Christmas Turkey - With Plum Sauce?
My first Christmas away from home.
But fear not. Beijing is full of internationals all keen to celebrate the most important date on the Western calendar - we had an utter uproar! Moreover - you'll never believe the extent of enthusiasm with which the local Chinese population celebrates Christmas.
First check out my pics of Christmas day in Beijing then below check out my thoughts on Christmas in China.
At the Raffles Hotel
We spent Christmas Day at the Raffles Hotel, Beijing enjoying the opulent decorations, top-notch service and general festivities. Enjoying our exclusive dining room, we were free to graze the fine foods from late morning well into the afternoon. Free flowing wine for some, champagne for others and followed by coffees - we were soon caught in the excitement of the day's festivities - putting to one side the saddening thoughts of our families on the other side of the world doing the same without us.
I ate more than I had any other day since I've arrived in Beijing - scrumptious!
The festivities continued culminating in a Tepanyaki dinner!
Very Much Up For It
It's interesting really - despite local friends repeatedly informing me that the Chinese 'don't celebrate Christmas' - well let just say you could've fooled me!
The street lights decorated with lights, massive Christmas trees outside every major mall, every shop window adored with tinsel and signs wishing a 'Merry Christmas'.
And these weren't just areas with a predominant international population at all - even when I traveled into the deepest malls in the furthest suburbs of Beijing they'd all be enjoying your favourite Christmas hits! In the restaurants despite absolutely no internationals, the waiters would all be thoroughly proud of their Father Christmas hats.
But this, as we'd probably all expect, has nothing to do with the true meaning of Christmas. It's commercially driven for sure. I was surprised when one local friend believed the abbreviation of Christmas to X-mas was due to a desire not to blaspheme 'Christ', preferring 'X' instead. And also when another was under the impression the use of 'X' was the secularisation of 'Christ'mas - a deliberate effort to remove the 'Christ' from Christmas, using a X to cross him out! Wow - but it's worth reminding ourselves these are simply misguided and innocent misunderstandings.
Not surprising really given the regulations surrounding organised religion here- for instance, to enter the local Church on Christmas eve required a foreign passport... It was like entering a club with bouncers checking ID. Let's hope they didn't charge for the communion wine! I say regulations - but don't misunderstand me, this is a unique case and, I've not researched it fully.
However, I'd seriously doubt this enthusiasm is purely commercially driven. In the West, Christmas is far, far from simply a ploy by companies to boost sales - we do actually enjoy Christmas too, right? - Of course so. The decorations, the festivities, special foods, drinks, time with family and friends are all a major components of our Christmas experience - alongside on one hand the religious aspects for some and the exchanging of gifts on the other.
In China I have the impression its the same - sure the religious meaning is not known to many, but neither is Christmas in China purely commercial. I've witnessed the locals enjoy all the festivities as much as anyone. On reflection - who wouldn't enjoy a month of Wizzard's 'I Wish it Could Be Christmas Everday'?! It's bloody catchy ;-p
x Merry X-mas Everyone x
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