Christmas in Beijing is interesting. I find myself listening to Christmas music more willingly on my Iphone then I would ever do back home. My favorite is the song that goes There is no place like home for the holidays....well I can't go home for the holidays. I have to work Christmas Eve! Lucky for me my day off falls on actual Christmas. A lot of people are not so lucky. But working in China means you don't get Western holidays. So not that big of a deal. (I mean I wont complain because I actually don't work on Christmas haha)
There are decorations everywhere in this city. Nothing like back home but there are decorations. I find myself seeking out decorations to see a bit of normalcy. I am taking pictures of Christmas displays and Christmas lights because I am so excited to see them! My friends and I went around yesterday exploring the city looking for a Christmas display! (We found it!) They have trees in the malls, lights up in some places and Christmas decor in the stores. Some of the Christmas displays don't read Christmas like the heart tree in front of the mall near my apartment but I will take it. It makes it feel a little bit more like home.
At work we decorated our classroom for Christmas. I had the children draw Christmas trees. They decorated the trees so beautifully. All the trees looked like something out of a catalog. (Which is probably all they see). Back in the states a four year old draw a tree it will have some round circles on it and maybe a star. The trees they draw are the kind you see in the department stores. I asked my assistant if the Santa comes to their house and leaves presents for the children and she said I don't know what you mean by that. So obviously they don't celebrate it the same as we do. But they do have a name for santa Claus. Shan dan lao gogo. So they know who is it but don't celebrate Christmas. Very interesting concept. A lot of the girls at work don't understand the Christmas story. So my suggestion....Watch Santa Claus is Coming to Town! (That has all the answers!)
When we lived in Tennessee that was my favorite song when we were traveling back to pgh for the holidays! There is no place like home for the holidays ! But rememeber home is where your heart is. Love you
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