Smiling faces from the community and the University filled the Union Ballroom on Saturday to celebrate the Chinese New Year at the 2008 Chinese Spring Festival.
The events officially started with a bilingual welcome – in Chinese and English – to the children, students, faculty and community members.
Guodong Zhu, the Asian Community United Treasurer, returned to the festival this year to see how it was organized, enjoy the food and see new faces.
“It’s nice you don’t only see Asian faces to celebrate the Asian New Year,” Zhu said.
Entertainment activities allowed everyone to explore their cultural tastes. For instance, audience members experienced graceful dances and story re-enactments.
There were also musical portions, which included Chinese song solos, a guitar and cello combination, and several piano performances. Tiannan Zhou, president of the Chinese Students and Scholars Association, said most of the performances were by students.
Avrill Obee, a freshman from Maumee Valley High School, attended the festival last year and returned again for the piano performances and to experience the culture.
Interactive games also took place throughout the evening. The audience was able to learn parts of the language and explore China’s cultural history while winning authentic Chinese prizes.
In past years, the festival provided dumplings and other authentic Chinese dishes. This year, pizza, fried rice, chicken drumsticks and pop were available.
Zhu said he was disappointed with the food options this year because pizza and pop are not a part of the New Year celebration.
The festival took about a month to organize, according to Zhu. CSSA had to reserve the ballroom, order the food through dining services, sell tickets and prepare for the night of celebration and entertainment.
Zhou said the Chinese Spring Festival has been celebrated at the University for about 20 years. However, Feb. 7 marked the Chinese year 4706.
2008 is also the year of the rat, which is associated with hard work and renewal.
The Chinese New Year lasts 15 days, from the darkest day of the month to the brightest. This year it will end Feb. 22.
Along with CSSA, Coca-Cola and the Center for Multicultural and Academic Initiatives sponsored the event.
