Ni hao!

Okay….so I have been in Beijing since December 28^th.  Today is April 1st, and this is my first entry.  I have quite a bit of catch up to do.  A lot has happened in the last 3 months, but I am  going to start with one of my favorite nights to date since my arrival – February 13^th – New Year’s Eve in China.

Around the 1^st of February, I began to notice that fireworks shops were popping up on every other street corner.  It reminded me of driving though Tennessee the week before July 4^th.  What I didn’t initially realize is that these shops were not just selling your basic bottle rockets, sparklers, and poppers.  These little shanties were peddling top of the line, Macy’s Fourth of July Firework Extravaganza style fireworks to average Chinese citizens.

Almost 2 weeks passed and February 13^th arrived.  Brett and I were enjoying our Saturday morning with a marathon of Top Chefs (downloaded on Apple TV) when we noticed very loud booms starting to go off.  It was sporadic at first; however, as the day progressed the booms became closer and closer together.  By nightfall the booms were a constant, and we fully realized what was happening.  The Year of the Tiger celebration was in full force.  Of the 8 large windows in our apartment, we could see about 4 firework displays from each one.  Yes – that’s around 32 firework displays going off at any given point!   I am crazy for fireworks so this was truly the most amazing display of pyrotechnics I had ever seen.   We watched for hours – toasting to the Tiger and to our new adventure.  By 3 AM (after 8 hours of fire in the sky perfection) we were out of champagne and ready for bed.

We foolishly set our alarm for the next morning, which proved to be completely unnecessary, as the booming fireworks continued through the night and for the next 2 weeks of Spring Festival.  Growing up in Murray with the Fabulous Freedom Fest, I thought that we had patriotism and pride in our country down to perfection….clearly the Ole’ US of A needs to step it up a notch!

or….HAPPY NEW YEAR in Chinese!

Beijing Tip:  A great spot for watching the official Beijing Fireworks Show is from China Bar on the 65th floor of the Park Hyatt Hotel.  Be sure to make a reservation at a table by the window.

Park Hyatt Beijing
2 Jianguomenwai Street, Chaoyang District
Beijing
100022
People’s Republic of China
Tel: +86 10 8567 1234

Tags: Apple TV, China Bar, Chinese New Year, Freedom Fest Murray, KY, Macy's Fourth of July Firework Extravaganza, Park Hyatt Beijing, Top Chef, Travel, Year of the Tiger