Tag Archives: by Jules Koury

Xīn Nián Kuài Le – Happy New Year

Feature Report

New Zealand may seem like an unexpected place to celebrate xīn nián, Chinese Lunar New Year, but every year, the city of Christchurch hosts a lantern festival to mark the occasion. Compared to traditional lantern festivals in China, Christchurch’s is much smaller, filling up only the city square. Yet despite the size, both the event’s activities and crowd were surprisingly robust for a Chinese Festival in New Zealand. The educational elements included in Christchurch’s event also make it different from a traditional lantern festival. Unlike in China, Christchurch’s lantern festival is advertised to an ethnically mixed audience, most of which are not Chinese. Intended for a mixed audience, the event is geared to both welcome the New Year and encourage attendees to learn more about Chinese culture. The festival is organized by the small, strong Chinese community and is backed by a China-based organization known as the Confucius Institute, an independent group that teaches courses on Chinese language and culture. Cultural events like Christchurch’s lantern festival are what bring ethnically mixed communities together in both celebrating and sharing cultural diversity.

The history of the Chinese Lunar New Year begins with ancient Chinese astronomers. As they observed the night skies, astronomers began to notice a cycle in star patterns. They called one full cycle yì nián (one year). Assigned to each year is a zodiac animal that comes from a Chinese creation legend. In the story the Jade Emperor, the ruler of the heavens, offers all animals a chance to have a year named after them if they win a race. The first twelve animals who win the race then celebrate at a heavenly banquet, each being awarded their own year. The lantern festival, which celebrates both the animal and the beginning of the New Year, is held at night and often displays decorations featuring that year’s animal.

At the Christchurch Lantern Festival, crowds fill an entire city square. To judge from their accents, almost everyone is a New Zealand native, a Kiwi, but about half the crowd looks to be not ethnically Chinese. This year, everyone is bustling towards different attractions to celebrate the Year of the Dog. In one corner, there is a stage where groups perform traditional songs and dances. These performances range from a single, elderly Chinese man playing a flute to a children’s group dressed in traditional garb moving to percussion beats. A little farther from the stage, makeshift stands of collapsable poles and tented fabric line the border of the square. Each contains something different. In one, young kids learn to make small origami animals. The next stand is filled to the brim with festive decorations like hóng zhǐ (red paper), and keychain tassels, all to bring good luck this New Year. At the end, there are a few stands organized by the Confucius Institute. They’re easily identifiable because they are twice as big as all the others, and they’re connected. Tonight, their presence signifies that to fully appreciate Chinese culture, it is necessary to understand its roots. Inside each stand, teachers walk visitors through the basics of calligraphy and teach them about the origins of the Chinese Lunar Calendar. It’s striking to hear the traditional Chinese myth told in the soft drawl of the Kiwi accent. The crowd in this half of the square alternates between watching the stage and milling about among the stands.

There is so much to watch and listen to, but it’s the smell that pulls people to the other side of the square.

Across from the stalls and the stage is a wall of food trucks. Their aroma has been pervading the entire festival, enticing would-be customers. Most of these trucks are not serving Chinese food, which is a casual nod towards the mixed crowd. Ironically, the one with the longest line happens to be for yakisoba, Japanese fried noodles. Amongst traditional dumplings and fish ’n’ chips, the scents of Chinese and Kiwi cultures mix in the air. As customers equip themselves with small treats they begin wandering through the spectacle of lanterns. They are unlike the traditional small lanterns one sees hanging from trees or set on tables. Instead, they are huge creations of thin nylon-esque material covering dazzling lights formed into an array of intricate shapes. People crowd around them and wander from dragons to pandas, ships, and horses, their gazes fixed on each for several moments before the cameras click.

Amidst the revelry of the crowd, a sound rings out signaling for people to make way as the parade starts coming through. The parade marks the peak of the festival, drawing people from all over the square towards the center as the marchers file in. Small and energetic, each procession is full of music and excitement as musicians march alongside traditional dragon dancers. As the parade begins to exit the other side of the square, everything else quickly follows. The lights on the stage are already dimmed, most of the stalls are in the process of being collapsed, and many of the food trucks have packed away their signs. Even as the festivities come to an end, the goal of the lantern festival here has clearly been achieved. The Chinese Lunar New Year has been welcomed through traditional festivities, while large crowds at the information booths testify to the success of cultural education. As the crowd filters out, only the lanterns are left; a light guiding us into the New Year.

