Beijing

Christmas services

Beijing International Christian Fellowship will host Christmas Eve services at 6:30 pm and 8 pm, in English (Chapel A&B) and Mandarin (Chapel E&F). See www.bicf.org for details on other services in various languages during

Christmas week, information about the English-language choir and a map with directions.

BICF 21st Century, 40 Liangmaqiao Lu. 010-8454-3468.

Messiah concert

The International Festival Chorus presents its annual

Christmas concert: Handel's Messiah conducted by IFC musical director Nicholas Smith. Tickets include a free round-trip bus ride between the Kempinski Hotel at

Liangmaqiao and the concert venue; book your seat on the bus when ordering tickets. For tickets: yoopay.cn/events/ifcmessiah2013.

7 pm, Dec 15. International School of Beijing, 10 Anhuajie, Shunyi district.

Global sounding board for expats

Sell a bike. Buy a 3-D television. Find a language teacher. Compare insurance options. Register a birth - yes, even that. You'll find all sorts of tips, plus a group of expats in your town to advise on your own special needs abroad. You can also share your foreign experience by participating in an interview that will be featured on the site, and read about the experiences of others - in China and elsewhere.

www.expat-blog.com.

- Mike Peters

Hong Kong

HK's biggest annual consumer expo

Holiday shopaholics will be descending on Causeway Bay's Victoria Park, which will host the 48th Hong Kong Brands and Products Expo starting this week, featuring famous overseas and local designers and quality products. The perfect place for some last-minute deals, stocking stuffers or parrots in a palm tree. Traditional Christmas trees are also available in various sizes.

11 am-10 pm, Dec 14 to Jan 6. Victoria Park, Causeway

Bay. 852-3421-2012. www.hkbpe.com.hk.

Side-splitting stand-up in Soho

Former HK Comedy Competition winners and a new crop of challengers will be doling out droll daily takes on subway etiquette and dubious sounding Chinese-transliterations as Hong Kong's only full-time comedy club closes out the year with three final showcases of live English stand-up comedy.

9 pm until late. Dec 14, 20-21. HK$150. TakeOut Comedy, B/F, 34 Elgin Street, Central. 852-6220-4436.

Gallic Elvis

Johnny Hallyday, the Gallic Elvis, can't seem to stay retired and will be performing for swooning fans in Wan Chai. The French cultural icon has become the biggest rock star English-speaking countries have never heard of and has been practicing his scintillating art for more than 50 years.

8:30 pm, Dec 18. HK$750. Vine Centre 2, 29 Burrows Street, Wan Chai. 852-2573-0793.

- Timo Chui

Shanghai

InterNations end-of-year party

InterNations, a networking service and guide for expats, welcomed its 1 millionth member worldwide last month and has a large following in Shanghai. This week it will host its end-of-year social get-together. The tickets cost 150 yuan, including three drinks of your choice.

7-10:30 pm, Dec 17. Choir Wine Bar, 19 Fuzhou Lu, near Zhongshan Dongyilu.

Christmas Day service at church

Shanghai's best-known Protestant church will run a special 90-minute program at lunchtime for a good cause. All proceeds taken that day will be used to support orphanages in China. As the church is located in the French Concession, an area popular with expats, the service will be conducted in English. Hengshan Community Church, also known as the International Church, was founded in 1925 and is known for its top-notch choir. Regular services are held on Saturday from 6:30-8 pm and on Sunday from 2-4 pm.

11 am-12:30 pm, Dec 25. Hengshan Community Church, Hengshan Lu.

Carnival pillow fight

What better way to burn off all those excess calories consumed over lunch and dinner than by engaging in a gigantic pillow fight on the evening of Christmas day in a bar near Xintiandi? The party at Mao Live House will

reportedly include Shanghai-style party elements as well as popular rock bands, dancers and no doubt a large mosh pit filled with people thwacking each other with colorful pillows. Gimmicks include a 1,000-pillow hill to climb and three different kinds of pillow battles. There will also be a lucky draw offering tours of Hong Kong and Macao worth about 4,000 yuan each. Tickets for the event cost 150 yuan on the door or 128 yuan in advance.

8:30-11 pm, Dec 25. Mao Live House, 3rd Floor, 308 Chongqing Nanlu, Huangpu district (near Jianguo Zhonglu). 400-051-5298.

- Matt Hodges

Guangzhou

Chinese Corner

Foreign newcomers to Guangzhou are invited to join the biweekly "Chinese Corner" hosted by Qiao Bang International Education, a Chinese-language learning center in the city, to learn Chinese and make friends. Participants are able to learn daily Chinese, get useful information about good places in the city for dinning, shopping and partying, and explore Chinese cultural facets, such as calligraphy and embroidery. The activity is free of charge. Tea, coffee, beer and snacks are provided. The upcoming Chinese Corner is scheduled on Dec 20. Call the center and make an appointment.

7-9 pm, Dec 20. Room 206, Guangzhou International Science and Trade Center, 890 Tianhe Beilu, Tianhe district, Guangzhou. (Exit B of South China Normal University station of subway Line 3). 020-2890-6329.

- Xu Jingxi

(China Daily 12/15/2013 page5)