HSK 3 - What Is the Lantern Festival. (什么是元宵节？) - Chinese Daily Podcast

Hello everyone welcome to Daily Chinese I'm Wang Yu Hello everyone I'm Li Ming Wang Yu happy new year Li Ming happy new year But we've been saying "Happy New Year" for a long time now Is Spring Festival almost over Yes Spring Festival is a long holiday But there's one final very important festival during Spring Festival—do you know what it is Hmm let me think Is it the festival in a few days on the 15th day of the first lunar month Exactly right it's the fifteenth day of the first lunar month the Lantern Festival Oh yes I absolutely love the Lantern Festival I think the Lantern Festival is a very warm and beautiful holiday I feel the same way so today we'll chat with everyone about China's Lantern Festival Great Audience friends do you know about the Lantern Festival Does your country have a similar celebration Today let’s explore it together Wang Yu let's start with the simplest question: What day is the Lantern Festival I know this one—it's the 15th day of the Lunar New Year which is the Chinese calendar The fifteenth day of the first month right Yes it's the 15th day of the first lunar month where "Yuan" means first and "Xiao" means night So the Lantern Festival is the first full moon night of the year The first full moon night—what a beautiful name that is The moon that evening is large and round especially beautiful Yes in China the Lantern Festival marks the official end of the Spring Festival celebrations After the Lantern Festival everyone will truly begin their work and studies for the new year Oh so it also serves as a farewell saying goodbye to the Spring Festival Then say hello to a new year and welcome it with a cheerful greeting Your way of putting it is excellent I really like it Now that we're talking about the Lantern Festival what's the first thing that comes to mind My first thought was food—something delicious I knew you'd say food what kind of food is delicious It's dumplings of course—white round sweet and incredibly delicious What about you Li Ming what's the first thing that comes to mind What I thought of was different from yours the first thing that came to mind for me was looking Looking at what Lanterns When I was a child my family lived in a big city Every year during the Lantern Festival the park is filled with countless large and beautiful lanterns and my parents take me to see them Wow that sounds amazing When I was a kid my family lived in a tiny village —there were no big parks no lanterns as large as that What did you do then We make small little cages at home and hang them by the door—though they're not big they feel wonderfully warm So the things we think of are different It's because the places we grew up in were different Yes but whether it's eating tangyuan or viewing lanterns they both share a common meaning What is that meaning It's togetherness—family and friends gathered together that's what makes it a reunion Oh I see because the moon is round and the tangyuan we eat is round too We see many round lanterns and this roundness symbolizes reunion That's very clever—you 're absolutely right this is probably the most important meaning of the Lantern Festival Alright Li Ming we must talk more about food now—let’s discuss tangyuan Okay whatever you say let’s talk about tangyuan—do you like eating tangyuan I really like them my favorite is the black sesame tangyuan— dark in color very fragrant and sweet What about you Li Ming I also like the black sesame ones and I really like the peanut ones too— yellow ones with little peanuts inside that taste very fragrant when eaten Yeah peanuts are delicious too and there are still lots of new tangyuan in stores now—fruit-flavored ones chocolate ones do you like those new ones Hmm I think the black sesame and peanut flavor is the best it's the oldest one and also my favorite I agree When I was a child on the Lantern Festival my mom would go to the store to buy glutinous rice balls and cook them at home for us We made our own whereas you buy them Doing it yourself— isn't that hard Not at all hard and it's actually a lot of fun When I was a child on the afternoon of the Lantern Festival my grandmother mother and I would all make tangyuan together Really Tell me how you do it Alright we'll start with a white powder made from rice called glutinous rice flour We mix this powder with water to form a large white mass Hmm I know that's the skin of tangyuan Yes then we divide it into many small pieces each of which we shape by hand into a round form press down slightly to make it less round and then it’s ready to hold things Sesame seeds or peanuts Yes my grandmother likes black sesame my mother prefers peanuts and I like both We place the black sesame paste inside the wrapper then slowly slowly shape it back into a round ball It sounds so interesting—making things together as a family really feels wonderful Yes my dumplings aren't always perfectly round and my grandmother laughs when she sees them—she says it doesn't matter that homemade ones are always delicious You see this circle keeps appearing—the tangyuan is round the moon is round and in Chinese culture the character for "round" holds great significance symbolizing completeness and reunion meaning all family members are together none missing everyone happy and well I see now—eating tangyuan isn't just because it's delicious but also because we hope our family will be as whole and harmonious as a round tangyuan Yes it's like a beautiful hope—we eat this hope into our stomachs and keep it in our hearts You're so right—I'm suddenly craving the tangyuan my mom and grandma used to make Even though you can buy them at stores the taste just isn't the same I understand it's the taste of home Alright now that we've covered what to eat let's talk about fun On the