If you plan to make a good impression, it's a great idea to have your cards printed with your name and job title in Chinese characters on the back of your business cards.It's a courtesy that many Chinese businessmen would appreciate. If you don't get a chance to do this prior to your trip, most business centers in major hotel chains offer quick-delivery name card printing services, and they can also assist in the selection of a Chinese name for you.
The Longhua Temple Fair, held in Longhua Old Town, has a history of more than 300 years and comes around town every March 15th of the Lunar calendar. Legend tells that the Laughing Buddha was born under the Longhua Tree and since then, people have been coming to this tree to make wishes for anything from true love to good luck.
Today, this yearly gathering has become a fair with the largest folk gathering in eastern China. The 2-3 week celebration starting in mid-April is marked by Lion dance competitions, processions of Chinese auspicious and mythological figures and fairies to scare away demons and bring good luck and good health, and other cultural performances like acrobats, Chinese opera, dance and music shows. Booths surround the temple to create narrow passages where you fight through thousands of visitors to taste all kinds of traditional Chinese foods or buy handicrafts.
The Shanghai International Tea Culture Festival is held annually in April and lasts about one week. Thousands of tea lovers, experts and tea producers come to Shanghai for the festival. For the novice and the expert tea drinkers alike, they are treated to intricate tea ceremonies, get a chance to sample a few good brands of tea, attend informative seminars and visit famous teahouses around town.
An ancient Chinese writing claims that 5000 years ago, a chief of a primeval tribe who developed farming and medicine was the creator of tea. During his search for alternative forms of edible vegetation, he was poisoned many times but since he had ingested some tea leaves, they worked as an antidote for the poison. Chinese people have since uncovered the secrets powers that tea held including relieving thirst, refreshing the mind and also curing some diseases. From then on, drinking the liquid brewed with tea leaves grew into the legend of tea.
The inspiration of the Tea Culture Festival goes back to when the Songyuan Teahouse was opened in Zhabei District. Seminars and gatherings were organized at the teahouse to discuss the writings of one of China's tea masters, Wu Juenong (1897-1989), which eventually evolved into the yearly celebration it is today.
The Shanghai Peach Blossom Festival is held annually in late March or early April (depending on the weather) in the immense peach tree orchards in Nanhui District, a suburb of Shanghai. The festival allows visitors the chance to appreciate the blossoming of the flowers and learn more from Chinese folk culture presentations. The Chengbei Folk Peach Orchards located in Nanhui District's Huinan Town, is the main meeting-place of the Peach Blossom Festival when the impressive peach trees bloom. These flowers on these trees are regarded as the most auspicious of all plants and artists all over China immortalize these flowers in their works such as water color paintings to jade carvings. The bark of the tree was said to be able to ward off evil and warriors could make weapons using the wood. When the peach blossom's leaves spread out, it symbolizes life, growth and prosperity. The peach fruit, in Chinese culture, is a symbol of long life. In ancient history, the peach plant of immortality that grew in the Kun Lun mountains would only bear fruit every 3000 years and when this happened, the Eight Immortals, a Chinese myth that eight ordinary people attained immortality by pure chance, would gather and eat the magic fruit to assure their immortality.
The Dragon Boat Festival is celebrated on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month. The story behind this tradition revolves around the death of a national hero, Qu Yuan. He was a minister and a poet to the Zhou emperor during the Warring States Period (475-221 BC) who protested against the corruption in the emperor's court. After being exiled for criticizing the emperor's decision to go to war against the opposing Qin Kingdom, he fell into despair and drowned himself when he later learned that the emperor was defeated by the Qin kingdom. Legend has it that people rushed out in long boats and attempted to prevent fish from feeding on his body by throwing glutinous rice balls wrapped in bamboo leaves (zong zi) into the sea and frightening fish away by beating drums. Today people honor Qu Yuan through Dragon Boat races and eating zong zi. The dragon boats races are exciting to both the participants and spectators. Crews of up to 80 rowers, race in narrow boats ranging from 40 to 100 feet long with dragon heads and tails at each end. Drummers at the front of the boats beat their drums to pace the rowers to victory. Races are held every year all over the world and the winning team will bring a bountiful harvest and a happy life to their village.
The Shanghai International Film Festival is held every other year in the fall. When it is in town, it allows locals and tourists an opportunity to see a wealth of acclaimed films from around the world. Locals say due to government restrictions on films, this is definitely the best time to see what other country's arts communities are producing. This event kicked off in 1993 and has been growing ever since. The event draws more than 400 film applicants from over 40 countries. This event is an excellent way for travelers to see a range of films from around the world.
The Shanghai Tourism Festival celebrates and promotes tourism for the city. It is held annually from the first week of September to the end of October. The massive festival showcases float parades down Huahai Road, concerts and special walking tours of the city's streets. The festival offers a huge amount of traditional and not-so-traditional entertainment at venues across the city.
The China Shanghai International Arts Festival puts on display the best cultures from around the world, to support Chinese traditional arts, to promote cultural exchanges between China and the world and to develop cultural markets. Shanghai hosts the month-long festival (November through December) every year which welcomes an international cast of performers, including symphony orchestras, dancer, opera singers, acrobats, magicians and drama actors. The Shanghai Biennale coincides with this festival which features a collection of modern works of art from international artists.
As modern as Shanghai is, it's still built on centuries old traditions. The meanings behind the festivals still have profound influence in daily life and with the introduction of the modern ones, help to make this city's culture even more diversified... blending old and new with Eastern and Western themes. Will this city eventually be consumed by the future and forget its past? These traditions have lasted for centuries... surely they won't be forgotten that easily.
