Today's Lantern Festival marks the end of Chinese New Year celebrations. During the 2021 Spring Festival holiday, the UIC community members created various memories in their hometowns, local cities and even on the UIC campus.
Student Wang (Year 3) Guilin, Guangxi
On New Year's Eve, our family gathered for dinner. My grandfather sent a big red envelope to everyone on the table before dinner. Chicken soup, salted vegetables, pork, seafood, chilli sauce, along with flaming red envelopes to make the beginning of the Year of the Ox feel more welcoming.
Student Wang (Year 1) Beijing
During the Chinese New Year, dumplings are very common on most northern families' dinner tables. Compared to dumplings, the delicacies of fish and meat will be slightly "inferior."
The whole family divides the work and cooperates, performing their duties such as rolling dumpling wrappers, kneading into the dough, and making dumplings. Though busy, we enjoyed ourselves. Happiness and warmth reminded me that the new year was here, and the time of reunion like this is the most flavourful of the year.
Student Huang (Year 1) Maanshan, Anhui
Speaking of the Spring Festival in my hometown, many people think of lion dance and door goddess. However, my favourite is the lantern festival in my hometown. You can hear laughter from the crowds at the scenic spots. These scenic spots are decorated with lights and are all within a several kilometre radius. The company of my family and the festive atmosphere are the greatest happiness that the lantern festival brings me. It also allows me to feel the atmosphere of the New Year.
Student Zhao (Year 2) Chengdu, Sichuan
Sugar painting is the most reminiscent symbol in my childhood memory. In front of me were a small steaming pot and sugar carving tools squatting on the stove, and a grey-haired craftsman could draw all kinds of patterns in a while. Every year during the Spring Festival, I would go to the stall to buy a bunch or accompany my younger cousins to watch the making process. The craftsmen sketched out the vivid things and the appearance of the New Year in my heart.
Student Han (Year 2) Tianjin
When it comes to the taste of the New Year in Tianjin, it must be New Year pictures and kites. Hang a woodblock New Year pictures to give a good vision for the New Year; hang a couplet to imply blessings and wealth in the new year; hang a picture of kitchen god to pray for a good year away from right and wrong. Every year when the spring is about to start, the whole family will fly kites. The higher the kite is, the farther away the "bad luck" will be.
Student Du (Year 1) Daqing, Heilongjiang
In the cold winter of Daqing, the villagers would make "air-dried chickens" in the yard. The chickens' aroma would diffuse and penetrate the noses of the people passing by the market so that the whole village was covered with the flavour of the New Year.
Student Wang (Year2) Weifang, Shandong
This is Shihuyuan Cultural Street in my hometown. During the Spring Festival, red lanterns and spirited dragon heads are hung on the streets, and temple fairs are held. Visiting temple fairs is a must-have item for Chinese New Year. Thinking about it carefully, the fact that a family can spend the Spring Festival together is the taste of the New Year in my heart.
Student Ren (Year1) Beijing
In my opinion, Beijing's snow scene is inseparable from the taste of the New Year. The cold weather cannot withstand the expectations warmth of people's hearts when the New Year comes. It is the warmest moment of the year for a family to enjoy the snow in the Summer Palace. When I look at the red lanterns hanging high on the branches, I know that the New Year is in full swing here.
Students on campus
During this Spring Festival, some UIC students who stayed on campus also enjoyed the New Year.
On the morning of the Lunar New Year, the sun was shining. UIC Provost Chen Zhi, Managing Director for Finance and Administration Mr Nelson Chan, Chief Student Affairs Officer Prof Johnston Hong-Chung Wong, and Associate Director of Student Affairs Office Mr Li Junyang all came to the dormitories to visit students who stayed on campus during the Spring Festival. They extended their blessings for the new year and gave the students red envelopes and memorable Spring Festival couplets, wishing the students success in their studies.
UIC prepared a sumptuous New Year's Eve dinner for the remaining students. Party Secretary of the College Party Committee and Vice President (Administration), Prof Mao Yaqing, Warden of Liberal Education Hall Dr Angela Ma, and Warden of Moral Education Hall Mr Andy Tam came to the canteen to make dumplings and eat dinner with the students. During the dinner, staff and students toasted each other's blessings, gave red packets, chatted comfortably, and had fun. After the New Year's Eve dinner, the students watched the Spring Festival Gala together and played mini-games.
