Christmas Happenings!

A "party" in China is often a long performance lasting two hours. I guess the party elements include balloons, loud music, and some humorous performances. Some team-mates and I attended one such Christmas "party" this past week on campus.
One humorous act was 2 girls doing synchronized yoga. Does yoga as a performance number seem odd to anyone else? Well, I couldn't stop laughing.

Luckily, there were four of us foreign teachers at the performance so we tried to see the positive side of sitting through a two hour party that was largely in Chinese and sometimes just down-right silly. :()

One of the workers to welcome the guests to the Christmas party.

One class of sophomore students that I teach performed a Chinese song to open the Christmas "party." The class monitor acted as their choir director. Pretty cute!

Some students displaying their Christmas decorations that we made last week-end at another (different) party. Students also made Christmas cookies at that party.

Another Christmas program at the orphanage where we volunteer. They are acting out the nativity scene.

We sat with these two little kids during the Christmas program at the orphanage. I think they were a little overwhelmed but also really happy to join the excitement and get out of their room if only for an hour or so.
To get to the orphanage center last night, we rode my friend Amber's electric bike. It was quite a task to go over muddy, slippery roads in the dark. The feeling was very comparable to riding in a sleigh. So, it was quite appropriate that on Christmas Eve, we took the "sleigh" to visit the kids.
Merry Christmas family and friends!