Educational travel in Asia: Learn about New Year’s traditions

January 18th, 2012

Starry Starry Night...

Looks like it’s time for resolutions…

We, at Explorica, resolve to keep bringing you more and more cultural insights, of course. And while some of us are still settling on goals (eat healthier, exercise and read more), another part of the world is just beginning their countdown to the New Year. January 23rd is the big day that starts the year of the dragon for the Chinese and the Tet celebration for the Vietnamese. This week, we’ll take a peek into how these Asian cultures may ring in 2012—from traditional decorations to holiday foods. And while we’re at it, we’ll show you how to join in the festivities and brighten up your classroom by making your own New Year’s paper lanterns.

Happy New Year

Chinese New Year
Where the Western world celebrates the New Year overnight, the Chinese take a full 15 days to ring it in with family fun, fireworks and a whole lot of holiday…cleaning. You heard me. Talk about “out with the old”! Once the house is in tiptop shape, families decorate their doors and windows with red paper-cuts (simply, paper with cut-outs to make intricate designs) to welcome all that good luck floating around. Why red? The color symbolizes good fortune and joy. Symbols of good fortune, happiness, wealth and longevity fill the air during the Chinese New Year. They literally hang in the air, as families suspend pairs of poetic lines called couplets around their homes crafted around those ideas.

Chinese New Year Dinner 2009

These themes run so deep that they’re even present in the food. The holiday feast, called reunion dinner, is filled with varieties of chicken, pork and fish. (You might say it’s a gathering for omnivores.) But, no matter how scrumptious the feast or how hungry the diners, the Chinese never finish the prized “lucky fish.” Some of the fish is stored overnight because the phrase, “every year there’s fish leftover” is a homophone for the Chinese phrase that means “have profit every year.”

059/365 chinese lanterns


Closing their 15-day celebration, the Chinese claim to fame is their magical lantern festival. A Buddhist rite established by a Chinese emperor during the Han Dynasty, the grand festival has since expanded into a country-wide celebration. Streets, homes and storefronts fill with silk, paper and even glass lanterns. The night is capped off with beautiful firework displays all over China. If you happen to visit China during the festival, don’t forget to wear your red. It’s believed that the New Years monster, “Nian,” who comes to destroy crops and homes, fears the fiery color.

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Tea in Morocco

January 13th, 2012

Moroccan mint tea

Make mine a Moroccan minty! Mint tea is so popular in Morocco that you’ll find it everywhere—in homes, restaurants, bazaars, religious gatherings, parties, weddings and funerals. An ancient Moroccan proverb says, “The first glass is as bitter as life, the second glass is as strong as love, the third glass is as gentle as death.” Although Moroccan mint tea is traditionally served three times a day it’s not uncommon for Moroccans to drink it more often. Tea was first introduced to Morocco in the 18th century. (Though rumor has it that European envoys would bribe Morocco’s notoriously fearsome ruler, Sultan Moulay Ismail, with tea in the late 17th century so that he would release European captives.) However, it was only when trade began booming between Europe and the Maghreb (an area of Northwest Africa that includes Morocco, Algeria, Libya, Mauritiana and Tunisia) that the taste for tea really took off. Today, Moroccans make quite a ceremony of mint tea drinking. You can even check one out at a traditional tea ceremony at the Valley of the Roses in Morocco. Tea is prepared in a Moroccan-style teapot with a long, thin spout for easy pouring from a great height to make it bubble perfectly on top. Just the way that Moroccans prefer. And tea is typically served by the head of the household (which in Morocco is usually a man) on a three-legged tray that holds boxes of green tea, mint and sugar. Though the sugar isn’t always for sweetening the tea but rather for nibbling on. Oh, a quick word of advice… If you’re offered a cup of tea in Morocco don’t turn it down or you’ll risk offending your gracious host!

 

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Tea in Japan

January 12th, 2012

tea ceremony


Tea was first introduced to Japan in the 12th century by a Zen monk called Eisai. (Well, tea is central to Zen tradition after all). And Eisai had pretty high hopes for his cup of tea. He suggested that it would cure loss of appetite, boils on the skin and even paralysis. Some say that it was Eisai’s lofty aspirations that helped Japan’s infamous tea ceremony gain popularity during the Muromachi period. Visit Japan today and encounter The Way of Tea in all its authenticity. This traditional art form involves preparing, serving and drinking a Japanese powdered green tea called matcha. (Did you know that matcha is also used to give common Japanese foods its bright green color, like soba noodles and mochi?) Typically, guests will walk through a contemplative garden and cleanse their hands and mouth before entering the teahouse. And because the teahouse has a low doorway, guests are required to bow their heads to get through. Of course, this wasn’t an architectural error. Rather, the act of bowing is to symbolize that everybody is equal in tea. (There’s an ancient story about a Zen Master called Joshu who instructed three traveling monks of different status to “Go and have a cup of tea” with this same metaphor in mind.) Once the guests are seated, the host cleans the utensils and prepares the tea in full view of the guests. He or she then serves it to the first guest who will admire the bowl, drink some tea, wipe the rim and then pass it to the next guest. Once all the guests have taken tea, the host cleans the utensils again before presenting them for inspection. What a beautiful ritual for encouraging mindfulness, simplicity and respect.

