Traditions and everyday life in China

Festivals, family customs, favourite places and everyday traditions, written by members of Global Penfriends who live in China. Each cultural keepsake is a short note about life where they are.

130 keepsakes from China · page 2 of 5
Peach Tree Decoration on Chinese New Year
Tradition

Peach Tree Decoration on Chinese New Year

In Guangdong, China, people usually buy peach trees and decorate it, a regionally Chinese New Year celebration.People will select and purchase their trees from the flower markets and hang gadgets like red pockets, Chinese knots…

Shared by Karlux124
Roasting Tea over a Brazier
Activity

Roasting Tea over a Brazier

Roasting tea over a brazier is a popular traditional leisure activity in China. We set a small charcoal brazier on the table, boil tea on the fire, and roast snacks like sweet potatoes, chestnuts and oranges beside it. Friends or…

Shared by Lavelle Yun
Chinese Spring Festival
Tradition

Chinese Spring Festival

The Spring Festival is one of the most important traditional festivals for the Chinese. During the Spring Festival holiday, people usually go back to the countryside and gather with relatives in their own families. On New Year’s…

Shared by Ceceyee
Burning Paper
Tradition

Burning Paper

The Chinese people burn paper, for wishes, for happiness, for those who has been beyond. On one breath, thoughts are tossed by flare along with flying ash. It comes true as well as you wish, which is what sealed on the candle. (…

Shared by Djen
A moon cake box
Family life

A moon cake box

This moon cake box is a gift I received when I was 17 years old. At that time, I lived in relative poverty, and this box of moon cakes was very expensive at that time. After receiving it, I was very happy. I felt that the moon…

Shared by xiaomei
Chinese tradition culture
Everyday life

Chinese tradition culture

Chinese calligraphy has a long history and over 2000 years ago, writing characters became an art form in China. In the Yuan Dynasty, the idea of integrating poetry, calligraphy, painting, and printing was proposed. I like…

Shared by Francis Hsiang
Forbidden City
Place

Forbidden City

The Meridian Gate of the Forbidden City, a photo I took with my friends when I passed by on a summer day in July. I felt that the shadows of the trees, the bright yellow and vermilion of the Forbidden City, and the blue sky in…

Shared by Christinacsy
The refueling ceremony
Activity

The refueling ceremony

The college entrance examination is seen as very very important in China.So two days before the annual college entrance exam, schools hold cheering ceremonies.On this night,all the students in the school would get together and…

Shared by Cl2
Traveling in Jiangxi
Everyday life

Traveling in Jiangxi

Xianglufeng Waterfall in Lushan, Jiangxi, China.I took a photo of Xianglu Peak Waterfall while sitting on the cableway. The first time I took the cableway, it was very high, and I was very scared and excited when I went up.In the…

Shared by Leyan CHEN
Yellow Crane Town Building, Wuhan
Everyday life

Yellow Crane Town Building, Wuhan

Yellow Crane Tower is the famous landmark building which are standing besides the Yangtze River in Wuhan. In the three kingdom period, it was built and used by Wu kingdom as a military watchtower .over a thousand years ,it was…

Shared by SaBoTanYuan
Chinese new year
Tradition

Chinese new year

it is true that this day let people stay together no matter how busy and how far they are. I barely have chances to see my relatives, but in Spring Festival, we will have dinner and talk the whole night. It is such a great moment…

Shared by Coco zheng
Dragon boat festival
Faith

Dragon boat festival

Every four years, our city holds a dragon boat race. About a month before the race, the teams from different neighborhoods prepare for the race and publicize the team. On the day of the festival, the scene was crowded, and the…

Shared by Chrishoo
Chunlian (Spring Festival Couplets)
Tradition

Chunlian (Spring Festival Couplets)

Every year during the Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations, or Spring Festival, students or well respected elders are asked to write calligraphy on pieces of red paper which are later hung or glued to doors to beckon good luck and…

Shared by Plethora07
Qixia Temple
Place

Qixia Temple

Qixia Temple, where I am converted to buddhism, is one of the most famous and important temples in history. It is famous as the Buddhist Center during the southern and Northern Dynasties and for its sculpture,stupa and maple…

Shared by Gary Q
Chinese new year celebration
Tradition

Chinese new year celebration

The most significant festival in China is the Spring Festival, during which families typically reunite on Lunar New Year's Eve. We celebrate this occasion by hanging lanterns, affixing Spring Festival couplets, and setting off…

Shared by Elenaxie
The Book of Songs
Tradition

The Book of Songs

The Book of Songs is the earliest collection of poems in China.It contains 305 poems created over a period of some 500 years from the early Western Zhou Dynasty to the middle of the Spring and Autumn Period. The lines in the Book…

Shared by Arima Kousei
Soft Brush Calligraphy Work
Activity

Soft Brush Calligraphy Work

Soft brush calligraphy is actually the way of writting for the ancient in China. I tried it at Grade Three for the first time. At that time ,I fell in love with it. I used to practice it twice a week. But now, because of my…

Shared by Rowena and fish
Lantern festival
Tradition

Lantern festival

Lantern Festival is the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, which is the first full moon of the New Year, symbolizing harmony and reunion. Lantern Festival is an important part of the Spring Festival and also symbolizes the…

Shared by Bouboo
Chinese Noodles
Activity

Chinese Noodles

Here are some Chinese noodles :) P1 is 鸭血粉丝汤 (duck blood and vermicelli soup) from Nanking.P2 is 牛肉油泼面(i kind of forget exactly which kind of noodle this is, perhaps Oil Spill Noodle) . Traditional Xi'an noodles.P3 is 苏式虾仁蟹黄面…

Shared by Anna Niemand
traditional chinese Hanfu wedding dress
Tradition

traditional chinese Hanfu wedding dress

This photo was taken when I attended my friend's wedding.She had to get up at 2 a.m. to dress, because it was a local tradition for newlyweds to go to their parents' house at 4 a.m. to serve tea to their elders.It was all worth…

Shared by Platina
Some information about China
Tradition

Some information about China

There are 56 nationalities in China, of which 90% are Han. There are many traditional festivals in China, of which the Spring Festival is the most solemn, and all parts of the country will have holidays.A big meal called “Family…

Shared by Patrick Yu
Changsha Spring Festival Gala fireworks
Activity

Changsha Spring Festival Gala fireworks

A grand fireworks show was held at the Changsha branch of the China Central Broadcasting and Television Spring Festival Gala in 2024. Nine large ships carrying countless fireworks performed fireworks in the Beichen Delta of the…

Shared by Bu Changzai
Dragon Boat Festival
Event

Dragon Boat Festival

It is a tradation that is several thousand years old. On that day, we Chinese usually have zongzi, known as our traditional food. Some of us also take an active part in the Dragon Boat Race. We will also have three days off to…

Shared by The Darkhold
Chinese woodcarving
Tradition

Chinese woodcarving

The art of wood carving originated in China during the Neolithic Period. The Hemudu culture in Yuyao, Zhejiang Province, more than 7000 years ago, saw the appearance of wood carving fish. It is the crystallization of folk wisdom…

Shared by Psychehh
A trip of Pingtan Island
Place

A trip of Pingtan Island

During our Labor Day trip to Pingtan Island in Fujian Province, we saw “blue tears”, which is a phenomenon formed by fluorescent algae in the ocean, and our footprints on the beach would also have a sparkling blue light as if…

Shared by Fantina
Our traditional festival-New Year
Activity

Our traditional festival-New Year

The Chinese New Year, also known as the Spring Festival, is the most significant traditional festival in China. It features family reunions, sumptuous feasts, and various cultural activities, symbolizing new beginnings and good…

Shared by RDer
pandas in Chimelong 🐼
Everyday life

pandas in Chimelong 🐼

Pandas seen in Chimelong, Guangzhou this summer! The weather in Guangzhou is very hot, so most of the pandas stay in the air-conditioned room to sleep, but they are still very…

Shared by Cl2
spring festival
Tradition

spring festival

During the Spring Festival, our relatives who are far away from home will try to get home together for the holiday, so the traffic becomes extremely busy during the Spring Festival. The whole family will have a full and happy…

Shared by feng wangfeng wang
Mid-Autumn Festival
Tradition

Mid-Autumn Festival

The Mid-Autumn Festival falls on the 15th August (Chinese Nongli Calendar). People always eat the delicious mooncake and admire the moon with family members. The government has arranged three statutory holidays for the festival.

Shared by sw05

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