Mid-Autumn Festival on August 16: Mid-Autumn Festival is celebrated on August 15 of the lunar calendar in all parts of China, but it is 16 in Ningbo. There are two reasons for this: one is that Zuo Cheng of Jiangsu and Zhejiang and Fang Guozhen of Taiwei changed it on their birthdays at the end of Yuan Dynasty; Shi Hao, the prime minister of the Southern Song Dynasty and a native of Yinxian (now Yinzhou), was appointed as the prime minister at that time and went home to spend the Mid-Autumn Festival with his mother every year. One Mid-Autumn Festival, the DPRK could not return in time because of something, and the family was convinced that he would come back for the holiday. The day after his arrival, that is, August 16, Shi Hao did it. Since then, people have chosen to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival on August 16 to commemorate this filial piety. Every Mid-Autumn Festival, families get together, catch up with temple fairs, watch dragon boats, eat moon cakes and give gifts to each other.
Lion Dance: Popular in Ninghai County, Ningbo City. Generally, in the first month of the summer calendar or Buddhist festivals, dozens of farmers form teams and take turns to dance lions in villages to show respect for their ancestors and ward off evil spirits. Lion dance includes solo dance, duet dance and group dance, with three lions dancing together, one male and one female, beating gongs and drums while jumping. The most wonderful performance is "grabbing five lights", that is, putting a light in the middle and four corners of the venue, and the lion in the middle kicks, bites, grabs the light and dances wildly, watching the crowd around.
Dragon Boat Race: The urban and rural dragon boat races are mainly held in ponds, rivers and lakes. Dragon boats are divided into Qinglong, Huanglong and Bailong. Dragon boat races are usually held on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month and the sixteenth of August every year. The former is said to be the day when Qu Yuan, a patriotic poet and doctor of Chu State, threw himself into the Miluo River to row a dragon boat, indicating that people were scrambling for rescue. The latter is the Mid-Autumn Festival in Ningbo. Dragon boat racing can not only hold temple fairs, but also increase the entertainment atmosphere of festivals. At the beginning of the race, the rowers held their heads high and one stood in front of the dragon boat to knock gongs. Clothing is the same color as the dragon boat, firecrackers are ringing, and the dragon boat ignites a raging fire. The sound of gongs and drums and the shouts of people watching on the shore are endless. The scene was very lively, and the first one to reach the finish line won. The dragon boat in Dongqian Lake in Ningbo is the most famous.
Liang Shanbo's story: In the Eastern Jin Dynasty, Zhu's daughter An Yingtai in Shangyu disguised as a man to study, and she spent three years in Huiji with her classmates. After returning to China first, I visited Zhujiajian the next year, only to know that she was a woman. The Central Committee sent someone to apply, but Zhu had promised Ma. Hou Shanbo was a county magistrate, diligent and loving the people, died in office and was buried in Chengxi Township. After Zhu Yingtai passed the tomb of Shanbo, he burst into tears and the tomb opened. I would like to jump into Liang's grave and be buried with him. Now there are Liang Zhu's Tomb and Liangshanbo Temple in Xixiang, Ningbo. There is a proverb in Ningbo, "Husband and wife want to grow old together, and Liangshanbo Temple will arrive". Now, Liang Zhu's story is circulated in various artistic forms, such as movies, plays, Quyi, etc., covering a wide range, involving and spreading to European and American countries, and is called Romeo and Juliet in the East.
Eat sweet potato soup in winter solstice: In the traditional customs of Ningbo, sweet potato soup is one of the foods that must be eaten in winter solstice. "Fan" and "Fan" are homophones. In Ningbo people's understanding, eating sweet potatoes on the solstice in winter means "turning over" all the bad luck of the past year.
Tang Guo is similar to jiaozi, much smaller and without stuffing. Tang Guo is also called jiaozi, which means "reunion" and "perfection". There is also a saying in old Ningbo that "you are one year older after eating soup".
People in Ningbo are used to adding wine to sweet potato soup. In Ningbo dialect, wine-making is also called "pulp board", and "pulp" is homophonic with "sheng" in Ningbo dialect, taking its lewdness of "high luck" and "high happiness"
2. Ningbo specialty ① Ningbo Tangyuan?
Tangyuan, formerly known as Yuanxiao, is one of the famous Han snacks in Ningbo and one of the representative snacks in China. It is the custom of Spring Festival and Lantern Festival. It has a long history. According to research, Ningbo Tangtuan began in Song and Yuan Dynasties and has a history of more than 700 years. It is made of first-class glutinous rice, which is rich in local area, ground into powder and stuffed with delicate and pure white sugar, black sesame seeds and high-quality pig fat. It has the characteristics of fragrance, sweetness, freshness, smoothness and waxy taste, so it enjoys a good reputation at home and abroad.
In the past, jiaozi could only eat during the Spring Festival. Usually, people seldom make them. In Ningbo, there is a children's song called "Pay homage to the old year and eat dumplings with melon seeds and lard". Different from most people in China, Ningbo people have the traditional custom of getting together to eat jiaozi on the morning of the Spring Festival, which symbolizes family reunion and a complete and happy life. Some overseas Chinese always like to eat bowls of jiaozi during festivals to express their homesickness.
Now, "Ningbo Tangyuan" has become a golden signboard with a good reputation.
② Cicheng rice cake?
Cicheng rice cake is also one of the representatives that can best reflect the pure white beauty of Ningbo. Cicheng's rice cakes have been preserved for thousands of years and are smooth and delicate. The handmade skills of Cicheng Shuimo rice cake have been listed in the intangible cultural heritage list of Zhejiang Province.
Cicheng rice cake is a kind of cake made of high-quality japonica rice, which is a traditional famous specialty in Ningbo.
③ Three treasures of former children
The famous three treasures of Qiantong in Qiantong ancient town refer to old tofu, hollow tofu and dried incense, which can be meat or vegetables, each with its own delicacies and has been used as a tribute in history.