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Tea for Three: China, Japan and Morocco

January 11th, 2012

China

Some say that tea is one of the world’s most popular drinks (second only to water). In Britain it’s considered the national drink. Americans and Canadians drink 80% of their tea iced. And people in the United Arab Emirates out-drink the rest of us by far. In 2009, they drank a whopping 220 ounces of tea per person—almost twice as much as the second largest tea drinking nation in the world, Mauritiana. Although historians have found records of tea drinking in China as early as 900 B.C., it wasn’t until the 16th century that Europeans began exporting it from its origins in Southern Asia. And it was well worth the wait! Come and join us for a very international tea party in this three-part series on traditional tea culture. (It’s sure to be teatime somewhere in the world). We’ll pour a cup in China, one in Japan and a last in Morocco.

Tea in China

According to ancient Chinese legend, tea was an accidental invention. The story goes that Emperor Shen Nong (from as far back as 2737 B.C.) instructed his subjects to boil water before drinking it so that they wouldn’t get sick. One day, the Emperor was traveling with his entourage to a distant land when he stopped for a refreshing cup of boiled water. And as luck would have it, the leaves from a nearby camellia bush fell into his cup. From then on this pleasant new brew quickly became one of the Emperor’s favorite drinks. (Incidentally, the word “tea” comes from the Chinese word “cha” meaning camellia. Because European tea exporters misheard the word “cha” when they brought it home, they gave it the name “thee.”) Yet it wasn’t until the time of the Tang Dynasty that tea drinking in China became a real art form. In 780 A.D., a tea connoisseur named Lu Chu (who once ran off to join the circus) wrote a book called Tea Classic that was filled with tea drinking tidbits. These included best brewing techniques, top utensils to use (such as fire chopsticks, cauldrons and tea tongs), and information on the tastiest tea growing regions of China. If you’re visiting China today you’ll find that drinking tea is an integral part of Chinese life. It’s even used to express thanks, to apologize and as a sign of respect. So be sure to brush up on your tea drinking table manners before you travel. For instance, if you find yourself being the first to pour the tea, ensure you serve those around you first. And if someone pours tea for you, you can thank him or her by lightly tapping your index and middle fingers on the table.

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Winter Festivals Part III: Fastnacht

January 8th, 2012

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In the heart of Lucerne, Switzerland’s most populous city, winter brings out one of the quirkier festivals in Europe. And it’s teeming with some of the kookiest of costumes and customs. Every year towards the close of winter, revelers take to the streets to hunt down and cast out the cold, grim spirits of winter in a festival called Fastnacht (or Carnival). Traditionally, Fastnacht festivalgoers perform this ritual dressed as witches, demons, devils, unworldly spirits and animals. Today, however, you’ll find that other wacky outfits are just as common. It’s a bit like Halloween with costumes resembling cartoon characters such as Obelix medieval swordsmen to hospital-bound fakers on a gurney! Head to Lucerne on the first day of Fastnacht and you’ll see folkloric characters, Brother Fritschi and his wife, opening the annual ceremony. Rumor has it that Brother Fritschi gained fame because of his last wish upon his death. During his final hours, he pledged money to the town of Lucerne on the condition that wine would be served to the poor every year at Fastnacht. Not only does the town still fulfill Brother Fritschi’s death wish, but a straw puppet with a keen resemblance to Fritshi is paraded throughout the town in his honor. You’ll also find a fountain dedicated to Brother Fritshi in the heart of Lucerne where legend says he is buried right underneath! Visit Lucerne at Fastnacht and you’ll be dazzled by elaborate carnival parades, the sound of drums and piccolo song (though sometimes not in tune) and performers breaking into crowd-pleasing acts (and less pleasing practical jokes). You’ll need a lot of energy to make it through the festivities so be sure to feast on the traditional Fastnacht fatty treat, fried potato dough. Which, by the way, is also called the Fastnacht. Get ‘em while you can because if you’re participating in Lent, these treats were historically made as a way to empty the pantry of lard, sugar, fat, and butter—all items forbidden to eat through the forty days of the Lenten season. Indulge!

 

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