Festivals- Yawen

Festivals and customs in Hefei are almost the same as the traditional Chinese festivals and customs. Spring Festival, Lantern Festival in January 15 on the lunar calendar, Tomb Sweeping Day, Dragon Boast Festival on the 5th day of the fifth month in Chinese lunar calendar, Mid-Autumn Festival on August 15 in the lunar calendar and Double Nine Festival on the ninth day of the ninth of Chinese lunar month will all be celebrated in Hefei.

Hefei,China 17th February: People arrived at Hefei railway station as families gather to celebrate the forthcoming Chinese Spring Festival on February 17, 2015 in Hefei, China. 

The Mid-Autumn festival which falls on 8 August, is a big family reunion day, where all Chinese celebrate together. 

The Double Ninth Festival, also known as Chongyang Festival,  is held on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month.  It is also known as the Senior Citizens’ Festival. 

There are many more festivals being celebrated in China. In fact, some of the festivals we Singaporeans celebrate is also from China !!!

Food- Xin Hui

When you come to Hefei, the Luzhou Roast Duck must be the first recommended cuisine by the local tour guide. Luzhou Roast Duck originally was served to the royal court as the imperial dish. Until the period of Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), this cuisine could be found being cooked by local families.

You will be attracted by the duck's golden yellow shininess, crisp skin and tender meat. Compared to Beijing Roast Duck, it has moderate fat and salt, rich taste, and plenty nutrients.

In 1987 it was awarded to be the excellent food by Anhui province and commercial ministry. In 1983, it got the gold medal of the first session China Food Expo.

 2. Li Hongzhang Hodgepodge

It’s a popular dish named after Li Hongzhang (1823-1901), a top official of the late Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) from Anhui province, who made strenuous efforts to modernize the country that ended in several major rebellions. He became a leading figure in China's relations with the Western powers.

Li Hongzhang

It is said that when Li Hongzhang visited the United States, he invited some American friends to have dinner. After the entrée, Li mixed together all the ingredients he had left over and cooked up a new dish. All his guests praised the delicious concoction, and asked Li for its name. Li told them, in his distinctive Hefei dialect, that the dish was called "Zasui,” or “hodgepodge” in English. From then on, the dish was known as "Zasui,” or “Li Hongzhang Hodgepodge,” and became popular in both the U.S. and China. Its main ingredients include sea cucumber, fish maw, squid, bamboo shoots, dried beans, chicken, ham, egg yolk pudding, and pigeon eggs, liver and so on.

Cao Cao Chicken is also called Xiaoyao Chicken, and it is a famous local dish of Hefei.

It is said that Cao Cao as the General of Wei Kingdom stationed the army in Xiaoyaojin of Hefei. He was extremely busy with the military and political affairs that he was overtired and caught the illness. During the treatment, the kitcheners followed the words of doctors to add the Chinese traditional medicine into the chicken and made this chicken to be a medicine. Afterwards, Cao Cao gradually became better and often needed to eat this kind of chicken, so people called this chicken Cao Cao Chicken.

4. Lord Bao Fish (or Bao Gong Fish)

Lord Bao Fish is another well-known Hefei dish. This fish was originally found in a moat called Lord Bao River; hence it got the name Lord Bao Fish. This cuisine is a traditional cold dish - tender meat and dark reddish crisp skin.
In 1958, when Chairman Mao Zengdong visited Anhui province, the famous kitchener Liang Yugang specially cooked this dish and was highly praised by Chairman Mao.

Fashion- Emma

History

Based on historical discoveries, Chinese clothes dates back to the later era of Paleolithic Times (1.7 million years ago - the 21st century BC). Materials used were of animal skins and decorations were of small stones and animal teeth. The “real” clothes were not invented until about 5,000 years ago by the Yellow Emperor. By the Shang Dynasty (17th century BC - 1046 BC), the basic features of traditional Chinese attire were created, as well as the general pattern of blouse plus skirt. Later, the long gown appeared during the Zhou Dynasty (1046 - 256 BC) and it co-existed with the blouse-skirt combinations for thousands of years, improving further as time passed. Then a great change occurred with the formation of the Republic of China, when Mao Suit became popular among the males and cheongsam among the females. In the early period of the People’s Republic of China, Mao Suit stayed popular among not only males, but also females. Later in the 1970’s, when the country implemented reform and opening policy, the masses gradually turned to western-style attire.

