Results tagged “holidays”

Singletons rejoice! Crack out the champagne and chocolate because today is the anti-Valentines day - it's singles day in China. As you know, one is the loneliest number and today is 11/11: four singles smack together, representing all the single folk out there. We think this day calls for a celebration, so we're going to treat ourselves to dinner!

                              

[Monday, 10pm] People are currently aTwitter with news that that Beijing's CCTV headquarters has gone up in flames, and from the following pictures snapped and uploaded by various eyewitnesses (including some amazing on-the-scene photos by real estate tycoon and CEO of Soho China Pan Shiyi), the fire looks pretty damn bad and appears to have engulfed the part of the complex that houses the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Beijing. Given that today is Yuanxiao Jie (元宵节) which marks the culmination of the Lunar New Year festivities, it is not unlikely that stray fireworks were the cause of this disaster. Follow what the China Twitterati is saying at #cctvfire. Videoclips after the jump.

Michael Manning of The Opposite End of China finds Osama bin Laden hawking face masks at a Chinese New Year fair at Ditan Park Temple yesterday.

Since when did this become a yearly political exercise, we wonder?

In this news report from Hunan TV, police opened the luggage compartment of a crowded long-distance bus bringing passengers eager to return home for the Spring Festival and found a huge surprise -- eight people were hidden inside, tucked inconspicuously behind suitcases and packages. With buses and trains fully booked out, and legal tickets hard to come by, some entrepreneurial Chinese bus drivers are welcoming the opportunity to make a quick buck from those desperate enough to get home in time. One young man that was caught in the luggage compartment told reporters that nobody forced them to do this and they were more than willing to travel this way. [h/t Youku Buzz]

To spread the Lunar New Year cheer, the central government has decided to distribute RMB9 billion worth of hongbao's (or red packets) to 74 million of the poorest residents in cities and villages as one-time disbursements meant to help them tide through the hard times. Villagers will receive RMB100 each, city dwellers RMB150 each, and those on state pensions/subsidies RMB180 each. All this money is coming straight from the Ministry of Finance and the central government has already given strict instructions to governments at all levels to disburse the monies in a "just, fair and transparent" manner.

           

If you are stumped for things to do for Chinese New Year and the thought of Siberian-like cold and a hot bowl of borscht seem more appealing then the beaches of Boracay, perhaps Harbin is a city you might consider visiting. Harbin's annual ice and sculpture festival started this week and runs until the end of February, weather permitting.

A group of 98 prisoners from the United States, Singapore, India, Nigeria and elsewhere celebrated Christmas by performing Chinese folk songs, yoga and magic tricks at a party organised by the Qingpu Prison Wednesday night. A special Christmas Eve dinner was also prepared for inmates comprising of roast mutton, chicken, potatoes and pizza. According to Shanghai Daily, all foreigners in prisons "are treated almost the same as their Chinese counterparts". In the same breath though, it adds that foreign prisoners enjoy "international living standards" in line with prisoner rights regulations prescribed by the UN, including daily showers, sports facilities and medical services. In case you're wondering about living conditions in there, each ward comes equipped with a showera and houses about ten inmates. Email access is provided so prisoners can keep in touch with their family. They also get to watch English TV news and read approved publications, and if they have enough money, they can even purchase portable radio sets and international calling cards for their own use. And just to make sure inmates don't get too bored in there, they are taught to make handicrafts and given Chinese lessons.

                                      

Thanks to everyone who came out Saturday night to celebrate with us. And a special thanks to Cotton's, American Craft Beer Partners and, of course, Santa Claus for making it all possible. Happy Holidays!

                                                                          

Photos by Stephen Yang. Go here to download your high-resolution images. For prints and framed prints contact stephen.a.yang(@)gmail.com. More photos from the A Very Shanghai Christmas party presented by Shanghaiist and Cotton's coming soon!

At tomorrow's big holiday party at Cotton's on Xinhua Lu, get your photo taken with Santa Claus — or Father Christmas, if you swing that way — between 8:30 and 11:30 pm (Santa likes to hit the bars on Tongren at about midnight). Shanghai-based photographer Stephen Yang will be taking professional portraits (lights and everything) of party guests chilling with Santa in Santa's VIP room (behind the first-floor bar). All party-goers are welcome ... and it doesn't cost you a thing. We'll post the pics on Shanghaiist early next week.

Shanghaiist recently enjoyed a few nonfat egg nogs with DJ El Nomo, who promises to make the Shanghaiist/Cotton's holiday party "the wildest holiday blowout ever held at Cotton's on Xinhua Lu." A tall task indeed. You may recognize El Nomo from such weblogs as Shanghai Bananas. And, of course, he is ranked No. 1 worldwide in the controversial Gothamist DJ Rankings. The following is a transcript of our unfiltered discussion with Asia's very own wizard of wax.

Early weather reports for the weekend are looking quite nice, so it looks like late-December outdoor seating will be a definite possibility at the Shanghaiist/Cotton's holiday party this Saturday at the new Cotton's on Xinhua Lu (pictured). And if the outdoor heaters (and bar) aren't cozy enough for you, head on inside the villa for the real wood-burning fireplaces (and more bars). And DJ El Nomo!

Short 50 second report on CCTV with footage from Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia and Beijing showing how Muslims across China are celebrating Eid Al Adha, the holiest feast in the Islamic calendar conducted to mark the end of the Haj, or the pilgrimage to Mecca.

Smart Shanghai

Shanghaiist and Cotton's are teaming up to throw a Christmas party on Saturday, December 20 at the new Cotton's on Xinhua Lu. We'll have many more details very soon. But you can rest assured you'll be able to have your photo taken with Santa.

Think you finally found the perfect Halloween costume this year? The outfit that will put all others to shame? Then come down to Shanghaiist's Halloween Party on Friday and prove it to us.

UPDATE: The best costumes for the evening will be awarded great prizes from Sherpa's! 1,000 RMB will go to the top male and female costumes, and the runners-up will get a case of Brooklyn Lager! Start getting your costumes ready today! (More details here.)

People’s Daily reports that Tianjin-based China National Computer Virus Emergency Response Centre warns Chinese Internet users of a Valentine’s ‘virus’ which may spread through emails and on-line chat services (such as QQ and MSN): watch out for "Vbs_Valentin.A" in “attachments disguised with Valentine blessings for February 14.” Now who would like to mislead us naïve lovers on such a day like February 14?

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.

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.

Some members of the Shanghaiist team are about to embark on ambitious Chinese New Year's expeditions. We wish everyone planning similar journeys a happy and safe trip. So you know what to look for, we're starting a list of the three biggest threats to your life as the year of the rat begins.

From Chris Billman:

At one time this building was probably a factory/sweatshop and now it's been converted into a Christian Church. It was really in the middle of nowhere, the town only had one restaurant and that was the only restaurant for at least 5km. What amazed me though was just how many chairs there were, Overflow chairs on the side and near where the picture was taken were quite a few throw pillows intended as chairs as well.

It is that time of the year again, and love it or hate it, it is there to remind us of its impending arrival everywhere we go. Here is a collection of pictures that capture Shanghai's Christmas, this year.

Yao Ming is not the best singer. And neither is any of his team mates from the Houston Rockets as this latest video of them spreading the holiday cheer with their own rendition of Jingle Bell Rock shows (Click here to watch them sing 12 Days of Christmas). But we love it!

Following up on yesterday's post about China's new holiday lineup for 2008, we now have the official official list of dates, so now everyone knows what Saturdays and Sundays they might be asked to work (and that nonsense starts soon). Here we go: