Merry Christmas in English, Joyeux Noel in French, Froehliche
Weihnachten in German and Sheng dan kuai le in Chinese. No matter
how you say it, Christmas is truly here.
This joyful season is now in full swing around the world and has
increasingly become better known in China's mainland in recent
years with the influx of expats in Shanghai and other cities around
the country.
Over the past decade, the Christian holiday has become more
popular in Shanghai, says Wang Xiaomei, a local pearl merchant.
"In China, the big cities like Shanghai and Beijing celebrate
Christmas. However, it is more of a celebration for the foreigners
who live here."
As Shanghai grows, it is becoming increasingly cosmopolitan and
is paying more attention to foreign festivals and holidays. You
just have to take a walk around Xintiandi and the place is awash
with Christmas trees and glittering decorations.
The large shopping centers and hotels have also started to cater
for the festive celebrations, putting decorations up and holding
Christmas activities such as traditional Christmas dinner and
Christmas parties.
Wang says: "Young Chinese people are starting to celebrate
Christmas. But I think this is because they think it is fashionable
and that they are being modern, rather than celebrating the birth
of Christ."
"I have never celebrated the Christmas holiday. The only impact
it has on me is that I have more orders this time of year to ship
pearls to Europe for gifts. On Christmas Day I will probably be
working as usual and looking forward to Chinese New Year which is a
Chinese traditional holiday."
Christmas traditions and customs have become increasingly
commercialized, yet, the Old World rituals make Christmas a new
alacrity every year, influencing cultures that traditionally would
not celebrate the holiday.
"There are many Christmas services in Shanghai churches where if
people are religious they can go to. But people tend to forget the
true meaning behind Christmas," says Matt Clarke, a producer for
Bright Shadow films in Shanghai.
"The young generation of Chinese are the same. They celebrate it
like many in England or America, send cards and give gifts without
really knowing what it is about, making it a big excuse for a
party."
Englishman Clarke moved to Shanghai two years ago said the city
is becoming a lot more Westernized and Christmas was becoming more
and more popular each year. "I can even see the change from the
short time I have been here."
Manjari Meng, an assistant for the same film company, says: "I
am a typical Shanghainese, I have never really celebrated
Christmas. Now, as many of my friends are from France and England,
I have started to acknowledge it a lot more."
"Maybe on December 25 I will go to a friend's house and have
dinner or go shopping. If finances permit, I may buy some gifts for
them or even take a small trip out of the city," she says.
If you have the funds you can have a very traditional Christmas
with turkey and all the trimmings in Shanghai at one of the big
hotels, says Clarke. "But to me, Christmas is not about the food or
the decoration it's about being with friends and family."
"I will be having a big party and in the interests of staying
festive we will dress up one of our unsuspecting Chinese friends as
Father Christmas and he can dole out the gifts we have bought for
each other. There will be loads of mulled wine and Christmas songs.
And we will all raise a glass to Christmas in Shanghai."
(Shanghai Daily December 8, 2006)
