Holidays
Chinese New Year (Spring Festival) Explained
Spring Festival, or what we Westerners usually call "Chinese New Year", is the biggest holiday of the year in China and is full of excitement and holiday spirit for most Chinese.
As with many traditional holidays in China, it is loaded with customs that can be a bit daunting to the average laowai. To help, here is a rundown of the various important days that take place during the Spring Festival period.
Mid-Autumn Festival (Zhongqiu Jie) Explained
Dating back all the way to moon-worship in the Shang Dynasty 3,000 years ago, Mid-Autumn Festival is a harvest festival that takes places on the 15th day of the 8th month in the Chinese lunar calendar (usually late September or early October).
Sometimes called Moon Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival is one of China's biggest holidays, and is next to only Spring Festival in its importance for families to come together and celebrate.
Dragon Boat Festival (Duanwu Jie) Explained
Dragon Boat Festival is one of the oldest holidays in China, said to date back nearly 2,500 years to the Warring States Period.
It is held the fifth day of the fifth month each lunar year, and has several possible origins. By far the most popular tale is that of Qu Yuan.
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