A girl mourns for her relatives in the old county seat of Beichuan, southwest China's Sichuan Province, on May 12, 2009, the first anniversary of the May 12 Wenchuan earthquake. [Xinhua]

To the old man who has lived in the Yingxiu township of southwestern Sichuan Province for six decades, scenery by the hillside is slightly different this year with the addition of two new sights -- wild chrysanthemums and a graveyard.

"These flowers normally only grow on top of hills," 64-year-old Ma Fuyang nagged, pointing at the yellow dotting in the green. "They must be the villagers killed in that disaster, who didn't want to leave their hometown."

He gazed into distance, as rain dropped on his new straw hat which he wore especially for this special day.

Tuesday marks the first anniversary of the 8-magnitude earthquake in Sichuan. It is also the 311st day for Ma and 68-year-old Hu Jianguo to work as guard in the graveyard.

One year ago on this very day, more than 6,000 people in the small town of 16,000 died, including Ma's 12-year-old granddaughter and Hu's 11-year-old grandson.

The bespectacled Hu knew well where his grandson rest in the graveyard, but Ma hadn't seen his granddaughter again after the quake, although the man with gray hair firmly believed that she must be somewhere under his feet.

People began entering the graveyard in twos and threes after 7:00 AM, many holding chrysanthemums in their hands. Candle light flickered in front of tombstones, tears dripping down cheeks of visitors.

Ma sighed at the scene, while Hu holding a besom murmured "my grandson..."

A child holds a candle during an activity to commemorate the victims of the fatal May 12, 2008 Wenchuan earthquake, in Zhengzhou, capital of central China's Henan Province, on May 12, 2009.  [Xinhua]

China in grief

Not far from the graveyard was remnant of the Xuankou Middle School, where a ceremony was held at 2:28 PM, the exact time when many clocks stopped in the quake last year, when more than 19,000 lost their lives in the disaster.

The ceremony was attended by Chinese President Hu Jintao and Vice Premier Li Keqiang.

In front of a white sculpture of a symbolic clock, all those inside the commemoration venue stood in silent tribute, before China's national flag was hoisted on the remnant.

Hu, who later placed a white chrysanthemum for the dead, expressed condolences to the victims in the May 12 Sichuan earthquake and to those who sacrificed their lives during the quake relief.

The grief was felt all over China.

About 2,000 kilometers away on the Tian'anmen Square in the heart of Beijing, thousands of people stood in silence for three minutes, before someone started to sing the national anthem. More people soon joined in the chorus.

Then they waved their arms and shouted "Come on, China", "Come on, Wenchuan".

In front of a big screen outside the Institute Cervantes in the Chaoyang district, some Chinese and Spanish people stood in three lines to pay their condolences.

Numerous yellow ribbon were tied to railings, tree branches, lamp poles as well as taxis in the neighboring Tianjin Municipality on Tuesday.

At 2:28 PM, Chen Lei from the Sino-Germany vocational school stopped giving out the ribbons, lowering her head to mourn for the dead.

"Looking at the ribbons all over the city, I wanted to cry," she said. "When we tie a yellow ribbon to our wrists, we are cherishing a wish in the heart, for those from the devastated quake zone."

In the northeastern Jilin Province, police and prisoners in the women's prison gathered on the playground to release 512 white balloons.

In the eastern Anhui Province, students in the Hanshan middle school set off traditional flying lamps. The lamp, made of paper and carried aloft by hot air from a candle inside, was recognized as a symbolic wishes.

In Jinan, capital of the eastern Shandong Province, 365 candles were placed in the shape of a heart and lit in the China's biggest long-distance coach station. Passengers and staff stood still for as long as 10 minutes before resuming their normal life.

"This ceremony was not only meant to mourn for the dead, but also to remind the alive their responsibility to help the affected."

In Lijiang of southwestern Yunnan Province and Tianchang of the eastern Anhui Province, people put water lanterns into rivers. On the lanterns words of "happiness" and "safety" were written.

"Lijiang was hit by an earthquake in 1996, when 309 people died, so we could understand how people in Sichuan felt quite well," said 43-year-old Li Yucun.

"We can't go Sichuan to help them. All we can do is to pray for their better future in our traditional way," she said.

Sirens wailed in northwestern Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region at 2:28 PM, which signaled start of a quake rehearsal.

"Compared with simply mourning, organizing a disaster rehearsal is a better way to mark the anniversary," said Shi Ruihua, a teacher with the Changqing School in Yinchuan, the regional capital.

"If natural disaster couldn't be avoided, at least we should teach everybody how to save themselves," she said.