The annual Dragon Boat Festival is upon us, which means that we’re gearing up our stomachs for a healthy amount of rice dumplings and enjoy a two-day public holiday for Dragon Boat Festival.
We kicked off the celebration on Saturday June 12. A series of activities such as wrapping zongzi, dumpling cooking, games and dinner to be held in factory canteen in succession. It is filled with laughers, joy and love….
Mr and Mrs Zhang leading their employees to learn how to make zongzi, a traditional Chinese rice pudding of a pyramid-shaped dumpling made of sticky rice wrapped in bamboo or reed leaves. We made sweet rice dumplings filled with red-bean paste and Chines dates, while some workers prefer savory ones with fillings such as egg yolk, pork and mushrooms. Everyone was taught how to wrap their own zongzi. They are given a gift pack with snacks and zongzi to share with their family.
" It's a lot of fun. This is my first time making Zongzi. I've really enjoying the experience," says a new staff who takes part in the event.
The mission of this event is to bond as one and celebrate like a family in the company. At the same time to remind us of our cultural valves. When we celebrate a festival, we should try to think more about its origin, and what it means for our culture. The way we celebrate festivals reflects the way we perceive the world around us.
Chinese people eat zongzi to celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival, also known as Duanwu Festival. It falls on the fifth day of the fifth Lunar month (June 14th, 2021), has a history of over 2000 years. It's since become a public holiday in China, meant to pay tribute to acclaimed Chinese scholar Qu Yuan (around 340-278 BC), an upright and honest statesman. Today, the festival is now listed as World Intangible Culture Heritage by UNESCO.