Facts

As a vital part of Chinese civilization, traditional costumes play an important role in the country’s history and culture. Their basic features are cross-collar, wrapping the right lapel over the left, tying with sash and a form of blouse plus skirt or long gown. These features have been preserved for thousands of years till the time of the Republic of China (1912 – 1949AD), when Chinese Tunic Suit (Mao Suit) and cheongsam prevailed. Nowadays, however, most Chinese wear modern clothes in their daily lives, not much difference from their western counterparts. Traditional attires are only worn during certain festivals, ceremonies or religious occasions. However, they are often seen in Chinese television serials and movies. Many of the country’s ethnic minorities also wear their traditional costumes in their daily lives and they played an important role in the traditional Chinese clothing.  In addition to the basic features and patterns, traditional Chinese attires have many other features like appearance, cutting, decoration, color and design, etc, all of which changed over the various dynasties. For example, black is the most dignified color in the Xia Dynasty (21st - 17th century BC), white in the Shang Dynasty and red in the Zhou Dynasty. They also vary based on one’s political position, social status, occupation and gender, etc. For instance, dragon embroideries and bright yellow can only be used by emperors most of the time; in the Tang Dynasty (618 - 907 AD), purple official costumes are for the fifth or higher rank officials; in the Qing Dynasty (1644 - 1911 AD), the higher a person’s social rank or the richer one was, the more embroideries and borders there were on his attires.

Pictures

Folks- Josiah

Notable figures of Hefei

Bao Zheng (999–1062), Northern Song dynasty bureaucrat and judge whose name has become synonymous with judicial wisdom and uprightness.During his twenty five years in civil service, Bao consistently demonstrated extreme honesty and uprightness, with actions such as sentencing his own uncle, impeaching an uncle of Emperor Renzong's favourite concubine and punishing powerful families.Nicknamed "Justice Bao" (包青天), Bao Zheng today is respected as the cultural symbol of justice in Greater China. What left the deepest impression in me is that when he died  It was recorded that he left the following warning for his family: "Any of my descendants who commits bribery as an official shall not be allowed back home nor buried in the family burial site. He who shares not my values is not my descendant. Built in 1066, his burial site in Hefei contains his tomb along with the tombs of family members and a memorial temple.

Han Qizhi, (b. 1970), first person to climb up the tallest building in China. He was the first person to climb the exterior of the Jin Mao Tower.^[1] At 88 stories, the Jin Mao was the tallest building in China at the time—and 5th tallest building in the world (measured by roof height). In early March 2001, Han walked around the building at ground level a couple of times with a companion before removing his jacket and starting upwards.^[2] An official report would later say he was "struck by a rash impulse" before climbing the skyscraper while barehanded and while wearing regular day clothes. What struck me most was that  Han had no professional climbing experience. Apparently a hope that his feat might bring fame to himself and to his shoe business in Hefei was a factor.

                                                  

Beliefs

A Chinese kid gets a haircut in Hefei, Anhui province. According to beliefs in traditional Chinese culture, getting a haircut on the second day of the second Chinese lunar month is likely to bring good luck.

China's culture

What are your perceptions of Chinese people and their culture?

Traditional

-Very traditional as they practice olden days methods and teachings on their younger generation.

Rude and uncivilized

-They may speak in a very rude and uncivilized manner as they are brought up differently from us.

Unfair

e.g. Beijing has better facility as it is the capital??many of the other China small countries who have lower standards.

