Christmas Kick-Off

My younger student, Reena, had a choir performance this evening in Hangzhou for the Tree Lighting Ceremony at the Hyatt Regency on West Lake. The tree was beautiful and filled its branches from floor to vaulted ceiling in the lobby. The kids all wore Santa hats and sang carols. Tone-deaf middle and high schoolers belted out a not-so-Silent-Night while the parents (yes, Lucy and I included) shut our ears with free mulled wine, passed around by cute little Chinese waitresses in Mrs. Claus costumes. This, of course, was the best part for me, since mulled wine is my favorite. I kept the cinnamon stick.