One of the most memorable dishes I sampled in Suzhou was the meat mooncake. Instead of the sweet traditional moon cakes, residents of Suzhou line up to buy savory meat moon cakes during the Mid-Autumn Festival. The crust is made of flour and lard, the filling is made of deliciously flavoured meat, baked to golden perfection. Although it’s a bit sweet, it’s definitely not a dessert. Its texture and flavour is closer to a meat pie than to a regular moon cake. I was attracted by the smell when walking past the store. It had a long line-up of locals waiting to purchase their share. Don’t miss out on this tasty snack! Advice: get in line.
This week, we will be talking about the Kitchen God Festival, also known as “Xiao Nian” (Small Chinese New Year) in Chinese.
The Kitchen God Festival is celebrated on the 23rd of the 12th lunar month. Chinese families believe that the Kitchen God will return to Heaven before the Chinese New Year to report on the activities of every household over the past year to his superior — the Jade Emperor. Because the Jade Emperor will either praise or punish the family based on the Kitchen God’s report, families will “butter up” the Kitchen God by giving him offerings.
There are many folk tales in Chinese culture about the Kitchen God, and most of them share similarities. In general, the Kitchen God is thought to have been a man who abandoned his wife and ended up living in misery. As he was begging on the street, he encountered his former wife. The woman took pity of him and offered him food. Stricken by the woman’s graciousness, the man felt ashamed of his behavior and took his life away by throwing himself into the kitchen hearth.
During Kitchen God Festival, families clean the kitchen and offer candies to the Kitchen God. The candies are usually made of grains — sesame, glutinous rice or barley. The shape varies from long bars covered with sesame or round, melon-like shaped candy. All these candies must be sweet and sticky, as people hope to “seal up” the Kitchen God’s mouth to prevent bad reports. Children love the Kitchen God Festival: it is not only the beginning of Chinese New Year, but they get to eat lots and lots of candy. Who wouldn’t love that!
This week is about a beautiful Ming Dynasty garden in Suzhou, China. The Humble Administrator’s Garden is a jewel, a classic residence garden traditionally home to a large family, and where guests would be entertained. Its classical and exquisite designs bring the best qualities of residence gardens in Southern China together. Everywhere you turn, there is a unique, serene view. There are many ponds, bridges, pagodas and rock gardens divided by walls and pathways. Exploring the entire garden is challenging; it’s hard to move on to the next area even with a map. There are even a few secret passages for you to discover as well. The garden is open to the public, a must-see if you plan to visit Shanghai and its surrounding area. Visit here for more information: http://en.szzzy.cn./
The Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries has invited the Canada-China Friendship Society – Ottawa to send delegates to the Seventh Friendship Forum to be held in Chuzhou, Anhui Province in July 2016. The theme of this forum will be “Different Culture, One Heart.”
Delegates are expected to arrive at Hefei Airport on July 4 and leave for home on July 8. Expenses while in China (4 nights) will be covered by the hosts. International travel costs as well as the intercity flight to Hefei will be borne by the delegates.
Applications should include a short resume, a copy of passport valid for a least six months beyond the date of the conference, a photograph and a statement of why you would like to be a delegate.
The deadline for applications has been extended to May 30, 2016.
Suzhou is a lakeside city accessible by train and bus from Shanghai. It is an ancient city with 2,500 years of culture and history. The gentle, southern climate may have played a role in attracting so many people to this lovely place. Great merchants and builders traded in Suzhou. Politicians have made their names there. Famous poets sang about this beautiful city, called it “Heaven on Earth.” There are still many streets and locations that will transport you the past. Take a boat ride on the water canals! You must visit some of the many residence gardens. They are as intricate as they are scenic at every turn. Don’t forget to try the delicious and unique cuisine as well!
In China, New Year celebrations stretch over two weeks. For many people, festivities end with the Lantern Festival. So, what makes the Lantern Festival so special?
The Lantern Festival falls on the 15th day of the first month of the lunar calendar, that is the 15th calendar day following Chinese New Year. On that day, families around China get together and engage in public and traditional activities.
The most famous feature of the Lantern Festival is – not surprisingly – the lanterns. During the festival, Chinese people will light paper lanterns marked with riddles to be solved by the children in exchange for gifts. All kinds of lanterns lighten up the night sky on that day: big lanterns are paraded around on floats, small lanterns are carried by kids or hung outside houses, and other lanterns are even sent flying up in the sky. The tradition of lighting lanterns has several explanations, stemming from various religious beliefs. Some say that it has its roots in Buddhism, while others associate it with the birthday celebration of the Taoist god Taiguan, who represents good fortune. Finally, there are those who think that lighting lanterns is a way to worship Taiyi, the God of Heaven. No matter the origin, the Lantern Festival is a time to enjoy the sight of bright lanterns and witty Chinese riddles!
