It's going to be a 7-Up Christmas!

 

 

 

Christmas decorations in my part of China are usually pretty . . . weak. Lopsided trees with little or no sense of decorations; few ornaments, crooked garland, etc. It doesn't bother me . . . it's a fairly new holiday to the area.

Even Christmas carols don't seem unique as "Jingle Bells" gets played all year long on the street cleaning trucks (which make me think of ice cream trucks every time!) and "God Rest You Merry Gentlemen" is a somewhat popular song with completely different lyrics.

Imagine my surprise when I came upon this HUGE Christmas tree downtown. I've not seen one this big in a public arena (some hotels have large trees in their lobbies, though). As Rachel and I walked up to it, we saw that it was sponsored by 7-Up and that the entire tree was made of empty 7-Up bottles. I don't think I want to know how long it took to make this tree!

I've included some other photos of decorations in the same area to give you somewhat of an idea as to what it's like here. That gingerbread looking display is about as fancy as it gets here!