, and celebrate kids being kids. Before the actual date, schools put together fun activities, such as games, movies, and field trips. 

My school made yummy sponge cakes, which we got to decorate...

...and then we promptly threw up all of the icing we ate.

Christmas in Nanjing (Originally posted Dec. 25, 2010)

Nanjing has a pretty strong western community, plus a lot of folks who love shopping. Christmas Eve is a big date night, with people selling flowers and balloons that say 'I love you' on the side. Also, the center of the city is incredibly crowded and reminds you more of New Years Eve than Christmas. There are Christmas lights up here and there, and any mall hoping to attract shoppers has a tree or dancing Santa in the lobby.





Church services are usually pretty packed. This is a picture of Sacred Heart in the middle of Nanjing; I was told that it was founded a few hundred years ago by the French and is the only Catholic church in Nanjing recognized in Rome.





In any case, Christmas in Nanjing is--for most people--just another day, but with more lights and an excuse to go have a party and wear a Santa hat while shopping. Then again, that's true for some people back home too. Merry Christmas!

Thanksgiving in China (Originally posted Nov. 28, 2010)

So China does not actually celebrate Thanksgiving--as I'm sure you've gathered--but where there's a will, there's a way. Since turkey (or 'fire chicken' as it's called here) is hard to come by, let alone cook in our tiny kitchen, buckets of KFC were substituted. Everyone prepared a dish or brought out the wine and we were able to expose a few curious Chinese friends and bemused British ones to an American Thanksgiving in our building's computer room.





Pictures stolen from Cassie and Thomas, whose blog you should check out for more adventures in Nanjing ♥


Also, my students were genuinely impressed by my mad hand-turkey drawing skills. Finally, my elementary school education is coming in... handy.

Badoom-CHA.

sun yat sen's mausoleum (Originally posted Oct. 17, 2010)

October 1st is National Day in China, and going to Sun Yat Sen's mausoleum on that day is a bit like going to the Washington Memorial on the 4th of July. It's actually part of a huge park on Purple Mountain and when you buy a ticket, you have the opportunity to pay a little more to get access to other attractions.