It’s my last week in China and I don’t want to go home. China has so many cultural and traditional things to do and visit, which are so different to back home. Lantau Island is one of the many cultural icons that I was lucky enough to visit. Yesterday we landed in Shanghai from Hong Kong to celebrate the huge festive Chinese New Year. The flight took one and a half hours. I travelled to the city by train and stepped out of the subway at the Henan Zhong Station. When I stepped outside for the first time into this bustling city, I was overwhelmed by the colours, sights and sounds of the busy city streets.

There were red lanterns on display, crimson decorations on the buildings and laundry drying on rooftops. Smoke and steam were wafting out of the small restaurants and the combined smells of freshly cooked dumplings, grilled meat, steamed buns and tofu filled the air. The sound of the traffic was combined with the sounds of street musicians playing for small change. There was an electric feeling in the air.

When I looked above the street and beyond I could see the skyline surrounded by skyscrapers. There is a strong influence of modern culture with Cocca-Cola signs and billboards which I found surprising.

I am stll in in my new dress that I bought in one of the street bazaars to welcome in the New Year. It is a tradition to wear new clothing to celebrate the new and say good bye to the old. When the clock rang in the New Year, the city sky was lit up with the sight of colourful fireworks which filled the sky from near and far and filled the air with smoke. There was lots of yangge, lion and dragon dancing which filled the streets. I will be wearing new clothes in the coming days as I was told by the locals that it is a tradition.

China is such a whirlwind experience; there are so many things to do and I highly recommend visiting the country especially on Chinese New Year.