For American Jeff Casagrade, who has lived in China for four years, the holiday is "like the US Thanksgiving combined with the Western New Year".

    He and his 11-year-old twin sons will join his wife's family in Guangzhou to celebrate.

    He says he enjoys the time but it isn't without its downsides.

    "Normally, it's OK, but there's conflict, like in any family," Casagrade says.

    "You still tend to feel like an outsider. Mostly, it's language. My Mandarin is poor, and my wife's family speaks Cantonese anyway."

Two New Zealand students display Chinese knots in Shandong Normal University in Jinan, capital of east China's Shandong Province, Jan. 19, 2009. (Xinhua Photo) Photo Gallery>>>

    This will be the first Spring Festival in China for Australian Paul Gooden and his family.

    The information technology specialist says they have been looking forward to the holiday since expatriating to the Chinese capital seven months ago.

    "I've been aware of Chinese New Year for a long time but this is the chance to be here and see it, to be in the Chinese capital where it has been celebrated for thousands of years," Gooden says.

    "Beijing is the center of Chinese culture in some ways, so it's a great place to see Spring Festival. Experiencing it here, that's part of the reason we came to China."

    The family plans to spend New Year's Eve with a friend from Taiwan who has lived on the mainland for seven years, meeting and feasting with his Chinese pals.

    In addition, he will go skiing near Beijing with his local friends, and the family will travel to Longqingxia in the capital's northern suburbs to see the annual ice festival.

    "With my job, it's been very busy, but moving to China has helped me understand how important family is," Gooden says.

    "In China, I've been spending more time with my family, and Chinese New Year is a part of that."

    Fritter says her family also enjoys the spirit of cheer that fills the air this time of year.

    "Beijing takes on a different feel, and people are really happy," Fitter says.

    "You feel a part of it, too."

    (Source: China Daily)