With cheers, applause and tears, Beijing residents celebrate China’s V-Day commemorations

From gazing up at aircraft with national flags in their hands, to experiencing the parade atmosphere by watching livestream on the streets or in railway stations with cheering crowds, Beijing residents on Wednesday celebrated the commemorations of the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People’s War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War with excitement, pride and patriotism.

In Beijing, people gathered at major landmark sites early Wednesday morning to experience this historic moment. “All Beijing citizens, look up!” became a new buzzword online, with many people gathered to watch the planes.

At the Temple of Heaven, Global Times reporters saw photography enthusiasts setting up near the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests early on, ready to capture the moment when the planes flew over the ancient architecture. Many tourists held national flags and children wore red scarves, singing patriotic Chinese song “Ode to the Motherland.”

Ma Xingbo, a Beijing resident, told the Global Times on Wednesday that he was watching a live stream of the V-Day military parade on his phone while waiting for the aircraft. “When the aircraft flew over the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests, I could hear my own heartbeat,” Ma added.

Another resident named Zhang Luoyuan brought her nine-month-old daughter to enjoy the atmosphere of the parade: “I believe today is a very important day for our country, and I hope my baby can witness the prosperity of our nation,” said Zhang.

Gao, who originally from East China’s Shandong Province but now lives in Beijing, said it was her first-time experiencing military parade atmosphere in Beijing. “Tears filled my eyes the moment I saw the cutting-edge aircraft flying past,” Gao said, adding that when she saw the planes, many predecessors who had sacrificed their lives for the country came to her mind.

“Without them, we wouldn’t have the happy lives we enjoy today. I truly wish they could see how prosperous our nation has become,” Gao told the Global Times on Wednesday.

Beijing West Railway Station specially broadcast the parade on the station’s large screen. Beginning at around 8 am Wednesday, many passengers gathered with their luggage in front of the waiting hall at Beijing West Railway Station when the big screen began broadcasting footage related to the celebrations. The waiting hall staff cordoned off an area for passengers watching the broadcast and distributed items such as national lags and stickers to them, The Beijing News reported.

A tourist from Shenzhen took time off to experience the atmosphere in Beijing. After watching the military parade at the station, she said she hopes to go to the Chang’an Avenue. She told the Global Times that this parade was not a celebration but also an occasion for people to remember the hard-won peace and to cherish it.

After the military parade concluded, Beijing residents poured onto the streets, hoping to catch a glimpse of the parade equipment as it withdrew. A video circulating on Xiaohongshu showed the equipment—fresh from the parade—pulling out amid the cheers of the crowd; the sound of the public’s applause could be clearly heard in the footage, and the soldiers in the equipment sounded their horns in response.

Another video posted by a Beijing netizen showed three flag-bearers and parade soldiers running in disciplined formation, drawing applause and cheers from onlookers.

Additional clips captured soldiers on buses waving greetings to the people by the roadside. One netizen commented, “This is the finest embodiment of the profound bond between the military and the people.”

One comment in the section read, “When my ears ring with the roar of the equipment and the cheers of the people, I can’t help but feel how proud and glorious it is to be born in such a strong country and witness the motherland’s great strength.”

Global Times