Photos taken by J.Koury at the Lantern Festival. Christchurch, New Zealand . March 11, 2018.

A Traveling How-To

Blog Post

Travel isn’t an experience isolated to the destination. Perhaps like you, as a kid I dreamed of traveling the world. Now that I’ve grown up to become a world traveller, I’ve often thought about the question: what is the best way to travel? Of course there is no straight textbook answer, but since you’re reading my blog, you may be interested in a couple tips I’ve picked up along the way.

  1. Know your own culture:

Culture clashes come in all shapes and sizes. On a small scale, this can mean not understanding why fries are chips and chips are crisps (it makes no sense, a waffle chip?). On a larger scale, it can mean stumbling embarrassingly through broken French, begging the waitress to take back the plate of raw meat when I assumed boeuf tartare meant cooked with tartar sauce. As a traveler you have be clear with who you are, what you like, and most importantly what you cannot stand. Some like traveling with a companion, because it can feel hollow if they don’t have another to share the experience with. Others are perfectly fine venturing off on their own, preferring the freedom of autonomy. Some need an itinerary (the if-we-keep-to-the-time-we-can-visit-everything schedule), others prefer to unleash their own spontaneity (i.e. burning that aforementioned schedule). Understanding your culture is key to not only planning the logistics of your trip, but also selecting a destination. Are you okay if the country’s native language is not your own? Do you prefer public transit to renting a car? Are the local customs contrary to your personal beliefs? Can you respect that? These are all questions that need to be asked of yourself before you decide on a destination. The world is not a one size fits all, so doing a bit of research both introspectively and online is worth the time.

  1. Treat yourself:

When you’re on a tight budget, logistics don’t always get the attention they deserve. For those of you planning to go very far away, read twice as closely. There are two ways to get around the world: the long way, or the short way. As someone who is constantly working just to scrape enough money together for a ticket, I don’t say this lightly: if financially possible, always choose the shorter option. As a frequent traveler, I have lost more time and money taking the cheapest way out (I’m looking at you, Spirit Airlines) than if I considered slightly more expensive options. It’s hard on a tight budget, but if you’ve got any wiggle room, treat yourself to the convenience of a shorter flight. It’s logical, a shorter flight means there is less time for something to go wrong. For example, minimizing layovers decreases the chance that your luggage could be lost or damaged. Even more importantly, your body will thank you. Being cramped up in a three-foot space for 21 hours is not fun, no matter how many movies are available.

  1. Don’t Screw Future-You

The Boy Scouts say “be prepared” but I like my title more. You never know what might happen when you’re abroad so don’t screw yourself by being unprepared. For example, on my way to France, I never expected to be in a situation where I would purposely pretend  not to know French. Yet that’s what I had to do to escape, because I also never imagined that a father asking for directions would actually be a man using his baby as a trick for starting a conversation to hit on me (I’ll never forget that baby). Should anything go wrong (a traveler’s mantra), always know your basics: how to contact help, how to get home, and always have cash. Contacting help isn’t always easy. If you don’t know the language, keep certain local words and phrases written down either on your phone or a piece of paper (like ‘help me’ or ‘do you speak [insert language]?’). This will help you communicate without pronunciation affecting the message. Getting home isn’t always the same getting there, so make sure if you’re traveling far from where you’re staying that you have a definite way of getting back. Often public transit closes down after a certain hour, and taxis are harder to find in areas with fewer people, so planning ahead can make a huge impact. A good habit to get into is memorizing landmarks around the area you’re staying in, this way if you need help and someone doesn’t know the address, they still may recognize the area. Finally, always carry some cash with you. Not everyone takes cards, but everyone always takes cash. In a pinch, you might not know what you’ll need it for, but you’ll be glad you’ve got it (surviving is part of the experience, right?).

From transportation to culture, there are plenty of factors that can make traveling an unpredictable adventure (which is part of the fun). With that said, there is still a lot within your control which can help keep ‘unpredictable’ fun. It may seem that traveling is all about getting on a plane, and stepping off into an adventure. Truthfully, that’s most of it. For the rest, these tips are here to help.