新婚快乐：A glimpse into a Chinese wedding

There weren't many things I had lined up for the summer when I returned home but one thing I was definitely looking forward to was going to my older cousin David's wedding in what would technically be my first ever proper Chinese wedding. I say 'proper' but we've got to remember that it was still 'western' by Chinese standards. But there were still so many customs that were observed for a traditional Chinese wedding. I was roped in last minute to play photographer which meant I was close up to most of the action from the minute it started until the very end as the last stragglers left the dinner venue. So what does a Chinese wedding entail?

Me playing photographer, getting up close and personal with all the action

My understanding of a Chinese wedding was somewhat limited before going to Dave's wedding. In my HSK 3 textbook there's a passage about what a Chinese bride and groom wears, namely focusing on the bride traditionally wearing a royal red Chinese style dress but that more brides opt for the traditional 'westernised' white gown as well. I could confirm that it was true having flicked through some of my parents old wedding photos from back in the day. Mum had the big white dress in the day time, and a sleek red cheongsam dress for the evening reception. According to some TV documentaries I'd seen, I understood that it was also sometimes traditional for the groom to come knocking at the bedroom door with his beautiful bride and her bridal party on the other side. After a series of games and some serenading, he must convince the bride to open up. The deciding factor normally comes down to how many lucky red envelopes filled with money he would pass through the door give the impression he could take care of his wife-to-be financially before they let him in. All a little strange as traditions go, but the symbolism and the sentiment they represent is all there.

It wasn't quite the same with Dave's wedding. Being British Chinese, I think it's nice to be able to make your wedding your own with a combination of both western and Chinese elements. There wasn't the whole 'give money to prove you're worth it' thing, but unlike the western tradition, Dave did go to fetch Jenny and saw her in her wedding dress before the actual ceremony. My Dad was head chauffeur for the entire day and drove them to a beautiful manor house where the actual ceremony would take place.

Exchanging vows

There was a pre-ceremony professional photo session whilst my cousins darted around getting the venue set up. One thing that was always very prominently seen in China whilst I was there were dolled up couples getting amazing pre-wedding photos done in beautiful spots in various cities all over the country. Weddings must be a massively lucrative market in China because giving off the impression of grandeur seems important for wedding couples. To know what I mean, you can take a look at one of my favourite instagram accounts by a wedding photographer based in Kunming. Couples appear to compete to ensure they get the most stunning and unique pre-wedding photos, whether that's down to hiring amazing photographers, wearing the most lavish looking dresses or travelling to beautiful locations for the photographs. I think it's quite a recent trend to do so, but one that was always fascinating to observe all the same.

Dave and Jenny's vow exchange was really heart-warming. I never understood why people cry at weddings but watching them both tie the knot did make me well up with happiness. It was a beautiful ceremony which followed the quite standard process of exchanging vows, rings and signing their names on the registry. After, we all proceeded to gather outside to throw confetti at the newlyweds and enjoy a small drinks reception om some beautiful outdoor gardens.

Wedding banquet set up

If there's one thing Chinese families love to do, it's to dine together so Dave and Jenny hired out an entire venue to cater to a party of over 200 people, including both sides of their families (both immediate and extended, and friends of those people) as well as close friends. If I haven't mentioned before, my family on both my Mum and Dad's side are pretty big. And then there are all the other family friends of all our parents. Suddenly I was seeing the faces of my parents friends who I hadn't seen since I was a little girl which was strange but in a way, it's nice to see that they could make an appearance to show their support and join in the party. Dinner involved a 10 course feast of Chinese food which was staggered through out the evening. We shared all the food together and drank together to celebrate.

Tea Ceremony; Dave and Jenny offering Mum and Dad tea

Another traditional aspect of the wedding was the tea ceremony. As you can see, Jenny underwent a costume change into a beautifully embroidered red Chinese dress for the evening banquet. During the tea ceremony, the newlyweds kneel down on special pillows and offer tea to their elders to show respect who in turn take a sip as an acceptance of their gratitude. With the help of one of Jenny's bridesmaids who poured the tea and helped to ensure the tea was offered in the correct order (from eldest relative to youngest ie:- grandparents, parents and uncles and aunties in descending order of age with the groom offering the first cup, followed by the bride), each tea exchange ends with the relatives offering lucky red envelopes filled with money and/ or wedding jewellery made from real gold. All of these exchanges are done with the traditionally polite two handed offer and reception. I'd never seen a wedding tea ceremony so up close before but it's a really beautiful thing to witness as the whole thing symbolises the acceptance of the new couple into the family as a united pair and the hope of financial stability and happiness.

