On 2 March 2018, the Lantern Festival Show drew many students to the outdoor performance stage on campus. There were various booth games and stage shows prepared by students. At the event, students celebrated this traditional festival together and had an enjoyable night.
The Lantern Festival is celebrated on the fifteenth day of the first month in the Chinese calendar. During this festival, people solve riddles written on lanterns. Games at the UIC show included guessing lantern riddles and throwing sandbags. Over 400 riddles were prepared for the event to make sure that students would have a good time. Students were able to play games and collect stamps to earn souvenirs.
Besides games, the stage shows were very entertaining as well. More than 15 performances were put on by various interest clubs and academic societies. The performances came in a variety of forms, including dancing, singing and short sketches, which won warm applause from audience. At some parts, the audience even waved light sticks to cheer on the performers and formed a light wave, adding to the cheerful atmosphere in the audience.
Another tradition of the Lantern Festival includes eating a Chinese dessert called tang yuan. There was a booth set up for students to get tang yuan, which is a sweet dessert made from boiling balls of rice flour.
Residence Assistant of the Student Affairs Office, Ms Wang Yingqiu, said that “This was the first time to hold the lantern festival on new campus. The reason we hold this event is that we want to welcome students back to UIC for the new semester with the excitement and warmth of this festival.” She spoke highly of the student assistants from the Student Hostel Council, who contributed a lot to make this event a success. Statistics student, Yue Zhiyi, said, “This event really makes me feel the atmosphere of the lantern festival.”
Reporter: Li Dandan
Photographers: Yao Zihong, Ivy Liao
Editors: Samantha Burns, Deen He
