Christmas in China
In the Republic of China, Christmas is usually celebrated in major cities such as Hong Kong, Shanghai, Beijing among others in the form of lights as well as other decorations in the department stores and on the streets. The Christians make up one percent of the populace; hence, most of the people know a few things concerning Christmas. Moreover, the Christians in China refer to Christmas as Sheng Dan Jieh which means Holy Birth Festival. On this day, the Christians normally celebrate in diverse ways; for instance, putting up a Christmas
Christmas Tradition in China
China’s Christians celebrate the birth of Christ by attending special church services in which attendance is high. On the Eve of Christmas, which is also referred to as Ping’an Ye or “Peaceful Evening”. The followers of Christ customarily conduct drama, dance along with choral performances. However, the carol singing seldom is done in the streets, but it is popularly performed in Christian homes where the karaoke machine may be employed.
Tourists during Christmas
A holidaymaker who travels to China during this season will find celebrations happening in the major cities. Fortunately, the hotel rooms together with domestic transportation incur low costs because Christmas is a low season in China. Furthermore, for the expats in China during Christmas, they can decorate their houses to generate an atmosphere like their place of origin as much as possible. Notably, during this season, the expatriates feel homesick. Moreover, the tourists in China may be tempted to impulse buy as there are big cities with big malls as well as Christmas markets. Worth mentioning is a foreigner can decide to do online shopping as it is cheaper to purchase Christmas decorations as they can be delivered at the client’s door.
Christmas Gifts
In the Republic of China, usually, no presents are given for Christmas but only among the expats. However, the malls have Santa who gives presents to children and they open the gifts on the same day since there is no tradition of waiting for Christmas to open gifts. Notably, currently in China, there is a rising tradition of apple giving where the citizens give as well as eat apples on Christmas Eve. Normally, the apples are sold with popular messages printed with words like ‘peace’, ‘love hearts’, ‘love’ among others. Also, it is hard to find Christmas cards in the Republic of China that have content with the correct grammar although the situation is much better in big cities as well as online. Worth mentioning is WeChat messages, as well as E-cards, are the common ways of greeting each other.
Christmas in the Primary Tourist Locations in China
The birth of Christ is celebrated mainly in the key cities. The cities are Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong. To begin with, the city of Beijing, the younger generation celebrates the event with keen interest since they view it as a happy occasion for giving gifts along with social get-togethers. Notably, most of the individuals work on this day unless it falls on a weekend. The second city is Shanghai which is a highly developed city known for world trade. On Christmas Day, the Christmas carols are heard everywhere and many shops in the downtown areas are decorated to attract visitors. The last major city is Hong Kong where 26th December (Boxing Day) and 25th December (Christmas Day) are official public holidays. The town is known for Christmas shopping, fine food along with Christmas displays.