Foreign and Local Residents Celebrate Lantern Festival Together

From savoring "bingtanghulu," Chinese traditional candied fruits, to playing traditional games like lantern riddles, guests from all over Shanghai celebrated the Lantern Festival together on March 1 at the Half Marathon Suzhou Creek Station Party and Community Service Center.

Jointly organized by City News Service and Yichuan Road Subdistrict, the event welcomed both foreign and local residents to come together and celebrate the Lantern Festival as a community.

The Lantern Festival, which falls on March 3 this year, is a Chinese traditional festival celebrated on the 15th day of the first month of the lunar calendar. It marks the official end of Chinese New Year celebrations.

"This is my first time and I'm so happy to be here, to write and make this Chinese lantern for Lantern Festival," Channarong from Thailand said.

"In Thailand, we don't have this festival, so actually, I don't understand too much, but today, I experienced this, I think it's so good," he added.

Many activities traditionally attributed with Lantern Festival were prepared for participants, such as guessing lantern riddles, decorating their own lanterns and eating "tangyuan," or a dessert of glutinous rice balls. Apart from these activities, there was a charity fair held by local children, allowing for interaction between the foreign residents and the kids.

"I think it's the lanterns, like drawing on the lantern, because you can let your creativity (flow)," Aili, a student from Germany, shared about her favorite activity at the event.

Many participants reflected that the Lantern Festival had an endearing tone to it, since it encourages everyone to gather, as a community, to celebrate traditions and customs. Many expat residents also hailed the positive experience of the tradition and the event as a whole.

"I think that having the tangyuan with everyone here was really great because I don't have family in China, so it was nice to have that family vibe here, today as a community," said RoRo from the UK.

"I think one of the biggest things, it's a good reminder of how community based it (Lantern festival) is," South African Arlene observed.

"Being able to connect so many people, put them together, have a celebration together and share something that's so deeply entrenched in tradition and culture, it's a beautiful experience."