Thursday, December 27, 2007

Lampchops Roasting On an Open Fire

Although the spirit of Christmas is hard to capture while living amongst Beijing's commercialized atheists, I was fortunate enough to celebrate the holidays with friends who shared the same traditional values as I. One could say I had a very merry Christmas.

The night of December 23rd, my girlfriend and I had the get the apartment ready for a little soiree we were hosting on Christmas Eve. A Christmas tree (fake) was given to me by one of my students and although most ornaments and the star were included, the stand was missing. Fortunately, this tree was about one tenth the size I was used to and an old flower pot and a few rocks managed to suffice. The front door hung a wreath. Our stockings were placed in front of the large air conditioning machine. The living room was covered in candles, little Santa dolls, and candy canes. With the resources we had (mainly Walmart) I think we did a pretty good job with the Christmas decorations. My girlfriend was up late that night- from my experiences, females believe that if a home is not pristine and tidy, it reflects poorly on them.

On Christmas eve, after my lessons, I had only one job to accomplish before our dinner - find new Christmas tree lights (the ones we had were duds right out of the box). I biked to one, two, three, four supermarkets in the area. No luck. I was told by shop owners with Christmas displays that the best place to buy Christmas lights was on the streets. I paced up and down the sidewalks of Wudaokou which were flooded with thousands of people finishing their Christmas shopping. Two burly cops would appear every half hour causing every illicit vendor to scoop up their merchandise in a bed sheet and book it - when the cops were out of sight, vendors ran back to their spots as fast as they fled. After a few inquiries, I discovered that the Christmas lights guy had not arrived yet and was MIA according to his buddies. With 45 minutes left before guests would be arriving at my door, in sheer desperation, I asked a street promoter standing outside a hair cuttery how much it would cost to acquire the lights on their Christmas tree. A few moments of bewilderment was followed by a flash of Christmas spirit, and for a hefty price of 100 kuai ($12.5), my new found friend was twirling the tree as I carefully took off the lights. It wouldn't feel like Christmas without that last minute purchase.

Everyone who came to my home was asked to bring a bottle of red wine and a dish - and since we didn't really coordinate on the food, everyone ended up bringing a chicken dish - baked, roasted, and fried (including KFC). But all in all, the food was stuffing, the wine was diverse, and the company (consisting of people from Korea, America, China, and Hong Kong) was wonderful. The mood was very pleasant as we ate by candle light to a selection of my favorite Christmas songs and I ate cheesecake for the first time in Beijing - and the first time on Christmas. This lovely dinner however was quickly transferred to my girl's bar. The rest of the evening was spent drinking discounted cocktails and rocking out to Mariah Carey - All I Want For Christmas Is You.

There was nothing exceptional about Christmas day since most people had to go to work and Santa clearly was too busy to fly to Beijing. I however managed to watched Home Alone I and II in my pjs which made me particularly happy. Christmas dinner however was unusual to say the least. An American friend of mine who has spent most of his life in Asia took it upon himself to find fresh lamb meat for the occassion. He somehow someway got permission to slaughter a lamb in one of Beijing's mosques and then haul the 50 kilo carcass back to his apartment. On Christmas day, it was roasted over a fire pit and served for dinner. The feast also included mashed potatoes, stuffing, two baked chickens, and garlic bread. Although 20 of us chowed down, I reckon his frig will be full of lamb meat for the coming weeks. It was absolutely delicious - its been some time since I've had some home style cooking.

Christmas in China lacks tradition and family, but it can still be a cheerful celebration as long as you surround yourself with friends and loved ones - and Nat King Cole. Shengdan Jie Kuale - or MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

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