Spring Festival in Shanxi, China

Before setting foot in Shanxi 山西, I had only known this Chinese province to be 'The Kingdom of Coal' - Accounting for 1/3 of China's total coal reserve. After staying in China for awhile, you're bound to find out that Shanxi is also known for its oodles of noodles, and vinegar 老陈醋.

What I didn't know is that this well-protected province has a tradition that not many people know about, celebrated every year with gusto, on the 15th and final day of the Chinese New Year (Spring Festival)!

Being the presenter with the closest connection to Chinese culture, I was picked by the Travelogue team to cover this celebration in Shanxi - just a 45-minute flight west of Beijing.  I was glad to be assigned to work on this show as I had only ever seen how the day is celebrated by the Chinese community in Malaysia, and never before in its country of origin - China.

We were there particularly for the Shehuo Festival 社火节, or Earth & Fire Festival - a festival that not many Chinese themselves have heard of, or witnessed, and I feel very privileged to be sent to a remote village in Shanxi province to observe how the 15th, and final day of the Chinese New Year is celebrated.

I casually shared with the Travelogue team that in Malaysia, the 15th day of the Chinese New Year is known as 'Chap Goh Meh' - Hokkien / Fujian dialect for 'Fifteenth Night'.  My producer looked at me funny, having never heard of such a foreign sounding name.  I went on to say that the 15th day is considered by the Chinese-Malaysians, as the Chinese Valentine's Day, where single ladies will throw mandarin oranges into the river, with their phone numbers (and email addresses) written on it - like in the picture above, in hopes of having a suitor scoop up their mandarin oranges and contacting them to take things further. 

My producer looked even more puzzled, first with that uncommon practice, secondly, since the Chinese Valentine's Day is commonly celebrated on the 7th day of the 7th month 七夕, according to the Lunar Calendar.  She then told me that in China, apart from the 15th day being widely known as 'Yuan Xiao' Festival 元宵节, it is also known as Lantern Festival where they'd eat sweet glutinous rice balls 汤圆 (picture below), symbolising family togetherness.

This time, I was the one with the puzzled look, since Lantern Festival also refers to Mid-Autumn Festival or Mooncake Festival in Malaysia; And we only eat those sweet glutinous rice balls 汤圆 during 'Winter Solstice' 冬至 in December.

All these differences were already an interesting start.

Shanxi 山西 province (not to be confused with Shaanxi 陕西) is a fertile region nourished by the rich yellow loess soil, which gives the Yellow River its colour. But as the central area receives very little rain, the soil becomes too dry and alkaline for a good harvest. And China being largely an Agrarian society where people's livelihoods are dependent on their land, the local communities believe in celebrating the Earth and Fire Festival, or Shehuo Festival 社火节 - The biggest occasion of the year celebrated on the 15th and final day of the Chinese New Year, with entertaining folk performances dedicated to the Gods of Earth 社 and Fire 火.  It is said to bring them good luck and a good harvest in the coming year. 

Our team arrived a few days before the festival so we could catch the preparation and rehearsals. The air smelled of burning coal and we were greeted with the sound of firecrackers exploding intermittently from every direction.

From Shanxi's Capital Taiyuan Airport, it is just a 15km drive to Jinzhong 晋中 where the festival takes place yearly.  On our way to Jinzhong, we came across this unmissable structure erected on a vacant land by the main road.

One of the main features of the Shehuo festival is this colourfully decorated gigantic 12m fire frame 架火. It has many bunches of firecrackers tied onto the frame, with some parts filled with gunpowder - all meant for creating a spectacle at the end of the festival!

With our 'Journalist' pass, we were allowed entry to this restricted area. We were told to be careful as the area was filled with highly combustible material, such as gunpowder, and fireworks. We could not believe our eyes when we saw some workers smoking on site...

Not sure if you can see from the picture above: the lit-up cigarette in the man's mouth, on the left, as he and his work mate handled the wires on site. 
'It better not be a live wire', I prayed. 
I discreetly tried to move as far away as possible from them, just in case of an explosion or electrocution. I was afraid if that were to happen, it would be quite a spectacular one which I would not want to be part of.  I just prayed that these guys knew what they were doing. I was a little paranoid since I didn't know much about the properties of gunpowder, plus, 'livewire, lit-up cigarette and gunpowder' should never come together like best friends.  I felt like I was walking in a minefield.

Here are professional Pyrotechnicians filling up the yellow/orange cylinders with fireworks. The whole stretch of fireworks spanned at least 400m.

We continued on to a few local villages in Jinzhong 晋中 to see how the people were gearing up for the big event.

The whole town was abuzz when we arrived. Everyone was busy preparing for the festival and rehearsing their performance.

This performance is called 刘三推车 - 'Liusan's journey of pushing a cart'. It is a performance that combines singing and dancing, reenacting a folk story of Liusan's journey of pushing a cart, meeting a beautiful lady and taking her to see the festive display of lights. Of course, this happy folk performance does not reenact the part where the beautiful lady had to stop by a courtyard, disappearing for hours, till Liusan went in to the courtyard to check on her, only to find an empty room with the image of the beautiful lady in a painting..! Aye, creepy... and a real bummer too.

Anyway, I tried to learn the steps to this performance, but another activity began right underfoot and I was forced to abandon the first activity.

The next one is 二鬼摔跤 - A wrestle between two people (on the right - in red and green).

I tried my hand at it...

They strapped on the two paper-mache men dressed in red and green onto me, and had me hold on to the 'legs' of the Man in Red. Next, I'd need to bend forward so that 'the legs' of the Man in Red are on the ground, and my own legs become the legs of the Man in Green. Then I've got to move around frantically, with coordination so that the audience sees the wrestle between the Man in Red and Man in Green (both on my back).

