Under the umbrella of an amphitheater resembling a crest of the Sydney Opera House, a girl acrobat from the New Shanghai Circus remains calmly still during a full-stretched hand stand. An assistant places two traditional Chinese wine goblets on top of her feet, one on each foot. Then a dozen, and then two dozen, all meticulously stacked onto each other. Now and then, a light breeze threatens to knock over the entire stack. The acrobat then bends her legs in the air while slowly descending. Eventually, she lies flat on the ground with the cups still in the air. She curves her body from the waist up to face upwards, and raises both of her hands in the same direction. The assistant appears from backstage and comes forward to the audience displaying a massive tray of glittering glass cups. He piles dozens of more cups on the acrobat’s forehead and hands. Having stabilized the positions of each cup, the acrobat then twists her body around and moves her limbs up and down in a display of flexibility, balance, and coordination. The audience stares in awe and then roars into applause after one final dozen of cups are placed on her nose.  Unbelievably, the acrobat does not even flinch.

Such dazzling scenes have become the norm at the Missouri Botanical Gardens’ Chinese Culture Days, an annual, three-day event during which visitors celebrate and learn about Chinese Culture, dances, and songs. The occasion begins with a stunning 70-foot dragon dance roused by thunderous drums. A parade led by the dragon then directs the audience to the Cohen Amphitheatre, where the performances begin. The shows include lion dancing, Peking Opera, Chinese Waist Drum, aerobatics, and martial arts. Shows last from the morning until late into the afternoon. Performers come from China, local martial arts institutes, and two Chinese Schools: St. Louis Modern Chinese School and St. Louis Chinese Language School.

During these performances, many other activities are held. Inside the main building, a children’s activity booth entertains and educates participants in Origami, Chinese Yo-yo, and traditional paper cutting. Outside, a large makeshift marketplace is set up where local merchants wow viewers with their unique products and Chinese American groups inform the community on their interests. Feeling tired? At the Chinese Garden (AKA the Grigg Nanjing Friendship Garden), tea-tasting sessions are held in the backdrop of calm Taichi performances and music from a traditional Chinese Erhu instrument.

Of course, food is an important aspect of Chinese Culture. Chinese Culture Days have become a central hub for Chinese Restaurants all over St. Louis to entice customers with their delicious recipes. From the avant-garde Bubble Tea (Which the Chinese III and IV classes at CHS just visited and is extremely popular with young people) to the traditional Chinese Noodle Café (Which was just declared by the Riverfront Times as its favorite Chinese Restaurant of 2012), the food court presents St. Louisans with an opportunity to try a wide variety of Chinese cuisine.

When Chinese Culture Days just began in late 1996, the event lasted just one day, and the range of activities was limited. This year, however, Chinese Culture Days will be held for an entire three days from Saturday, May 26 to Monday, May 28 at the Missouri Botanical Gardens. Tens of thousands of people are expected to come. Visit the Botanical Gardens over the weekend of May 26 for a unique and fun celebration that you will always remember! Furthermore, the celebration of Chinese Culture will not end with Chinese Culture Days. The Missouri Botanical Garden will be holding a celebration of the Lantern Festival following Chinese Culture Days that will last all summer until August 19.