Hello and welcome to the 8th issue of Beijing Review. 

(XINHUA)

COVER STORY    

Spring Festival, Spending Festival looks at the expansion of entertainment prospects during the holiday and the surge of travel and consumption. Domestic and overseas tourism rose as did spending, including museums, movies, catering and retail.

NATION

Where Has Time Gone? shows the results of a survey analyzing how Chinese people spent their time last year during an average day. Survey participants logged their activities around the clock over two days, one a work day and the other a day off. Social patterns differed with gender roles, as well as between urban and rural residents, and more time was spent on health and family.

ESSAY

Memories of Fireworks looks at how the use of fireworks has become a fading memory of the Chinese Lunar New Year. It was once an elaborate and festive spectacle spread out over the week-long holiday that lit up whole of Beijing, but it has faded into history with the growth of concern over the environment and air quality. It is a reflection of what has happened across the nation.

Copyedited by Pamela Tobey   

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