It may sound a little complicating reading it. You can watch this video to get a rough idea: 

It is actually a one-man wrestle! 

Our cameramen filming on the roof.

A vendor selling sugar-coated Hawthorn berries 冰糖葫芦 - A common snack in China.

It's easy to encounter many parades and performances just by driving down the streets of Jinzhong. Here's another which we stumbled upon:

This performance is known as 铁棍 - A dance on a raised-pavilion, where these kids are supported by a metal bar as they remain in position, lifting only their hands to dance in accordance to the chants of the men raising the pavilion. 

This dance is said to bring good luck to the farmers. It is believed that by dedicating these beautifully dolled-up children to the God of the Sky on a raised-pavilion, it will appease the God and their land will then be showered with rain.

Next we drove two hours South-east of Jinzhong to Zuoquan 左权, a county that has more traditional elements preserved.

While walking about in this quaint and traditional village called 小会村, I noticed outside every house, were coals stacked up, looking almost like the Chinese equivalent of a Christmas tree. There were also many colourful hand-painted decorations hanging all around this picturesque village. Only thing is, the village seemed a little too quiet for a festive season.

My guess is that most of them probably flocked to attend community theatre performances such as this:

A jam-packed theatre with an overflowing number of attendees!

At nightfall, the quiet village transformed into one that was bustling. 
Villagers gathered around the blazing Christmas tree look-a-likes to keep warm while waiting for the evening's performance. 

Given the cold, strong winds blowing through the hilly rural town, it is easy to understand why everyone gathers for warmth around the blazing coal pyres 旺火, which I'd like to refer to as the 'Chinese Christmas tree'. 

We decided to let our ears lead the way that night, because as soon as one performance ended, there was always another one beginning elsewhere. Performance troupes would go to every house that has their 'Chinese Christmas tree' lit up, perform for them and give their blessings. 

There's a Chinese saying: "锣鼓不响，庄家不长" - "If the drums and gongs don't beat, the crops won't grow".  This reminds me of how in the 80s, Prince Charles stated publicly that he talked to his plants... Yes, his Plants... and he was ridiculed by the media and the world. Looks like the Chinese had already believed in the response from plants to sound and some TLC, even from centuries ago.

One thing to be careful of when you're there witnessing this celebration is that, firecrackers are set off from all directions! I did not realise someone had lit a firecracker a few metres beside me till I heard the sizzle of a firecracker about to explode. I ran away, fast, but my left leg got hit by a firecracker! Thank god for thermal wear, and I would recommend insurance too.

I guess the further into China you go, the more authentic, sometimes dangerous and thrilling the experience! Thankfully the injury was not anything major, but I must say, I loved the festive atmosphere in that little village, and the whole experience was entertaining and thrilling!

And finally came the 15th and final day of Spring Festival! 
The air was filled with excitement, and people buzzing with energy, getting ready to give their all in the biggest event of the year in Jinzhong.

The villagers used to dedicate their performances to the Gods, hoping they'd be rewarded with a good harvest. But over the years, it has become more of a community party and a great excuse to celebrate, and have fun!

Well, it's not just the adults who participate in the Shehuo festival, young kids have a part to play as well. You'll find many proud parents fussing over their little ones, dolling them up to appease the Gods, or simply for a great photo-opp ;)

All of them still looking a little sleepy at 7am.. :)

And they are ready!

This is what happens next:
 #1: Kid steps onto a little wooden stilt with a T-shaped support rested on their abdomen.

#2: Kid is bound by a piece of cloth onto the T-shaped support at their abdomen.

#3: Kid gets raised and has stilt attached onto a rod on the parent's back

There were parents carrying 2 kids on their backs too! Double the luck, perhaps? ;)

And off they go for the parade!

This activity is called 背棍 - It's quite similar to a piggy-back, except these dolled up 4 to 5 year olds are connected to a rod attached to their parents' backs. This enables them to be raised up high for the Gods to see.

There are just so many other interesting folk performances at the Shehuo festival!

Lotus Dance 荷花舞 

(Northern) Lion Dance 舞狮

(Southern) Lion Dance 舞狮

Flower Dance 小花戏

Boat of Harvest 旱船

Dragon Dance 舞龙 

All these colours definitely brightened up the dreary winter in the north. Upbeat music and drumbeats rocked the town, and the performers' vitality enthused the crowd! This makes the slack season in farming, the year's most joyful period.

See that happy and satisfied look on this man's face.. He must be relieved to have two little kids off his shoulders! 

And this is our team, taking a break on a pile of dried corn after filming.
From left: Director, Me, Cameraman, Photographer/Assistant Cameraman, Assistant Cameraman

The full moon shone brightly on us that night. People were setting off fireworks from morning till night like there was no tomorrow, celebrating the Final day of the Spring Festival! But at about 5 minutes before 8pm, all the town's fireworks came to an abrupt halt as everyone waited in anticipation for what they knew was about to come...

Remember that gigantic 12m fire frame we saw at the beginning? Well, 8pm's the time they would set it ablaze, followed by about 30 minutes of fireworks exploding in the nights sky! This grand display definitely ends the Spring festival on a high note!

To get a better feel of the entire Shehuo festival 社火节, or Earth and Fire Festival, you could watch this episode which we filmed in Shanxi here:

(If the video above doesn't work, you can view the program here.)

I was really overwhelmed with the natural outpour of love for life, and enthusiasm that the people had. To me, it wasn't so much the festival or parade that was intriguing, but the mingling with the locals, feeling their passion for life despite the hardship they go through. And I think the one thing we can take home from the people here, is to Work Hard, and Play Harder!! =)

Have an EPIC New Year!