[Photo] Warm cultural exchange program between Vietnamese and Chinese women and children

NDO - On the occasion of the Dragon Boat Festival and International Children's Day June 1, at the Saite Trade Center in Beijing, China, a cultural exchange program between Vietnamese and Chinese women and children took place with the theme "Banh chung - Deep love - Nurturing children's dreams".

Attending the program were Ms. Hoang Thi Huong Giang, wife of the Vietnamese Ambassador to China; Mr. Hoang Mai Dien, First Secretary of the Vietnamese Embassy in China, along with many families of the Vietnamese community and people of Beijing, China.

Vietnam and China are not only close neighbors geographically, but also have many cultural similarities. Vietnamese and Chinese guest representatives introduced the traditional cultures, meanings and unique customs of each country. Accordingly, people of both countries celebrate the Duanwu Festival, but there are differences in names and customs. On the Duanwu Festival, Chinese people have the custom of wrapping sticky rice cakes, racing dragon boats, wearing colorful threads on their wrists, hanging mugwort bundles in front of the door... Meanwhile, on the day of killing insects, Vietnamese people will eat sticky rice wine, banh gio, fruit, and duck meat...

The representative of the Organizing Committee introduced the origin and customs of the Chinese Duanwu Festival.

Vietnamese representative introduced the story of Vietnamese banh chung and banh giay.

Vietnamese and Chinese children listened and eagerly awaited the experience of wrapping banh ú and banh chung.

A traditional Chinese cake, often made on the occasion of the Duanwu Festival on the 5th day of the 5th lunar month, banh ú's main ingredient is glutinous rice. The filling, depending on the taste of each region, can be peanuts, red dates, green beans or meat. The cake is wrapped in bamboo leaves and then boiled.

Making banh chung on the occasion of the Duanwu Festival is a custom to commemorate the ancient patriotic poet Qu Yuan.

A Chinese family experiences wrapping Vietnamese banh chung

A child in Beijing observes and experiences making Vietnamese banh chung.

A teenager in Beijing shows off his homemade banh chung.

On the occasion of the Duanwu Festival, parents will tie five-colored threads on the wrists and ankles of their children to ward off bad luck and pray for peace and health.

Right after the first rain after the Duanwu Festival, throw the five-colored thread into the river so that the river water will wash away all the bad things, so that everything will go smoothly and successfully all year.

This program is not only a cultural connection between the two countries in the Vietnam-China Cultural Exchange Year 2025, but also an opportunity for the Vietnamese community and the people of Beijing, especially children, to exchange and learn about the unique traditional cultures of the two countries, and experience wrapping Chinese sticky rice cakes and Vietnamese square rice cakes.

Some ingredients to wrap banh chung and banh ú.

Some traditional Vietnamese dishes prepared by Su Su restaurant were also introduced at the program for guests to enjoy.

In addition, this is also an opportunity to promote and introduce unique Vietnamese cuisine to the people of Beijing.

Source: https://nhandan.vn/anh-am-ap-chuong-trinh-giao-luu-van-hoa-phu-nu-tre-em-viet-trung-post883733.html