Red Lanterns and Fireworks

Well, the weekend is over, and with the passing of the weekend the Spring Festival has also come to an end. This is our first visit to China during the Spring Festival and what a treat. Over the weekend there were red lanterns everywhere and last night the fireworks lasted until well past midnight. Since the Chinese invented fireworks I guess they are entitled to a little showing off. It seemed like there were fireworks on every street corner in the city, and some of the boys reported that they had a chance to get firsthand experience with this long standing Chinese tradition. By noon Monday the lanterns were starting to come down and the ubiquitous firework street vendors had closed up shop for another year. It sounds like the kids had a good time this weekend with their host families, with reports ranging from trips to the amusement park, gatherings for group and family meals, and karaoke.

Tom Whittington