This is how Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China looks right now. But how did it look exactly 20 years ago?

In June 5th, 1989, amidst clashes in Tiananmen between the Chinese communist government and the democratic party, a courageous man known as the Tank Man stood in front of Chinese Tanks, impeding their advance.

Here’s a closer look. Little is known about what happened to the Tank Man, but twenty years later he is still one of the most iconic figures of the Chinese communism.

Democratic protests before the military took control.

Instant Ramen is not a blog about politics and I hate to discuss politics and love having Chinese/Taiwanese blood. One thing I do have to say: remember that oppression is not new and hiding out or conveniently forgetting or not writing in our text books about what a nation has done to their own or other people is a thing of everyday’s life in every government, Japan, China, USA, Russia, the list goes on. But the worst thing we can do is point fingers at who we think is doing bad things and forgetting that our own people have and do bad stuff too. Saying that what someone else did was worse is just a cheap excuse for evading what we have done bad.

Phew, that was my political whining for today ^^;;

Photos and article via Boston

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Yesterday — Jan. 26th, was the Chinese New Year, also known as 春節 (Spring Festival) or 旧正月 (Kyūshōgatsu) in Japan. This is probably the most important festival for us, and it’s packed with lots of delicious food, fireworks, dancing lions, and what else!

Fireworks! (Photo: G. Ivanov-Kuhn)

This festival is widely celebrated in original ethnic Chinese cultures and cultures related to China — Korea, Vietnam, Taiwan, Singapore, Thailand… you name it! It’s also popular in some cities in Japan, though not as much as one  expects. So, what makes it so special?

The Year of the Ox!

2009 is the year of the Ox, my year actually! If you’re 12, 24 (that’s me!), 36 and so on, then this year will be filled with good luck, red envelopes, and happyness!

A tasty dinner and red envelopes, the perfect New Year’s Eve! (Photo: Daniel Chan)

The red envelopes, known as 紅包 (Hong bao) in Chinese, are basically how we exchange presents. So, what’s in the inside? Most likely money (money!), which ranges from just a few bucks to ridiculous amounts, depending on who you are and who you know. Whenever I have the chance to see my uncles, I usually end up with quite a hefty sum of money. Yet another good reason to celebrate the Chinese New Year!

What’s with all the red stuff?

Well, according to the legend, every year started with an epic fight against a mythical beast. The beast would eat anything in its way — be it crops, villagers, or animals. Well, one day they found out that the beast was scared of the color red!

Red is the color of the Chinese New Year (Photo: Hamdan Zakaria)

What else besides red?

Well, the Chinese New Year’s Eve is full of delicious food, parades, dances (including the lion dance of course), and good luck!

The Lotus Dance is definitely one of my favorites (Photo: Hao)

The Chinese New Year is based on the Lunar Calendar, this is why it changes (based on our normal calendar) every year. Chinese festivals and parades are also widely popular in many cities like San Francisco, New York, and even in my Costa Rica!

Photo: Hao

Anyway, hope the Chinese New Year brings happiness and luck to you all! As a bonus, Google discretely made a new logo for this occasion, though it was not available on their main Google.com website:

Did you catch the Google Chinese New Year’s logo?

So, did you celebrate the Chinese New Year? I got $10 on my red envelope, how about you? Oh, and don’t forget to subscribe to our content by RSS or by email (it’s up there), hope you enjoyed the read!

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New Year means Winter in many places, and one of them is Harbin, located in the province of Hei Long Jiang (黑龍江 — literally Black Dragon River), in China.

The Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival kicked off earlier this month, and features a great number of real-sized buildings and structures, including Asian Pagodas and Temples:

I find it hard to believe that all of this is made out of ice!

The Saddest Part…

Is that Harbin’s temperature in Summer averages 21º Celcius — which means everything will be gone in a few months!

Source: Boston.com (Photos by REUTERS/Sheng Li)

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