Lantern Festival (Minus the Lanterns)

Monday marked the 15th day in the Chinese lunar calendar, the last day of the Spring Festival celebrations. Now everyone is looking at going back to work and waiting patiently for the next Spring Festival to come along in a year. To celebrate the last day, called the Lantern Festival, it is custom to eat little sticky rice balls with sweet red bean paste in the middle and to look at lantern displays. I did neither although I did try to participate! On Monday night I went to Tianjin's Amusement Park to see some displays that were set up for the Lantern Festival. There were people singing, dancing, walking around on tall poles (pictured below) and many people enjoying the rides...but no lanterns...and no sticky rice balls.


The next morning I headed to Tianjin's Ancient Culture Street - a street full of shops with very touristy-looking, touristy-priced, gifts. There is a common phrase in China and although I don't know the Chinese way to say it yet, I am very familiar with the English translation, "people mountain, people sea." It basically means that everywhere you look are people and this was a very accurate description on Ancient Culture Street yesterday morning. There were people everywhere, especially crowded around the various snack vendors!


A few of my freshmen students and I wandered around window-shopping, people-watching, and cotton candy-eating!



Last but not least, the Lantern Festival marked the end of firework-mania! Ah, finally some peace and quiet!! :)