Double Fifth (Dragon Boat) festival

(click on photo to enlarge)

Today is in the Chinese calendar the fifth day of the fifth lunar month: Tuen Ng.

According to popular legend, that was when 2,000 years ago a Chinese national hero, Qu Yuan, drowned himself in a river to protest against corrupt rulers.

Legend also says people threw dumplings into the water to keep the fish from eating Qu Yuan's body. Which is why it is customary to eat steamed sticky rice and a sweet or savoury filling, the tout all neatly wrapped up in banana leaf.

Hereabouts, the Double Fifth is also public holiday. Since this year the festival falls on a Sunday, the holiday is on Monday.

Hong Kong: Dragon Boat Festival

Tomorrow is the fifth day of the fifth month in the Chinese calendar, which means Dragon Boat Festival (端午節), and a public holiday.

Like many festivals around the world, Dragon Boat festival's origins are not known for sure. The commonly-held view is that the day commemorates and celebrates Chinese poet Qu Yuan (c. 340 BC-278 BC). Disgusted by the corruption of the government in what is now Hunan province, Qu protested and committed suicide by drowning himself in a river.

More on Qu Yuan and Dragon Boat festival : wikipedia

As with any good festival, food is involved. In this case, sticky rice wrapped in banana leaves.

This one is filled with rice, minced pork, salty egg and a soupçon of dried shrimp.

Pre-cooked, the organically-wrapped pyramid package was HK$10 from a shop on a corner of the square. The shop is, by the way, considered one of the best places for cooked foods on a little island in the South China Sea because "they change their oil often."

To re-heat: three minutes in a microwave or 15 minutes steamed in a wok. Given the contents, it is recommended to supplement with green vegtables. Bon appétit!