The Qianfo Mountain Chongyang (Double-Ninth) Temple Fair will run from Oct 13 to Oct 20 in Jinan, capital city of Shandong province, management committee of Jinan Qianfo Mountain scenic area said.

The Chongyang Festival falls on the ninth day of the ninth month of the Chinese lunar calendar, so it is also known as the Double Ninth Festival.

Since nine is the highest odd digit, some people consider that two of them together signifies longevity. Therefore, the ninth day of the ninth month has become a special day for people to pay their respects to the elderly and a day for the elderly to enjoy themselves. It has also been declared China's day for the elderly.

Climbing mountains, carrying a spray of dogwood and drinking chrysanthemum wine are traditional activities on this festival. Activities during the seven-day temple fair will include local art performances, special opera shows mountain climbing and praying for blessings. There will also be an intangible cultural heritage exhibition, folk crafts, and opportunities to play traditional games and watch old movies.

Folk culture professionals on folk culture will be invited to display rarely-seen traditional crafts. To emphasize the festival’s activities for the elderly, traditional games will be introduced, including shuttlecock kicking and fancy rope jumping. Crafts from Yunnan in Southwest China also will be on display.

The Qianfo Mountain Temple Fair has already become a part of Shandong’s intangible cultural heritage list. The 27-year-old annual temple fair has been held since 1982.

To keep the fair accessible to visitors, the Qianfo Mountain scenic area will close to any cars or people doing morning or evening exercises from 6:30 pm Oct 15 to 6:30 am Oct 16. Privilege cards for free tickets will also be suspended during the festival.

By Audrey and Wang Fan