After more food, Jenny and Dave went round to each of the 24 tables to toast everyone and thank them for coming. It was a lot of 干杯-ing (that's basically cheers/ down it in Chinese) and to be honest, I'm not sure how Dave wasn't on the floor with the amount he had to shot in the process. But it was great fun to see how each table of different people made such a ruckus in celebration.

As a wedding memory, everyone was asked to take a fun prop-filled photos on a polaroid camera to stick into a guestbook and leave a little message- my siblings and I scrubbing up decently in our photo above! Dave and Jenny, we all wish you a wonderful life together!

Dad, Pete, Phil, Me, Mum and Jen

It was the first time all my immediate family had sat around one table since I got back home and it's moments like this that I realise just how much I appreciate having such great parents, brothers and sister. I did find myself thinking about what my own wedding (if there ever will be one) might be like one day. I think I'd quite like to keep some of the traditional Chinese elements of a wedding because I think the symbolism really matters. However and if ever it happens though, I know I definitely want my family very close by...

Here's one last shot of my Dad taking a short, but well needed, pre-ceremony nap. My Dad's a real trooper for offering to be such an important part of the wedding, getting up even earlier than the bride and groom and driving all day, ensuring both Dave and Jen got to where they needed to be on time, safe and sound. He really represents what it means to have strong family values. This man would do anything for his family and it's certainly something that's been ingrained in me growing up. If there's one thing that I think any wedding should involve, whether Chinese or whatever culture, it's definitely the felt presence of family.

Xi’an-igans

A couple of weekends ago, I took a little break to visit one of China’s most popular tourist spots – Xi’an in Shaanxi Province – with some of the great people I made friends with during the Beijing training camp. For anyone not familiar with the name, Xi’an is home to the world famous Terracotta Army and is well known for its history and melting pot of cultures. After some classic Chinese disorganisation concerning exam dates for some of my classes, I was lucky enough to blag a couple of days off from work to spend a long weekend there and discover the amazing food and culture.

Here's a run down of some of the best bits (*Note: very photo heavy post):

Motorbike Taxi

I’d arrived a day earlier than both Daisy and Charlotte, meaning I was relied upon to figure out the way from the airport to the hostel and relay this information to the girls. The directions given by the hostel seemed pretty straight forward so I’d anticipated it wouldn’t take more than just over an hour. But I got pretty lost - so much so that when I arrived in Xi’an it was daytime but by the time I arrived at the hostel, it was dark. After getting dropped off from the airport shuttle bus in some unknown location, I ended up hopping on the back of a motorbike taxi (who knew they were even a thing??), precariously hanging on as my driver darted around the city. The ride was freezing, but it was a pretty funny and memorable way to begin my Xi'an adventure.

Muslim Quarter and Food

I think hanging out in the Muslim Quarter was probably one of my favourite things about Xi'an. Never a dull minute, the streets are lined with food stalls and small restaurants. It's busy pretty much all day, but I recommend a visit at night when it's all lit up and stalls play funky music, shouting over microphones to attract customers. I don't think there is any other way to describe the street food in the Muslim Quarter as anything but amazing. Needless to say, I ate very well during my weekend in Xi'an and could have quite easily haemorrhaged all my money there.

One of my favourite things I had was meat on a stick. It's probably not the most sophisticated sounding delicacy, but there's really no other way to describe it. Chunks of lamb meat are skewered onto sticks that look like tree branches, covered in tasty spices like chilli and cumin and roasted over a charcoal flame right in front of you. And at 10 yuan a stick (£1), they're an absolute steal! 

I was also adamant not to leave Xi'an without having sampled a Chinese meat burger (roujiamo), a delicacy particularly popular in Shaanxi Province. We went to the Muslim Quarter one last time to grab some lunch before Daisy and I were due to head to the airport to go home. One thing I've learnt about buying street food in any country is that you should always buy from stalls with queues because it means the food is clearly the best in the street. We queued for a little while to get our hands on a burger. It was totally worth the wait and the perfect pre-flight meal but admittedly, the wait almost made Daisy late for her flight (oops).  

