Yesterday, April 1st, was April Fools Day and a Saturday. Normally, when someone tells me that classes have been rescheduled for the Saturday of April Fools I would be highly suspicious. At ECNU however, you shouldn't be because classes were actually rescheduled for the Saturday of April Fools. While April Fools is no excuse to reschedule classes in China, The Qingming Festival (清明节) or Tomb Sweeping Day (扫坟节) is. From what I have gathered so far, the Qingming Festival is a time to honor you ancestors by visiting their tombs with your living family, makings sure the dead's graves look alright, and having a picnic in the cemetery. So kind of like Chinese Day of the Dead with less sugar skulls and more burning paper money. Typically, Tomb Sweeping Day takes place 15 days after the Spring Equinox, usually April 4th (like this year) or April 5th (except on Taiwan where it is always April 5th as that is also the day when Chiang Kai-shek died). Because many of the Chinese students want to go home to spend time with their family caring for the ancestors, ECNU canceled classes on the 3rd and 4th. Much to my and many others annoyance, they decided that Saturday should be like a Monday, a class day. I am not sure why ECNU feels the need to do this, none of us were particularly productive since everyone was tired for their week and no one wanted to be working on a Saturday. At least I have a long four day weekend now, that's nice I guess.
2 Comments
Dad
4/3/2017 02:53:24 am
Could be worse. You could be spending your 4 days off sweeping out a cemetery
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gramma m.
4/4/2017 11:24:56 pm
Now Saturday is the new Monday. Very confusing. A whole vacation to celebrate the Day of the Dead, who are on permanent vacation?
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AuthorI am a junior at Juniata College spending a year studying abroad at East China Normal University. Please feel free to join my on my journey to China and beyond. Archives
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