春节未到 先过小年

The Xiaonian Festival comes one week ahead of lunar New Year’s Eve, and this year it came on Monday. Traditionally on this occasion, Chinese people pay homage to the legendary "God of the Kitchen", and have something of a preliminary celebration of the upcoming big night.
小年是农历新年除夕的前一周，今年它是在周一。传统上，在这个时候，中国人会向传说中的“灶神”表示敬意，为即将到来的这个重大夜晚举行一个预备庆祝仪式。

Many time-honored pastry makers in Beijing opened business very early on Monday. From baked steam bread to bean-stuffed bun, these hand-made traditional Chinese pastries are only on limited offer, and only the early birds get their share.
周一，北京许多古老的糕点师很早就开始营业。从烤馒头到豆沙包，这些手工制作的传统中式糕点只限量供应，只有那些早来的人才能买到。

A customer said, "It’s Spring Festival time, and traditional food makes me very cheerful. Besides, they’re really delicious."
一位顾客表示：“现在是春节时候，传统食物让我感到非常高兴。除此之外，它们真的很美味。”

The pastry shop also prepared some gift-wrapped boxed sets, which includes various pastry snacks for shoppers. But for those who are returning home from Beijing during the Spring Festival holiday, Peking Roast Duck seems a more attractive choice than bread and buns.
糕点店也为购买者准备了一些礼盒装，包括各种糕点小吃。但是对于那些在春节假期期间从北京回家的人来说，北京烤鸭似乎是一种比包子馒头更有吸引力的选择。

A customer said, "I’m from Jiangsu Province. All my friends there know that Peking Roast Duck is a famous brand, so I’ll bring some vacuum-packed ducks for them."
一位顾客称：“我来自江苏省。我所有的朋友都知道北京烤鸭是一个名牌，所以我会带一些真空包装的烤鸭给他们。”

In Fenghuang County of Hunan Province where most residents are of the Miao ethnic minority, local families preserve corn and make cured pork and sausages for the spring festival. On the day of Xiaonian, young ladies put on their glamorous dresses and silver jewelry, and red lanterns and couplets welcome neighbors to share the festive mood.
在湖南省的凤凰县，大多数居民是苗族，当地家庭为春节保存玉米，制作腊肉和香肠。在小年这一天，年轻女士穿上迷人的服装、戴上银首饰、挂上红灯笼、贴上对联欢迎邻居来分享节日气氛。

Another Miao people’s favorite activity for spring festival is lion dancing. The costumes are smaller in size than usual lion dancing performances, hence easier to go through the lanes and spread the fun. It is said that the Miao people introduces this dance to entertain the god of kitchen, so that the god would bless the families with another year of joy and happiness.
苗族春节期间热衷的另一项活动是舞狮。舞狮服装在尺码上比平常舞狮表演的服装还要小，因此更容易通过小巷，传播快乐。据说苗族引进这种舞蹈是为了娱乐灶神，以便灶神保佑家人新一年快乐、幸福。

In Jurong of Jiangsu Province, a local craftsman has created hand-made dragon lanterns, combining traditional lanterns with the lunar New Year mascot. So far, he has made about 50 sets, ranging from 3 meters to 20 meters long, in different colors and shapes.
在江苏省的句容，当地一名手艺人手工创作了龙灯笼，将传统灯笼和农历新年的吉祥物结合起来。目前为止，他制作了约50个灯笼，从3米长到20米长不等，颜色形状各异。

Chen Baihua, craftsman of Jurong, Jiangsu, said, "The key to making dragon lanterns is to make it a bit overly-dramatic in shape and facial expression. Dragons never existed, that’s why people love to see the dragons created with cheerful imagination."
江苏句容的手艺人Chen Baihua称：“制作龙灯笼的重点是让它在形状和面部表情上过于戏剧化。龙从没存在过，这就是人们喜欢看到带着欢乐想象的龙的原因。”

As a craftwork that’s handed down from ancestors, making dragon lanterns brings a lot of fun to the craftsman. And he’s delighted to see that people around China are enjoying his effort at this time of year.
作为一名手艺从祖上传下来的手艺人，制作龙灯笼给这位手艺人带来很多乐趣。每年这个时候，当他看到全中国的人享受他的努力时，他很高兴。