Proud and arrogant

-Transfer students they are proud of their country and think that they are the best at everything. They are also very competitive and wants to compete with almost everything. 

Very aware of their image

-They like branded goods even if it is fake

-Students are hardcore and they want to ace every subject

Singapore's National Icon-George

Do you think the merlion is the best national icon Singapore can have?

Personally, even though many people think that the Merlion should be our national icon and many foreigners think so, I don't think or feel that the Merlion exactly defines Singapore as a country. When I was young, I didn't think much about and went along with everybody else. But now, thinking deeper, I don't feel this is so. Why not? Firstly, what the heck is a Merlion? People who never heard of it or don't know what is is may guess, is is a mermaid plus a lion? A female lion? A chimera? Who knows? A Merlion is a huge statue of a lion and a fish near the Fullerton Hotel. But what exactly does it symbolize? When Sang Nila Utama, a prince, discovered Singapore, he saw a majestic animal, who his adviser told him is a lion, a Singa. And the fish part is that Singapore has a history of a fishing village. But firstly and scientifically, there is no proven evidence in our region and regions near Singapore, there has never been lions! (Unless you count the ones in the Singapore Zoo) So the animal he saw may not even have been a lion in the first place. Secondly, common sense, nowadays, to be frank, lesser and lesser people seem to even care about the history of some place. It has even been ranked that 80% of the current teenager population don't even care about the history about the country they go to or visit. (Excluding me) They tend to focus more on the present and future, which in short, is a booming city, a metropolis. So won't a city full of skyscrapers and casinos give people a better idea of Singapore. Alright, there are many cases, but what exactly is the POINT of a national icon? To me, it symbolizes of what the people aspire to be. To others, it may be something that represents their country, or what the country is famous for. (I'm stereotyping now, but honestly, when you think about Las Vegas, you think casinos and Ferraris).  Who determines the national icon? Everybody, everybody has a right, and majority wins. Do we actually NEED one? Honestly, yes, as nowadays, as shown in a survey conducted by reputable university in Boston. (Ahem... Harvard), quite a few people lack dreams and ambitions, and do not know what to do, and everyday they may feel a lack of purpose, but if we were to have a national icon, some people would understand the qualities of what it have and also try their best to achieve their vision or something. I would agree, there are many things out there which can be chosen as the national icon of Singapore, but personally, even though I will admit that when I think about Singapore, it's when school re-openes, the Merlion, Ferris Wheel, Chicken Rice and stuff,  I don't think the Merlion actually totally defines the idea of Singapore, 

Singapore's National icon-Xinhui

Do you think the merlion is the best national icon Singapore can have?

I feel that indeed, Singapore is a prominent icon widely recognised by tourists from other countries. The merlion is a representation of a lion and a fish. The lion is based on a legend of how Singapore was discovered by Sang Nila Utama. He sailed to Singapore, and the first thing he saw on this island is a lion, also known as a singa. As for the fish, it is because in the past, Singapore was a fishing village, and thus a fish is used as a representation. I also feel that merlion also represent Singapore as adaptable to changes. The merlion shows that underwater, the merlion can swim freely like a fish, and on land, it can roar like a lion. I feel that it can accurately represent Singapore as when Singapore gained independence and seperated from the Malaysia Merger, it was a helpless and weak country with no resources, full of corruption and had no defence measures. However, under the leadership of Lee kuan yew, who made changes and new plans. Singapore quickly undergo these changes and managed to overthrow corruption, and turned from a fishing village to a prosperous city. Thus it shows that Singapore is adaptable to changes. Thus i feel that merlion is a suitable icon for singapore.

Singapore's National Icon -Ya Wen

Do you think the merlion is the best national icon Singapore can have?

Yes, I think that the Merlion is the best national icon Singapore can have. As compared to Vanda Miss Joaqium, our national flower, or perhaps even the esplanade, the one we Singaporeans commonly known as "the durian", I think the Merlion has much more significance to represent Singapore. 

