CHINESE LION DANCE! ROOOAAAR
My first Chinese New Year in China with my relatives! What a great experience, not only was it great to be in China for the new years celebration but i was there for the most important part of the holiday, which is spending time with your Family! Durring the 15 day celebration
I saw several Lion Dances, which are performed by young boys ages 10-15. They walk on ropes and stilts raised above the ground sometimes more than 6 feet! One of the purposes of the lion dance is to ward off evil spirits and bring good luck.
All you hear and see durring the first several days of the New Year's celebration are fireworks and and firecrackers...it got old and a bit annoying after a while but I thought I would join the fun! On the first day of the new year I bought a string of firecrackers that was about 25 feet long! The second day i bought one that was even longer, maybe 40 feet! I hung the firecrackers from the roof of the house and lit it up! BANG BANG BANG!!! it was great, i felt like i was 12 and making trouble for my grandma all over again! Except she was very happy and honored for a Kwan son to do this. The Firecrackers scare off evil spirits and and bring good luck! They also leave red paper shreds everywhere but it is good luck to leave the red stuff (Red is good luck) on the ground overnight (thank god, because I didn't want to clean it up! haha). After blowing things up, I gave a blessing to our ancestors by lighting incense and bowing 3 times in front of 3 differnt shrines. Now grandpa can relax up there, J Kwan is blessed him! I must say I'm not Budhist (I think its a budhist thing:o) so it was a bit of a learning experience but it really pleased my grandma and as long as it keeps the culture alive, I am honored to do so. After a great Lion Dance, some bang bangs, giving blessings and a huge dinner--of course-- we left the Kwan village house and went back to the city. Whheeeewww, a sitting toilet and hot shower!
My first Chinese New Year in China with my relatives! What a great experience, not only was it great to be in China for the new years celebration but i was there for the most important part of the holiday, which is spending time with your Family! Durring the 15 day celebration
I saw several Lion Dances, which are performed by young boys ages 10-15. They walk on ropes and stilts raised above the ground sometimes more than 6 feet! One of the purposes of the lion dance is to ward off evil spirits and bring good luck.
All you hear and see durring the first several days of the New Year's celebration are fireworks and and firecrackers...it got old and a bit annoying after a while but I thought I would join the fun! On the first day of the new year I bought a string of firecrackers that was about 25 feet long! The second day i bought one that was even longer, maybe 40 feet! I hung the firecrackers from the roof of the house and lit it up! BANG BANG BANG!!! it was great, i felt like i was 12 and making trouble for my grandma all over again! Except she was very happy and honored for a Kwan son to do this. The Firecrackers scare off evil spirits and and bring good luck! They also leave red paper shreds everywhere but it is good luck to leave the red stuff (Red is good luck) on the ground overnight (thank god, because I didn't want to clean it up! haha). After blowing things up, I gave a blessing to our ancestors by lighting incense and bowing 3 times in front of 3 differnt shrines. Now grandpa can relax up there, J Kwan is blessed him! I must say I'm not Budhist (I think its a budhist thing:o) so it was a bit of a learning experience but it really pleased my grandma and as long as it keeps the culture alive, I am honored to do so. After a great Lion Dance, some bang bangs, giving blessings and a huge dinner--of course-- we left the Kwan village house and went back to the city. Whheeeewww, a sitting toilet and hot shower!
2 comments:
Diu Nei. haha. you are having a blast, I can tell. Can't wait to join you in August. Now if I can only get my boss to approve the vacation time!
The last line you wrote, I can't help laughing after I read it.
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