Freshman Chen said that the college's arrangement made her and other students feel the warmth of home. The experience of leaving home for the Spring Festival for the first time has left her with precious memories and experiences.
During the Spring Festival holiday, the Student Affairs Office has also prepared a wealth of activities for students who stayed on campus. These activities included watching movies, cutting window grilles, writing blessings, making food, and running in the Sports Park.
Due to the pandemic, some UIC international students stayed in China to enjoy the Spring Festival.
International student - Yu Kyung Jeon, Korea
I am Yu Kyung Jeon, also known as Bella, an international-degree seeking student from Korea who is currently a sophomore majoring in Globalisation and Development (GAD). This year's Spring Festival was a little special to me as I couldn't go back to my home country due to the coronavirus. Therefore, I spent this vacation in my friend's hometown in Yantai, a coastal city in Shandong province. Yantai's temperature is colder than Zhuhai and often snows. I visited my friend's relatives' places, went sightseeing, and ate a lot of delicious food.
Ye Xian Park in Yantai
This is a park near my friend's house. This golden rose sculpture is said to represent the city flower. Yantai is a city famous for roses, and it holds an annual rose festival in May.
The most significant difference between Korean and Chinese New Year is the number of days. When I spend New Year's Day in Korea, I usually spend four to five days with my family, but this time, I spent almost two weeks for the holidays.
Dumplings we made for New Year's Day
We made dumplings! Traditionally, dumplings are made with jujubes, coins, rice cakes, and chestnuts
In China, fireworks are popular. The traditional reason for fireworks is to chase away ghosts. New Year's Day at my friend's house was exceptional, and it was meaningful to have a good time with my friend's family and people around.
Not all members of faculty could make it home either, so some decided to stay in Zhuhai for the Spring Festival. Some international staff members had their Chinese New Year well in plan. (Read more: UIC foreign staff: Chinese New Year holiday in plan)
Faculty member - Dr Siu-tai Tsim, HKSAR, China
I'm Dr Siu-tai Tsim from China Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR). I am an Associate Professor and the Director of the Environmental Science Programme of the Division of Science and Technology (DST). Since the COVID-19 pandemic is still prevalent, my wife, son, and I spent our Chinese New Year in Zhuhai. In the past, we used to turn to HKSAR, joining some traditional Chinese family activities. We had posted some Spring Festival couplets on the main door of my in Zhuhai as a celebrating expression a few days before the Chinese New Year. The couplets contained the Chinese character "Fu", which means best luck and well-being. Moreover, we had prepared some egg rolls and homemade radish cake, a trendy traditional snack during the Spring festival.
Dr Tsim with Spring Festival couplets
During the holidays, my family and I visited many places with ecological and cultural heritage features in Zhuhai and Zhongshan's rural areas. We went to some wetland parks such as Damen Wetland Park and Jinhu Park in Zhuhai, and Wuguishan Forest Park in Zhongshan. We also visited Yangguangzui, a natural sandy coast, which means Sunshine beach, in Zhuhai. Many small crabs and clams were living there, and the beach boasted a beautiful scenic! Back to Zhuhai's urban area, we visited Jingshan Skywalk at the top of Banzhangshan (Mt. Banzhang). We found open sceneries when getting there; the whole Gongbei area and part of Macao are visible.
Dr Tsim at Yangguangzui
Jingshan Skywalk
Furthermore, we rode bicycles along the coastline from Qiao Island to Tangjiawan. We took in all the romantic imageries, including the smell and wind of the sea, the light reflecting from the sea's surface, the wildlife, fishing, the kites in the sky, which all helped us become deeply immersed in an urban natural environment, and all the stress and work-life were temporarily gone.
Bike rides along the Zhuhai coastline
We also went to a historical heritage site at Doumen Zhuhai called the Zhao's Ancestral Hall, built by the Song Dynasty's royal family's descends. The Hall's eave was decorated in relief with the classical stories of filial piety, fully expressing the characteristics of traditional Chinese family structure and values, as well as the interpretation of ethics and rites.
Zhao’s Ancestral Hall
We find Zhuhai to be a liveable green city with many new development and infrastructures such as bridges, highways, and tunnels, which allows for convenient travel. On the other hand, Zhuhai has many restored ecological and preserved cultural heritage places, making it a great example of balancing urbanisation and nature conservation. As a result, we get to enjoy Zhuhai's nature and culture.
From MPRO
Editors: Samuel Burgess, Deen He, Zhang Fan
(with thanks to the ELC)
