As Christmas lights on the street blink to the tune of Jingle Bells, the entire city has been overwhelmed by a Christmas atmosphere.
Foreign communities, theme parks, supermarkets, shopping malls, hotels, pubs, flower markets and churches are now busy planning celebrations.
We are all prepared for the dinner Friday night. Normally we have at least four sittings of diners from 5 to 10 p.m., three times more than usual. We will hand out free presents, such as Christmas hats, candies and toys to girls coming for the dinner, said Wu Shuli, a manager at the Western-style Tasty Restaurant in Luohu District.
Hotel and restaurants are offering Christmas dinner, some at prices of up to 3,000 yuan (US$440), many times the cost of regular dinners. Those being served with performances and prize draws for less than 500 yuan are more popular.
Foreign communities are also looking forward to Christmas parties and family gatherings.
It is a family festival in my country, but as we don t have family here, so we ll celebrate it outside. Bars in Shenzhen have great Christmas parties every year, and my friend and I will enjoy the night there, said Jimmy Gerald, an English teacher at Shenzhen No. 2 Experimental School in Luohu.
Tourist attractions have organized a series of activities to celebrate Christmas. Most of their celebrations will continue until New Year.
Meanwhile, attractions in pubs and bars also vary. Some will have live bands and lucky draws Friday night, such as Sohu, Babyface and Le Nest in Luohu District, and Lips and True Colors in Futian District.
However, prices at bars and pubs increase and some even charge for admission. This will be a more expensive Christmas if flowers are on your gift list as their prices have increased by at least 20 percent.
(By Wang Yuanyuan)
