China celebrates National Day on the 1st of October each year. It has only a tangential relationship to the Chinese Communist Party. It was set up by Mao, but seems to have more with a celebration that they had finally banished the Japanese from their land.

I should have guessed it, but they make a big thing of this in China. There are a lot of roads closed road here and the fireworks this evening were impressive (i.e. had a lot of money thrown at it). Other than the celebrations I mentioned (which remind me of America's 4th of July), the holiday feels more like your standard excuse to shop and drink. I went to the supermarket today and it was heaving.