The Merlion is a mythical creature with the head of a lion and the body of a fish. The emblem was designed in 1964 for the STPB by Fraser Brunner, curator of the Van Kleef Aquarium. Later named the Merlion, it was officially registered as a trademark of the STPB on 20 July 1966, granting the board exclusive rights to use the symbol. The Merlion's lion head symbolises the legend of the discovery of Singapura. In ancient times, when Singapore was still known as Temasek, Prince Sang Nila Utama of the Sri Vijaya Empire discovered the island. When the Prince first landed on Singapore's shores, he sighted a mystical beast, which he later learnt, was called a lion. The Prince then decided to name the island "Singapura" which also means Singa (Lion) and Pura (City). The fish body of the Merlion, lying on the crests of waves, symbolises Temasek as it tells us the story of  Singapore's humble beginnings as a fishing village. It is unique to Singapore and it gives us our sense of identity here in Singapore, telling our roots of history. Therefore, I think that the Merlion is the best national icon to represent Singapore.

Singapore's National Icon-Josiah

Do you think the merlion would make the best national icon for Singapore? 

I think it's suitable as the Merlion give Singaporeans a sense of identity. It reminds us of our humble beginnings progressing to the present metropolis. It represents us Singaporeans and our multi-racial roots. It really tells the story of our nation through the lion head and fish body, it is a unique combination of a mythical creature that all Singaporeans have different interpretations of, it shows our humble beginnings as a fishing village and the legend of Singa how our country was named. We would be recognise by the Merlion and we will be proud of it.

The Merlion has a lion head and a fish body resting on a crest of waves. The lion head symbolises the legend of the rediscovery of Singapura, as recorded in the "Malay Annals". In ancient times, Singapore was known as Temasek, a Javanese word for sea. In the 11th century A.D, Prince Sang Nila Utama of the Sri Vijaya Empire rediscovered the island. When the Prince first landed on Singapore's shores, he sighted a mystical beast which he later learnt was a lion. The Prince then decided to name the island "Singapura" which in Sanskrit means Lion (Singa) City (Pura). The fish tail of the Merlion symbolises the ancient city of Temasek and represents Singapore's humble beginnings as a fishing village.

The merlion is unique as it was designed as an emblem for the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) in 1964. The designer was Mr Fraser Brunner, a member of the souvenir committee and a curator of the Van Kleef Aquarium.The Merlion statue, measuring 8.6 metres high and weighing 70 tonnes, was built by the late Singapore craftsman, Mr Lim Nang Seng. It is made of cement fondue. A smaller Merlion statue, measuring two metres high and weighing three tonnes was also built by Mr Lim. The body is made of cement fondue, the skin from porcelain plates and eyes from small red teacups.

The Merlion is the national personification of Singapore.Due to the influence of overseas Singaporeans, Singapore investors and friends of the country, variations of the Merlion statue can be found in Japan, China and the United States of America.

Singapore's National Icon- Emma

Do you think that the Merlion would make the best national icon of Singapore?

Yes, I think that the Merlion would make the best national icon of Singapore. Spouting water from its mouth, the Merlion statue stands tall at 8.6 metres and weighs 70 tonnes. The Merlion is a traditional creature that depicts a creature with a lion head and a body of a fish. The lion is a reference to a tale narrated in the Sejarah Melayu which describes how a prince,Sang Nila Utama, reportedly encountered a lion when he first stepped on the shores of Temasek giving him the idea of naming Singapura (lion city)

