For thousands of year, Chinese regard the first day of the first lunar month as the traditional Chinese New Year — theSpring Festival. It is often compared to Christmas in western countries, because the Spring Festival is the most important and hilarious traditional festival in China. Before the festival, all family members clean their apartments or houses to get rid of defilements and diseases. In the meantime, Chinese people also paste self-made door-gods,Spring Festival couplets, and the reversed Chinese character “福” (means blessing) to bless the family in the New Year.
The New Year‘s Eve is the happiest time when family gets together and enjoys a grand dinner, shoots off firecrackers (although forbidden in cities to prevent conflagration). CCTV offers a tremendously gorgeous cultural show from 8pm to 1am every New Year‘s Eve. Chinese people greet each other in the early morning of the New Year to give out their best wishes. It is not until the 15th day of the 1st lunar month, namely, the Lantern Festival, that the Spring Festival is officially ended.
No matter how far family members stay away with each other, they always manage to come back home for the “Grand Dinner on New Year‘s Eve”, which is also called “Family Reunion Dinner”. This is tradition in China that people should get together to celebrate the festivals together. Even the disadvantaged families in the rural areas make the dinner the most sumptuous and ceremonious in the year. At 12 o‘clock, when a new year drives off the old, every family will shoot off fireworks in the hope of another harvest year and send off old ones. The first day of the Spring Festival comes after the eve, During the New Year, elders will give children (yasuiqian) putting some money in a red pocket. People are careful not to break anything on the first day of New Year nor sweep the floor to miss any good fortune.
Although in different regions, traditional food always have auspicious names, such as “New Year Cake” (niangao in Chinese, means “higher year”, meaning a better year, and in the shape of gold and silver blocks)
The Spring Festival is dated back to the Shang dynasty and comes from mysterious legend. Although the superstitious meaning has faded away, people regard Spring Festival a symbol of unification, happiness and peace.
Keats School does not close during the Spring Festival and we will arrange various group activities during the Spring Festival. Many English teachers come to Keats to study Chinese during the winter vacation, and you are welcome to join us to celebrate the Spring Festival together.