Southern Lake and Lantern Displays

(Deanna)

In our first official day in Xi’an, we ventured out into the Southern Lake, an artificial lake invested to beautify the already lovely Xi’an. The government decided to move residents to apartments and the residents were paid 500,000 Yuan equivalent to 80,000 US dollars. My initial thought was that the lake was artificial, how is it possible for it to be this beautiful? The lake is quite similar to Kunming’s lake which is peaceful, even featuring calm background music to add to the mood of the lake. In snapping photos of the lake, a little girl saw me strolling in the park and ran towards her grandmother.
Her grandmother proceeded to tell her that she shouldn’t be afraid and that she should wave. So I waved and smiled to the little girl, and she waved back. It was one of those moments where even when appearances are different, small gestures such as smiles and waves can really make a difference. In continuing my stroll, along the lake there was a bright pink wall featuring different fairytales such as Cinderella, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, and even Chinese love stories and a place where people go in order to go on blind dates. When walking, there was a Lover’s Bench and unique large iron sculptures dedicated to love and friendship. There were even sculptures talking about love stories in China.

In the evening, we went to a Lantern display at Tang Paradise. When walking up to the gates of the park, there was a mad rush of people going into the park. We continued to go into the park and stopped in awe at all the lanterns and lit up buildings for this display. There were even fireworks! We sauntered in this large park that showed the reflections of fireworks and lanterns (that changed colours, I might add) in the lake. I thoroughly enjoyed looking at the two dragon lanterns, they were not only massive but elegant and beautiful. We took several group photos by the dragon lanterns and enjoyed the rest of the lanterns. After a long day of walking we were excited to finally go to the comfort of our beds to prepare for our next journey.

Until next time, wan an! x