Lantern Festival besides eating tangyuan we also go out to see the lantern displays Yes although I never saw lanterns in big cities as a child I now work in a major city and I went last year—I was amazed they were absolutely stunning Yeah there are lights everywhere on the paths in the park in all sorts of colors—red yellow green blue—really beautiful And it wasn't just the color—there were countless different shapes too I saw a dragon huge and long glowing all over its body Yes there were lanterns shaped like dragons fish and many little animals I remember when I was a child my favorite was a white rabbit lantern—it was so cute The kids must really love it—besides viewing the lanterns there's also this fun activity called solving lantern riddles right Yes guessing riddles on lanterns is a very interesting activity Li Ming please explain to everyone what guessing riddles on lanterns is Alright it's simple: people write a question on a piece of paper and paste it onto a lantern this question is called a lantern riddle And then Then while we're viewing the lanterns we'll also think about this question—what's the answer If you figure it out you can tell your answer to the nearby staff member If you're correct you might receive a small gift Wow that sounds really fun but I think riddles on lanterns are too hard for me—I'm not good at Chinese and I don't recognize many of the characters so I don't understand any of the questions It's okay guessing riddles when you first start learning Chinese can indeed be difficult and many Chinese people find some riddles challenging too—this isn't your fault Really Actually many riddles require a deep understanding of Chinese characters and culture but some are quite simple—and there's a little trick to solving them What's the trick You don't need to read the characters first—some riddles are actually pictures themselves so just look at the image and guess what it represents that makes them much easier Ah guessing pictures—this method works well I'll try it next time I'll give you a super simple riddle right now—okay go ahead and guess Sure go ahead—I'm listening Listen carefully: What's red round comes up in the east in the morning and goes down in the west at night Hmm red round up in the east in the morning in the west in the evening—ah I get it it's the sun Correct answer Congratulations See it's really simple isn't it That's really simple thank you Li Ming I now feel solving riddles doesn't seem so hard anymore—it's a really fun word game Yes it's a game that requires thinking and on the Lantern Festival evening a family enjoying beautiful lanterns while solving clever riddles is a truly joyful experience Li Ming we talked about our childhood Lantern Festivals and I feel like the Lantern Festival today is a little different from how it used to be Oh really Go ahead tell me what's different about it For example when I was a child we always celebrated holidays at home with our families but now my friends and I don’t live at home—we work in big cities Yeah that's the situation for many young people today So on the Lantern Festival I might not be able to go home to eat tangyuan with my parents but I'll call them or have a video chat with them Yes technology is very convenient now even though we're not together with our family we can still see them and talk to them through our phones—this is also a form of reunion Yes then I might go out to eat with my friends or head to the park together to see the lanterns Though they're not family friends are our new family in this city You're absolutely right in the past we emphasized gathering with parents and grandparents but now the meaning of reunion has expanded—it can be with family friends or anyone you care about Yes as long as you're with someone you love and feel warmth and happiness in your heart that is reunion Also in the past we might have only eaten tangyuan in black sesame and palm sugar flavors but now we can enjoy tangyuan in all sorts of different flavors—a clear sign of change That's true—we celebrate holidays differently now but the heartfelt wish for our family and friends to be healthy and happy remains unchanged Yes whether making tangyuan at home with family in a small town or watching lanterns with friends in a bustling city the Lantern Festival fills us with hope for the new year hoping that our lives will be as complete and round as the full moon on the fifteenth day Hmm that's well said—time really flies we've talked so much about the Lantern Festival Yes today we mainly discussed a few things about the Lantern Festival let me give a brief summary First the Lantern Festival is on the 15th day of the first lunar month marking the final day of the Spring Festival and signifying that the new year has truly begun Hmm Second the most important activities during the Lantern Festival are eating tangyuan and viewing lanterns eating tangyuan is because tangyuan are round symbolizing family reunion and a fulfilling life Exactly Third during the lantern viewing there's a fun activity called solving riddles on lanterns—a great mental challenge Friends learning Chinese can start by trying simple picture-based riddles That was a great summary If you'd like to see the full transcript of today's conversation search for our podcast name online—Daily Chinese has the complete show notes on their blog Yes everyone is welcome to come and watch Finally we’d like to ask you our listeners: does your country have a festival similar to the Lantern Festival For example one related to the moon or lanterns—what special foods do you eat and what unique traditions do you observe during that celebration We’d love to hear from you—please leave a comment below our blog We look forward to your sharing That's all for today's Daily Chinese Thank you for listening see you next time Goodbye