I believe that The Merlion best represents Singapore as it reflects our roots and history.  Its head represents Singapore’s original name, Singapura, or ‘lion city’ in Malay. I believe that the Merlion is the most suitable national icon of Singapore as it reflects our history and roots. When foreigners come to Singapore, they would want to see the majestic Merlion and would be curious as to what is behind the history of the Merlion. The body symbolises a fish tale of Singapore's humble beginnings as a fishing village when it was called Temasek, meaning 'sea town' in Old Javanese. Whenever us Singaporeans visit the Merlion, we would probably look back and realize how much we have progressed as a nation throughout thus years. It would definitely impact us and allow us to feel a sense of accomplishment. When many of us were younger, we were also often told about stories about Singapore's past and history all through the mythical creature. It often led us feeling excited and forever etched in our minds. It is really meaningful, teaching us about Singapore's history and making us understand the harships our older generations sacrificed to make what Singapore is what it is today. Through all these, we would appreciate all their hardships and work hard to preserve their legacy and continue developing Singapore to make them proud. I believe that the Merlion's Tale is something that we should forever pass down to the future generations.

In Singapore, it has become a marketing icon used as a mascot and national personification of Singapore. Merlions do not feature in any local folklore or myths of Singapore, and was only used in Singapore initially as the logo for the tourism board.  Furthermore, it is very unique and it allows us to have a sense of identity. Being a special combination of a mythical creature the Merlion is also one of the most viewed tourist attractions as compared to the many other atrractions. Therefore through all my points, I think that the Merlion is the best national icon to represent Singapore.

Golden Age of Singapore-Ya Wen

The golden age refers to:

-An idyllic, often imaginary past time of peace, prosperity, and happiness. 

-The period when a specified art or activity is at its peak.

It is known that Singapore is experiencing it's golden age currently, where we are well-known and prosperous, where Singaporeans are living in ease. Recently, Singapore's founding father, Mr Lee Kuan Yew, has passed away. Singaporeans are greatly grieved by this news but we have a lot to learn from him through his leadership to make Singapore successful. Singapore has been described as transitioning from the "third world to the first world in a single generation" under his leadership. Although his rule has been criticized by many from the west, he stood firm in his beliefs and had faith in Singapore. From here, I have learnt that we should not be affected by how others view us. If we believe in something, stay to it no matter what. Mr Lee has done much for us. With an unemployment rate of 2% only, Singapore is third in the global education league, possibly the world’s healthiest nation. 90% of Singaporeans own their own homes, which are mostly government built. Crime levels are almost the lowest in the world, Singapore is one of the least corrupted nations and its streets, public transport and public places are clean. Our success today is all thanks to him. Truly, we are heavy-hearted by the news of his death but, I believe we have the responsibility to keep this legacy going, to make Singapore a better place, to let him rest in peace.

Golden Age of Singapore-Xinhui

I feel that lee kuan yew has provided for we singaporeans a home, a safe harbour. Singapore, who parted with Malaysia in the merger, could obviously not stand alone, fight by itself, let it survive. Singapore, was a place with no resources, no hope, but with and increasing population. Lee kuan yew knew that Singapore had only manpower, so he made use of that to help Singapore. He belived singapore best resource was human, thus when the british troops left singapore, he set a law for men at the age of 18 to serve national service, better known as ns. At that time, there was no more british singapore could rely on, and lee kuan yew saw the need to have people to defend the country, thus he made use of our manpower to protect our country. Singapore without him would mot be what it is today.

Golden Age of Singapore-George

The definition of a golden age is when something is at it's very best or peak, or in ideal condition. Singapore is currently in it now. (And I hope we will progress to crystal or diamond or platinum so on and so forth.)

 But Rome was not built in a night, and neither was Singapore. We started out as a fishing village, and our progress as a metropolis is extremely fast, even though accounting to the fact we are a small country. I can go on and on about Singapore's history, but the presence of a very important person, a founding father, and our first prime minister, the late Mr Lee Kuan Yew. Without him, I don't even think I would know what Blogger is. He has many admirable and qualities suitable for a leader of a country. Let's start off with him being a very righteous person. From what I have read and know, he is very fair, and does not tolerate wrong doings. Look at his government. There is no corruption! The strict rules and laws he has placed does not leave anybody out, be it his family member or not, as he devoted his life to improving Singapore, and he himself was no exception. Corruption is commonly seen, and very hard to root out, which was why not only did he say such things, he also had the power and was responsible and did everything he could to prevent such things, such as increasing the wages of government officials, showing to us, that he is a giant as both speaking and actions. With his actions and words, he built Singapore to what is called a Golden Age today.