There are also regional traditions associated with the Lantern Festival. Fireworks are popular in some regions, while others will see street performances such as lion and dragon dances.
Interestingly, the Lantern Festival is also known as “Chinese Valentine’s Day”. It is a time for young people to go out and socialize – couples to celebrate their love and singles to seek their better-half.
Finally, one of the best things about the Lantern Festival is its traditional delicacy, Yuanxiao (or Tangyuan), a small sweet dumpling made of glutinous rice flour. One more reason to enjoy this exciting festival!
Every fall season, some select vendors in Shanghai showcase live blue gray crabs bound by straws on the street, inside shops and even in airports! Mitten Crabs are available in the Shanghai and Hong Kong regions for a short period of time are cost about $100 CAD per kilogram. It may seem very strange to sell crabs at hefty prices out in the open, but once you pop these creatures in the steamer, you’ll find out why foodies love them so much. Not only is the meat succulent, but the roe is also divine. The popular, tiny, roe-filled steam buns are made from this type of crab. These seasonal delicacies are great gifts to people who don’t live near Shanghai. Vendors even take pre-orders before the season starts for quality crabs. All you have to do is dip the freshly steamed crab meat in Chinese vinegar with minced ginger. Even Gordon Ramsay loves this crab. Trust me, it’s worth the effort. Watch here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AAxm7JpeTVU
In the previous post, we mentioned that 2016 is called the Year of Monkey. In daily life, the 12 zodiacs, all represented by animals, are used quite a lot. For example, I once impressed my Canadian roommate by guessing her Chinese zodiac sign when she told me her year of birth!
As you might expect, there is a story behind the 12 zodiac animals to explain how they were chosen. It goes as follows. Once upon a time, the Jade Emperor – the dominant God in Chinese culture – invited animals to participate in a race in order to become Guardians of Heaven. The first 12 animals to cross the Heavenly Gate, the finish line, would become Guardians.
The rat finished the race first and therefore became the first animal of the Chinese zodiac. As the legend goes, a river with a swift current crossed the race track. When he arrived at the river, the rat found himself stuck as he was unable to cross the obstacle. So, he climbed on the back of the ox, close behind. When the ox was about to reach the Heavenly Gate, the rat jumped down at the feet of the Jade Emperor, wittingly beating the ox who became the second animal of the zodiac. 10 other animals successfully finished the race: in order, the tiger, the rabbit, the dragon, the snake, the horse, the sheep, the monkey, the rooster, the dog and the pig. These 12 animals therefore formed the Chinese zodiac.
Another twist to this traditional legend is the story of the cat and the rat. According to the story, the reason there is no cat in the zodiac is that, on the day of the race, the cat decided to doze off and asked the rat to wake him up in time for the race. Unfortunately for the cat, the rat did not, and he overslept, missing the race. Next time you see a cat pouncing at a mouse or a rat, it might well be that the cat is still resentful for missing the race!
Happy Chinese new year, everyone! As what people say in Chinese, “Hou Nian Da Ji”, I wish you all a prosperous year in the year of monkey!
, Monkey in English may have a negative annotation (e.g. “monkeying around” or “un ape”), the monkey is actually an adorable creature in Chinese culture. They are often considered as a smart animal, thus calling people “a monkey” in the Chinese context is compliment for witty people. This is especially in a situation with children — calling small children “little monkey” is a great compliment. In addition, since the word “monkey” is a homonym of “high official” in Chinese, monkeys are considered as a good omen for promotion. This results in monkeys becoming a constant motif in ancient Chinese paintings.
The most famous image of the monkey is probably the Monkey King in the Chinese novel, Journey to the West, written in the 16th century. In the novel, one of the protagonists is Sun Wukong, a monkey later to be recognized as the Monkey King. Throughout the novel, Sun Wukong was described with the typical characteristics of a hero: brave, clever, loyal and righteous. As a monkey, Sun Wukong has developed various supernatural feats which enable him the power to fight against the heaven and protect other protagonists from numerous demons. In fact, the Monkey King has become a symbol in Chinese culture: his stories have been adapted into various art forms, such as Peking opera, television drama,and anime. Furthermore, some scholars even compare Sun Wukong to Hanuman, a Hindu God in the form of a monkey, who assisted the Hindu God Rama into defeating the demon. Well, besides the idea of monkey as a hero, Chinese people love monkeys just because they are SOOO cute!
