SPbPU Celebrates Eastern New Year Festivities

The Polytechnic celebrated the New Year according to the lunar calendar in the Lepota space of the SPbPU Student Club. Hundreds of students familiarized themselves with the traditions of Vietnam, Indonesia and China. There were informative stories, national dances and master classes. And, of course, treats.

Such large-scale and at the same time cozy celebrations have become a tradition among the multinational student community of Polytechnic. The students were congratulated by Natalia Chicherina, Director of the Institute of Humanities, Pavel Nedelko, Assistant Vice-Rector for International Activities, and Alfred Nordmann, Professor of Darmstadt University, President-elect of the International Society of Philosophy and Technology (SPT).

International students presented the traditions of celebrating the New Year according to the lunar calendar. Chinese team member Wang Yi spoke about Chun Jie -Chinese or Lunar New Year, which is often referred to as the Spring Festival. Its main symbols are dragons, lions, red lanterns, as well as gifts in red envelopes and dumplings on the festive table.

Indonesian team leader Rayhan Farrell Umar talked about Imlek — Eastern New Year in Indonesia. Residents organize torchlight processions and give each other handmade gold cards with red hieroglyphics — wishes for wealth, good luck and health.

Vietnamese team leader Nguyen Van Tu Anh presented Tet Nguyen Dan or Tet («First Morning Festival»), the Vietnamese New Year according to the lunar-solar calendar, which symbolizes purity and renewal.

Nguyen Van Thu Anh sang the Vietnamese song «Tet oi Tet a» about the New Year celebration. Ye Zizhou showed the traditional Chinese dance «Bone Spike», which is about how beautiful and amazing life is around us. Jia Jie and Zhou Jiaqi gave the guests a Chinese legend song «Marionette Performance». Evelina Magomedova showed a popular Korean dance «Newjins Hip Boy» and held a master class «Rato Jaroe» — a traditional dance of Indonesia, Aceh province, dedicated to the courage of spirit, intransigence, harmony and unity of Acehnese people.

Also for the participants there was prepared a stand-session with master classes, interactive activities and national dishes. It was also possible to play national board games.

Eastern New Year is a kind of journey from winter to spring, to the beginning of the year according to the lunar calendar. At this time it is customary to gather around the festive table, give each other presents and see off the old year, and with it all the bad things. Last year we and foreign students from Vietnam, Indonesia and China decided to introduce this «strange» for many people New Year for the first time, said project manager Svetlana Trotsyuk.

The main initiator and organizer of the event is the Humanities Institute, which has the largest number of students from Eastern countries. But traditionally all international holidays are held in partnership with the Graduate School of International Educational Programs and with the support of the SPbPU Youth Policy Council, Harmony Volunteer Projects Center, the «Foreign Students of the Institute of Humanities» community, TutorForces and PolyUnion.