There's no way I could write this post without including the above picture of us posing with some steamed glutinous rice desserts called Jing Gao. Keen to try pretty much anything and everything on the food street, we satisfied our sweet cravings with these colourful, jam covered rice desserts on sticks. We'd kindly asked the lady on the stall to take a photo of us holding them and she seemed absolutely over the moon with her efforts, handing back my phone with the a massive grin on her face. It's always a bit awkward when you ask a stranger to take photos for you and they stick their thumb over a good portion of the picture... Still a cracking photo though, I think.

Terracotta Warriors

Of course, no trip to Xi'an would be complete without going to see the Terracotta Warriors. I'm so glad that I've been able to tick this off my China bucket list. It was a bit touch and go actually getting to the museum. It's located about an hour long bus drive outside of the city centre but we got a little lost trying to find the right bus station. Eventually we were shepherded onto a bus by ushers who just repeatedly shouted "Terracotta! Terracotta!" at us, clearly seeing from our confused touristy faces that we must be heading that way.

Upon the advice of my friend Andrew, we visited each of the excavated pits in reverse order (from Pit 3 to 1) because this was supposedly the best way to build up the impressiveness of the main site. It was a great piece of advice. Pit 2 is possibly the most visually underwhelming, mainly for the fact that you can't actually see many of the warriors. But thanks to Daisy who was full of fun facts about the warriors, she explained that excavation is still continuing. Many of the warriors are yet to be uncovered as museum owners and archaeologists wait for technology to catch up in order to keep the artefacts as well preserved as possible.

I can't really understate how amazing it is to see the Terracotta Army up close. The sheer size of the pits with all the life size warriors lined up, all uniquely posed in combat positions - it's all massively impressive when you consider that this was created to protect the first emperor of China in the afterlife. All in all, a visit to the Terracotta Warriors is an absolute must if you're in Xi'an.

(And just for funsies, I really like this photo Daisy took of Charlotte and I at the Terracotta Warrior Museum)

Shadow Play at Gao's Grand Courtyard

We had plans to stop by the hot springs area of Huaqing on the way back from the Terracotta Warriors, but after accidentally missing our bus stop, we ended up back in the city centre having to think on our feet about what to do with our evening. Whilst researching things to do in Xi'an, I did come across a suggestion to go and see a shadow play so we headed back to our beloved Muslim Quarter to hunt down Gao's Grand Courtyard. We took a hilarious ride in a rickety tin rickshaw taxi and headed straight into the hustle and bustle of the Muslim Quarter lit up at night.

Gao's Grand Courtyard is easy to miss if you're not looking for it, but again, thanks to Daisy's keen eye, we managed to track it down. Tickets cost about 25RMB for entry and the chance to see a shadow play. For an extra 5RMB, you're also entitled to a short tea ceremony inside the courtyard. Having first disregarding the tea experience as probably a bit of a rip-off experience tacked onto a higher ticket price, I'm was pleasantly surprised by it and actually really glad we paid a little extra.

The courtyard is quite charming. It was well into the evening when we arrived so the whole place had a slightly eerie vibe. You can explore the rooms of a wealthy family. The nice thing about the whole place was the complete contrast the Courtyard had to the buzz of the Muslim Quarter just outside. You can explore each room at your leisure away from crowds of tourists.

The shadow play was a pretty cool experience. Although we didn't really understand what was happening in the storyline, it was still really enjoyable to watch - even if we were laughing when the rest of the room were laughing too.

After the shadow play, we went for our short tea ceremony experience. We were given a sample of a variety of tea; Jasmine, Ginseng and 'Concubine' tea. Our host took the time to explain the differences in taste and was all round, a lovely lady to serve us some teaEach were incredibly tasty and it took a lot for me not to want to buy a pot of leaves for myself at the end. In any case, it was well worth the extra 5RMB I'd say.


City Wall Cycling

I really have to give credit to my friend Andrew for giving us some cracking advice for our trip to Xi'an. When I'd asked him a few days earlier about the must-see and do things for my trip, he told me, "1,000,000,000% - cycle around the city walls".

Naturally, this suggestion made me feel a little nervous. As my family, ex-work colleagues and close friends know, my bike riding abilities are pretty questionable and, although it's not something I'm always keen to admit, I couldn't really ride a bike until just before I came out to China. Even now, I'm pretty shocking on a bike. I'm certainly not a road safe cyclist. But I am incredibly chuffed that despite my lack of confidence in my cycling abilities, we went for a cycle around the city walls on my last day in Xi'an because it turned out to be really great fun. And, cheesy as it sounds, a really liberating experience for me.

(A shaky start from Daisy and I)

(But I did it!)

