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Chinese New Year

Shanghai is one of the best places in the world to experience Chinese New Year… Why you may ask? Because here, in this city, you have the opportunity to see both the old and the new traditions associated with this holiday.

As I mentioned in my earlier posting, Shanghai becomes relatively empty during the New Year holiday. As a result you have to “fight” with significantly fewer people when going out to check out the various happenings.

Here is one of the good options for experiencing the celebration in a traditional local way – pay a visit to the Longhua Temple in Southwest Shanghai. The temple is located at Long Hua Road – in Chinese characters it is 龙华路853

How do you get there? Obviously, taking a cab to the address listed above is one – easier- way, but I would suggest to get on the number 9 line and just head to the Long Hua Road metro stop.

Going to this temple will allow you to see the Shanghai people in action – payers are in full swing, tons of special prayer envelopes and banners are being handled and of course you get to see and hear the sounds of the festival.

The temple bell is also omnipresent – striking it is a symbol of the new year, and also a method for chasing away the evil spirits. As a result we heard the bell multiple times while at the temple on the 16th of February – New Year’s Day – in 2018;

Here are some of the photos we took from visiting the temple on the first day of the New Year of the Dog

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Well, in the future, if you are planning to be in Shanghai for Chinese New Year, and have some time on your hands, you should plan to explore the Longhua Temple…!