Day 200: Chinese Christmas

(Disclaimer: This post was written in advance and set to be published on/around Christmas Day, which happens to be my 200th day since arriving in China.)

Living in a country where religion is not a major factor, when the major Western holidays roll around, it feels a bit weird. Christmas is no exception. Having never experienced Christmas in China, let alone experienced it in another country other than the USA, I wasn’t sure what to expect, how it would feel, and most importantly would I be able to find candy canes and eggnog!

Ok, so I wasn’t so worried about the candy canes and making eggnog from scratch isn’t that difficult, but what about Christmas decorations? After all, most Christmas decorations and lights purchased in the USA likely were made in China (what isn’t these days!), so you’d expect to see at least a small smattering of holiday decor, right?

Well, right before Thanksgiving when the brand new Suzhou Center (a 7100sqm shopping mall that is just amazingly expensive as it is expansive) opened, my concerns were all but squashed! One week after it’s grand opening I went to the mall for an Internations event and was greeted by Christmas trees, reindeer, and lights. Crazy!

As the weeks passed and Christmas inched closer, more decorations and lights were seen throughout the city. Even my apartment building and work building were decorated.

I have to say even though it seems weird to have this little touch of Christmas spirit in a non-Christian country, it made for a rather nice past few weeks. Now my only concern is if the decorations are all taken down before the Ephiany!