What we can do now as students is just do our best and continue with the progress of Singapore, and always remember and build upon what the earlier generations and Mr Lee has given us.

Golden Age of Singapore-Emma

Golden Age of Singapore

Golden age;

An idyllic, often imaginary past time of peace, prosperity,

the period when a Specified art or activity is at its peak.

The Golden Age of China was during the Tang Period of literature and art. While there were other areas of great progress, no other areas reached the height of its developments like the arts which include painting, poetry, and pottery.

Singapore has recently lost its founding father, Mr Lee Kuan Yew. He is also the person who contributed to Singapore's great success and Golden Age. The whole of Singapore is greatly saddened by this news and our nation declared a week period to mourn for him.

Mr Lee Kuan Yew was our leader who went through all the hardships and overcome all the difficulties to make what Singapore is today. He is respected and admired internationally by the different world leaders. 

I think that we are now living in Singapore’s Golden Age. There are so many things to do, so many places to see. Which other city in the world can offer you a Formula 1 race, pandas and many other unique things? Statistics and surveys support how this is a country at its peak. In fact, it’s reached a stage where being voted most live able city or best place to do business or eighth richest country. All these achievements would not be present without Mr Lee Kuan Yew's endless contribution. From a third world country, a small fishing village to a first world developed city, a metropolis.   

Mr Lee Kuan Yew has dedicated his whole life on building Singapore up. Being the first prime minister of Singapore. Singapore was just a little red dot with nothing to spare. But because of him we now live harmoniously with people from different races and religion. Because of him, many of us in have a roof on top of our heads. Because of him we have drinkable clean water running in our taps. Because of him, we can have a better education. Because of him, our country has tall skyscrapers and also named the garden city.

Since Singapore is at its Golden Age now, it is our job to make sure we stay the way we are now and continue making contributions to our society in order to preserve his legacy. As the future generation of Singapore, we must work hard in maintaining peace and harmony among our nation. We will continue to have a clean and green city with fresh drinkable water. Even without Mr Lee's help, we will continue to prosper as a whole and improve much more within the years.  We need to take up the responsibility and develop Singapore to be an even better nation, thus letting Mr Lee rest in peace seeing us developing what he has built within the years :)

Golden Age of Singapore-Josiah

I have learnt that for a civilisation to be seen as going through its golden age,we gave to determine if these developments had contributed to the political,economic and social stability of the country significantly and also if the progress is sustainable long after its time. From what I learnt about Mr Lee Kuan Yew I can say that he is truly the founding father of our now prosperous nation till the point that without him our country will never progress to what we are today. Firstly politically, as Singapore had problems with political corruption. Mr Lee introduced legislation giving the CPIB greater power to conduct arrests, search, call up witnesses, and investigate bank accounts and income-tax returns of suspected persons and their families.Mr Lee believed that ministers should be well paid in order to maintain a clean and honest government. By doing so,he built a zero corruption government which is a crucial factor to Singapore's success. Secondly economically, at first Singapore was an island without any natural resources to call its own. Since then, it has pulled off a dramatic transformation - boasting two casino-integrated resorts and an airport that has frequently topped the "world's best" list. All of these could be credited to Mr Lee.Thirdly socially,as Singapore has traditionally relied on water from Malaysia, this reliance has made Singapore subject to the possibility of price increases and allowed Malaysian officials to use the water reliance as a political leverage by threatening to cut off supply. In order to reduce this problem,Mr Lee decided to experiment with water recycling in 1974.This gradually lead to the formation of Newater which contributed to the social well-being of Singaporeans. We really need to thank him as without Mr Lee Singapore would really still be a little dot, we should treasure what we have and love our nation working together to built a better Singapore.