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Exploring local village customs
Earlier that day, we went to local villages surrounding the town to see how they were celebrating the Lantern Festival. Apart from seeing brilliantly decorated buildings, we saw that the locals were also preparing coal pyres to light on the final night of this important holiday. Our local guide explained that lighting the pyres represented a considerable financial sacrifice -- one piece of coal costs 1 yuan or more, and each pyre may contain hundreds of pieces of coal. Since the locals use coal for their heating and cooking needs, the pyres consume a month's supply or more of energy for each household.
However, each household's annual income, our guide explained, has little effect on how much coal they sacrifice in the pyres, since lighting the pyre is considered to be a good luck omen for the coming year.
In one of the villages, we chanced upon a family relaxing prior to the evening's festivities. Local children, perhaps 10 or 11 years old, were sitting around a table playing cards. The father of the house, who was a local laborer, also hinted that he was a good singer, and performed a traditional song for us with a surprisingly clear voice. The mother told me that usually the kids are busy doing their homework, but during the Chinese New Year holiday they finally have a chance to relax.
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探索當地民俗
當天早些時候，我們趕往左權縣周圍的村鎮，參觀當地人如何慶祝元宵節。除了觀看當地精心裝扮的建筑物，我們還體驗了當地人元宵節晚上籠旺火的習俗。據當地導游介紹，籠旺火要花不少錢，每塊炭火值一元左右，火堆基本都由幾百塊炭火組成。當地人取暖和做飯都使用煤炭，每家籠旺火消耗的煤炭基本相當于一家人一個月的煤炭用量。
然而，我們的導游說，每家每戶并不會因為經濟收入少而減少為點旺火準備的煤炭，因為在民俗中，點旺火寓意著來年將旺氣沖天、紅紅火火。
在一個村落里，我們看到一家住戶正在自娛自樂打發時間，等待午夜十二點的點旺火儀式來臨。幾個大約10到11歲大的孩子圍坐在桌子旁邊打撲克。房子的主人在當地靠勞力吃飯，他表示自己歌唱得很好，并用他異常脆亮的嗓子為我們現場演唱了當地的一首民俗歌曲。孩子的母親告訴我們，孩子們平時都忙著做功課，只有在過年時才有機會好好放松一下。
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