Thanks to some very supportive and motherly encouragement from Charlotte, cycling around the city walls was made a lot easier and it turned out to be a really nice chilled out way to spend my last morning in Xi'an. The weather could have been a bit nicer, but it was still a nice ride and a good way to see a little more of the city beyond the main tourist attractions. I totally recommend it as a must-do because if even novice cyclists like me can do it and enjoy it, everyone can! 

I can't end this post without saying a little thank you to the lovely ladies who joined me on this weekend getaway. I had a hilarious time catching up with both Charlotte and Daisy - silly touristy photos and all!

So here's to you superest supers! Thanks for making Xi'an one of my China highlights so far.

Until next time!

Shanghai Part 1: Shanghai Shenanigans

At the beginning of October, we were given a week off from work to celebrate Golden Week. We were warned by former ELAs that plane or train tickets could sell out pretty quickly because every man and his dog travels during national holidays. Luckily, the people I had made friends with during training camp were on the ball with booking flights and hostels in advance before things sold out or got too expensive.

I was looking forward to a little break from teaching and to seeing all my friends to catch up and let off a little steam. In search of recommendations of must see things, I told a few of my students that I would be headed to Shanghai.

“Teacher, it’ll be very busy! Busier than Beijing!” they warned. And they were not wrong.

Perhaps I was lulled into a false sense of security when I got to Tianjin airport. I was pleasantly surprised at how empty the airport was. Although this was technically my first experience of it, I think I can safely say that travelling during any national holiday in China is crazy. Herds of people pile themselves onto subway carriages. People queue in front of tourist attractions for hours.

Of course, we adopted the ‘when on holiday’ mentality and found ourselves doing just those things…

(The Bund)

First things first, no trip to Shanghai would have been complete without a visit to the Bund and a cheeky photo in front of Shanghai’s iconic skyline. The trouble was the thousands of tourists with the same idea, making a photo without the corner of some random person’s head sneaking its way in nearly impossible. This was about as close as I got:

(Still clearly loving life though)

One of my favourite parts of our city break was the visit to the Shanghai Propaganda Poster Art Centre. Located in the basement of what looks like a block of housing flats, it is a place easy to overlook. But if you’re a bit of a history buff or are just looking for a way to get a snapshot of how influential Mao was though, the propaganda museum is a must see.

(Room B-OC, President Apartment, 868 Huashan Lu)

The museum took me right back to my GCSE history days. It reminded me of when you were given a propaganda poster and asked to analyse the imagery for meaning, relating it to contemporary historical events. I can’t say I have any background in Chinese history, but it’s something I’m looking to discover more about whilst I’m here for the year. The original propaganda posters were really striking. It was intriguing to see how the styles changed over the years, as well as how the Chinese perceived huge historical events in the western world like the 1960s social movements in America. It's not really an aspect you really consider when you think about China, so well worth checking it out if you're into history. 

(Taking sneaky photos of some of the posters)

Continuing our exploration of the cultural aspects Shanghai had to offer, one night we ended up at a bar called JZ Club playing live jazz. It was great to see some live music! The main composer (the pianist of the ensemble) was a bit of an oddball. Between each song, he'd attempt to charm the audience by explaining his creative influences when it came to composing. Strangely enough, he admitted that one jaunty number was inspired by a Christian prayer. So there you have it folks, Christian jazz is apparently a thing!

The lead saxophonist also looked suspiciously like Ai Wei Wei, or even a long lost son of his. Was Ai Weiwei really in the UK promoting his latest exhibit at the Royal Academy? We had a sneaking suspicion that this was not the case. Clearly, he moonlighted as an underground jazz saxophonist...

(Ai Weiwei taking centre stage at JZ Club)

I was also really pleased to see some art in Shanghai too. As many of my friends know, one of my favourite things to do is to visit art galleries – the Saatchi Gallery being one of my favourite places ever. We took a taxi to the m50 Art District on Moganshan Road and explored the many warehouse spaces there.

The work on show ranged from some pretty abstract pieces, the kind that you step back and wonder if it really is 'art'. Others were right up my street in terms of the type of art I like looking at. Some of my favourites, below.

(Continuous Movement collection by Song Xi) 

(#Selfie as part of the Noir Blanc exhibition at the Island6 Studio, home of the Liudao Art Collective)

For a 5 day city break, we managed to fit in a fair bit of cultural sightseeing. I can't help but feel like I merely scratched the surface though and I can imagine I'll definitely head back to Shanghai again at some point to explore even more.