Festival of the Double Fifth

Zongzi

Festival of the Double Fifth (Dragon Boat Festival) is celebrated in China this weekend.

Around the world, people celebrate with Dragon Boat races, continuing the tradition of paying homage to the Gods of Water to ensure a good farming season. June 23 is the fifth day of the fifth month on the lunar calendar; a dangerous time in terms of yin and yang balance.

We were lucky enough to visit with our friends who just happened to have homemade Zongzi for us to try! The mixture is sticky, glutinous rice wrapped in bamboo leaves, which looks amazingly complicated to wrap and like so many Chinese specialties, a savory or sweet surprise in the center.