Watch: Warren Buffett on CCTV's spring festival gala playing the ukulele
And here it finally is -- the video that Warren Buffett sent in to CCTV to be played at the spring festival gala -- in all its 45-second glory! To send his new year's greetings to 1.3 billion Chinese, the Berkshire Hathaway chairman strummed on his ukulele and sang "I've Been Working on the Railroad" in front of a room-sized model railroad.
Weekendist: Shanghai Tango, Kungfu Komedy, and CNY parties galore
Shanghai is doing it big for the year of the Dragon, with heaps of events that'll keep you out and about all weekend. We've got dance performances, comedy sets, parties, feasts, fireworks, and all sorts of excitement to bring in the new year! Indulge yourself, and have a happy new year! Read on for all the details, or head over to our calendar for more.
Photos: Charred remains of the 5-star hotel in Shenyang gutted by CNY fireworks
It isn't everyday that we get to show you what fireworks can actually do to a building, so here you go. That's what the Dynasty Wanxin Hotel, the tallest building in Shenyang (and possibly the tallest in all of the northeast), looks like today after stray Chinese New Year fireworks gutted it last week.
Watch: BTV's Spring Festival disaster featuring Numa Numa vs Super Mario Bros
Sopranos and tenors are a fixture at every year's spring festival gala show on television, but what happens when show producers, in their overzealousness to connect with younger audiences, make them sing songs that were never meant to be sung by them? The result, ladies and gentlemen, is a CATASTROPHE, as you will see in the following clip from Beijing TV's show:
Weekendist: CNY, Valentine's Day and spicy local DJ's
Every Friday, Weekendist brings you our picks of the best of what's coming in the next three days.
Great Video: Rooftop view of CNY fireworks in Shanghai
While some of us spent Chinese New Year's Eve enjoying grilled seafood on a beach in the Philippines, Luis Tapia of Shanghai-based Daedalum Films was lugging his camera to a Shanghai rooftop to record the fireworks. The results, as you can see above, are beautiful (be sure to watch in HD). Thankfully, the video does not include actual sound (you probably got enough of that last night). Instead, the soundtrack is "El Pico" by Ratatat. You can buy that song on iTunes. Enjoy.
Photos: Chinese New Year in Shanghai
As Shanghai welcomes Chinese New Year for the first time in decades with a dash of snow, we trawl Flickr for pictures that best capture the essence of this week-long (or to be precise, 15 days' worth of) festive cheer filled with red firecracker sprinklings and endless fireworks.
Video: Chinese New Year madness on Shanghai's Tongren Lu
No injuries or deaths were reported1, surprisingly, but then again we left before it was all over (got tired of getting hit by shrapnel). The video starts sometime before midnight and ends sometime after. And yes, our ears are still ringing.
Year Of The Rat Mouse?
In the Murinae subfamily of the Rodentia order, there are whole heaps of squeekers that in English we name either (Harvest / grass / stink) mice or (water / whistling / bush) rats with no real logic. The Chinese on the other hand just say screw it; let's call them all 鼠 and see what they taste like.

