China rang in the New Year with spectacular light shows at the Great Wall near Beijing and Shanghai’s historic Bund waterfront. Here in Zhengzhou, the celebration was muted. (Yes, it’s already 2014. We’re 13 hours ahead of New York.)

A few fireworks crackled at midnight and I got a handful of Happy New Year messages from my students, but there were no major festivities in this provincial capital. Like most Chinese cities, Zhengzhou won’t put on its party hat until Jan. 31, when the country celebrates the Lunar New Year.

That marks the beginning of the two-week Spring Festival, the most important holiday on the Chinese calendar. It’s a time when almost everyone in China returns to their hometown to celebrate with their family, creating the biggest travel nightmare on the planet.

So, even though cosmopolitan cities like Beijing and Shanghai held New Year’s parties to observe the start of the Western New Year, the real festivities in China won’t take place for another month.

Note: I spent New Year’s Eve marking final exams and calculating end-of-semester grades for my six classes, which I have to finish before flying to Shanghai on Friday to meet Pat. We’re required to use a complex grading formula that includes more numbers than a craps table. Craps, I understand. Not so sure about this grading system, though.