Me & City (Suzhou, China)

You may already have made plans about the holiday of Chinese New Year while you still want to know that with what are those Chinese messing around during Chinese New Year, So the date would still work..

Jiaozi Party & culture activity
Date & Time: 6th, Feb. AM 11:00
Location: ROOM1101 BUILDING B  Rainbow Shopping Center (above it), NO.388 Su Ya Road, SIP, Suzhou
Organizer: HanTao Chinese Language School
Contact: E-mail: info@hantaochinese.com/Call: 86-512-6272 2117

It will be fun to celebrate it together with you by
Making Jiaozi and eat it,
Making Chinese “Fu” and “Chunlian” which will be sticking on door frames during Spring Festival.
Experience Chinese calligraphy.
Enjoy Guqin music
Play games with new friends.

So the plan is if you are interested and want to come, please write to HanTao Chinese by e-mail before the 1st of February.

P.S.: you all will be welcomed if any of your family or your friend wants to come. If you are a vegan please let HanTao know.
Then according to how many of you will come we will let you know how much we need you to bring. For your reference, last time ten people came and each of them paid 25RMB.

The Tiger Year is near the corner! You know what Chinese do specially to celebrate the most important festival among the whole year—The Spring Festival?  Making Chunlian and Chinese Fu is one of the interesting and meaningful custom passed down generation by generation.

Chunlian, literally translated as spring festival couplets, is made by writing a couplet in Chinese calligraphy on two strip-type papers with red background.  The couplet for Chunlian, usually very nice verse, always express some lucky, good fortune, prosperous, peace and joy wishes people dream of in the coming new year.

Unlike Chunlian, which is made up of poetry, Chinese Fu only contains one Chinese character, Fu(福), literally means good fortune and happiness. When making Fu, the red square paper is usually rotated by 45 degree. I’m not sure if there is any special reason but personally I think it can have the character written as big as possible and looks nicer after rotating:）

It’s not still over when Chunlian and Chinese Fu is readily made, they have to be stuck on door before the first day of the new year. Remove the old Chunlian & Chinese Fu and replace the newly made ones, so done!

Okay, would like to get Chunlian and Chinese Fu or have interests in making them yourself? There are two events you may join!

Free Chunlian Giving Away
Date & Time: 31st, Jan. PM 2:30
Location: Huxi Community Working Committee Building 4th fl. 165 Xinghai Street, Suzhou, SIP
Organizer: Huxi Community Working Committee
Contact: E-mail: huxiexpats@163.com/Call: 86-512-8818 3536

Jiaozi Party & culture activity

In China, we call the last month(12th) of the lunar Calendar La Yue, the server winter, and the Laba festival is on the eighth day of the month, exactly today!

According to the legend, people used to worship ancestors and pray for a plentiful of harvest & good fortune on the 8th day of  La Yue since the pre-Qin history. It is also said that the day of Laba is on which Sakyamuni Buddha, the founder of Buddhism, realized the truth or philosophic theory after cultivating for 6 years under a pipal tree in an extremely arduous situation.

Chinese have a tradition of eating Laba rice porridge on that day wishing good luck for more than one thousand years, dates back Song dynasty. Laba porridge, tastes naturally sweet, is made up of a variety of fresh grains, nut meat and fruits which is harvested during the same year.  The main materials of Laba porridge is rice, usually polished round-grained rice, glutinous rice and seed of Job’s tears are preferred.  There is a wide range of colorful ingredients for Laba porridge, including peanut meat, dates, walnut meat, lotus seeds, small red beans, soy beans, chestnut meat, dried longan pulp, etc.  Add anything else if you want to be creative!

Have a bowl of hot Laba porridge in such a super cold day will be so enjoyable:)  You really can’t  miss it, and the good fortune!!

Hey, you know how many big shows in 2010???    I’m continuing collecting valuable trade fairs, exhibitions and congresses will be held in Suzhou this year!  Just click the name of the shows to visit their official site for more detailed information.  Some exact dates of the shows are not released and I will keep an eye 4 you as soon as I find out.

If you know any show not mentioned in the following lists, please kindly let me know and I will have it updated. Thanks 4 sharing:)

• 2010.03.11-13
  The 7th Suzhou International Industrial Expo
  Suzhou International Expo Center

• 2010.05.01-04
  Suzhou Real Estate Industry Exposition
  Suzhou International Expo Center

• 2010.05.12-14
  Suzhou PCB Show / Suzhou SMT Show / Suzhou Assembly Show
  Suzhou International Expo Center

• 2010.05.28-06.01
  2010 The 47th International Federation of Landscape Architects World Congress (IFLA)
  Suzhou International Conference Centre

• Sep. 2010
  7th Suzhou International Linkage Industry Exhibition
  China East Int’l Machine Tool & Mold Technology Exhibition
  China East Int’l Plastics, Packaging & Rubber Technology Exhibition
  Suzhou International Expo Center

• Sep. 2010
  China International Logistics Technology and Service Exhibition
  Suzhou International Expo Center

• Oct. 2010
  eMEX CHINA 2010
  Suzhou International Expo Center

• 2011.03.23-25
  China Elevators and Accessories Expo 2011
  Suzhou International Expo Center

to be updated…

Have you missed the total solar eclipse in 2009? Hah, we all missed it caused by the unexpected rain. Never mind, there is a good opportunity to enjoy the wonder of the nature again just as the new year 2010 begin—Annular Solar Eclipse 2010 Jan 15. It is said that the total procedure of the event will last around 5 hours and you won’t enjoy the greater annular eclipse until 3043 Dec 23!  However, a little pity, Suzhou does not stand among the annular eclipse path, but we can still enjoy quite good partial eclipse!

Check the partial solar eclipse info in Suzhou from this google map provided by NASA Eclipse . Do pay attention that the difference between UT time and Beijing time. Our time for start, maximum and end are 15:38, 16:56 and 18:05

You may also visit the total map shows the path of the Annular Solar Eclipse of 2010 Jan 15 to check the events info for any other location.

Enjoy the wander! And don’t forget to wear qualified safety glasses to protect your eyes.

The Urban Best Practices Area, in which those honored cities show their idea and achievements,  is a big innovation of EXPO 2010 Shanghai.  It will be one of the centerpieces of the Expo 2010.  Cities have opportunity to display their experiences with urbanization in the area covering about 15 hectares in total.

Suzhou is so lucky to be one of the 55 listed cities all over the world who have halls to display their own. Under the title of  “The Protection and Renovation of the Suzhou Old City”,  Suzhou will show its achievements in protecting and renovating the city’s cultural and historical sites in the Urban Best Practices Area at Expo 2010.  Suzhou hall covers about 370 square meters.

A official movie introducing Suzhou on different aspects composed of  Suzhou image, Suzhou life, Suzhou new humanities and Suzhou new spirit is also busy preparing.  Suzhou will show her style to the wrold!

2010 is near the corner and so is EXPO 2010! I will continue to update the information & news on Suzhou at the EXPO 2010 Shanghai.