Explosion of fireworks an echo of China's past

For those new to China or just visiting the capital, Spring Festival offers one of the most spectacular fireworks displays on the planet.

It makes the July 4 in the United States, Guy Fawkes Night in the United Kindom and Sydney Harbour on Dec 31 look like a faulty sparkler in a rain storm.

Be prepared because shock-and-awe Beijing-style is about to come to the capital.

Virtually every night throughout the festival, firecrackers and fireworks echo through the city. It's an amazing spectacle to be treasured by all, even if a few whizzes and bangs disturb your sleep.

I have lost count of the number of people who, by day three, with eyes like bruised poached eggs, start asking when it will end. But guests in a country shouldn't scoff at local customs and the history of fireworks in China runs very deep.

The sound of firecrackers has for centuries been a distinctive part of Spring Festival with generations of forefathers handing down the belief that it frightens away evil spirits.

But, for 12 years, the streets of Beijing were relatively silent in comparison after authorities banned them over safety and environmental concerns. Beijingers campaigned hard for years to have the right to set off firecrackers reinstated.

Some were defiant and still let off little explosives, forcing the police to be busier than the fire fighters and street cleaners by catching those who broke the firecracker ban.

Eventually, under the weight of public opinion, the topic was discussed at the annual sessions of the National People's Congress, the country's highest legislative body. Officials buckled and, in 2006, allowed firecrackers to return to the streets of Beijing, but to be confined to the period of Spring Festival.

The orchestra of bangs and the smell of sulfur hanging in the air returned to the capital's sky from a mountain of public opinion with a clear message - don't mess with the Chinese and their fireworks.

And, rightly so. Fireworks were invented in China in the 12th century. One legend has it that thousands of years ago a Chinese chef mistakenly mixed together Potassium nitrate, sulphur and charcoal, which, when ignited, produced flames in different colors. They also discovered when the mixture is burned in a closed bamboo shoot container, it created an explosion. As the legend developed, the noise soon became known for driving away evil.

Today, they are used in virtually every celebration in China and around the world, from weddings to holidays to victory parties and opening ceremonies.

The night skies are about to come alive with the sound of booms and bangs, but don't grumble because it's the most important festival of the year for China, steeped in history and a privilege many of the capital's citizens campaigned hard to restore.

So embrace the festival and witness the awe-inspiring marathon of fireworks, it is something you won't see anywhere else in the world.