Expatriates share zongzi, compete in race

Expats living in Shekou spent a wonderful holiday integrating with the local community and immersing themselves in traditional Chinese culture by learning to make zongzi and competing in a dragon boat race.

On Thursday, the zongzi-wrapping activity, organized by the Shekou Management and Service Center for Expats, was kicked off with a clapper talk performance, a traditional Chinese form of narrative singing accompanied by a pair of bamboo clappers to mark the beats. The performers expressed their best wishes for the audience through clapper talk.

Although most of the expat residents couldn't understand the meaning of the narrative content, they were totally amazed by the performance, especially the bamboo clappers and beats.

Following the performance, all of the participants couldn't wait to make zongzi. With the resident volunteers patiently teaching how to make zongzi, the expat participants who hadn't known anything about making zongzi could make zongzi in beautiful quadrangles or cones.

There were mainly two flavors of zongzi, sweet and salty, and various fillings that residents could use to make different stuffed zongzi as they preferred.
Nagpal from India said she thinks learning about Chinese culture and participating in community activities are wonderful experiences.

"It is because people here are very nice and many of them can speak English that I decided to live in Shekou. Moreover, there are varieties of delicious foods, which is one other reason for me to settle down here," said Nagpal.

Nagpal shared the same answer as Norman from France for the most interesting part of making zongzi, folding the leaves. They said that folding the leaves was the first and key step, and was the most interesting as well as the most difficult part of making zongzi.

During the zongzi-making experience, one of the local volunteers surnamed Zhang said she was moved by the way the expat residents learned earnestly by following the volunteers' instructions. She hopes that these foreign friends can teach their friends and families in their home countries to let more people learn about Chinese culture.

The dragon boat race, a Dragon Boat Festival tradition, was held on Houhai River, which is a man-made canal in the Houhai area of Nanshan District.

The race, organized by Shekou Subdistrict Office, drew 10 teams, including one expatriate team, and attracted thousands of cheering spectators to the riverbanks Friday. Each team was made up of 12 members, including 10 paddlers, who work or live in the Shekou or Houhai areas. The competition was divided into preliminary and final rounds.

In the preliminaries, two teams competed at a time in accordance with the 10-in-four system. The race consisted of a round-trip straight track with the total course covering 800 meters. In the finals, the four remaining teams raced simultaneously.