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Unique Folk Customs in Hubei Province

PostPosted: Thu Apr 14, 2016 6:49 pm
by cfcoochina
Ⅰ. Flower Drum in Jingzhou
Jingzhou flower drum used to be a performance by the poor when they begged from door to door, combined with the weeding Yangge singing. In the performance of this flower drum, one person beats the drum and sings, and several others echo. In the past decades, Jingzhou flower drum has evolved into a unique form of local flower drum art.

Ⅱ. Unique Customs in Shennongjia
1. Eating the Hot Rice When visiting the mountain villagers of the Tujia ethnic group, eating is a special custom. When the host fills rice into the bowl for a guest, he only puts a little bit of rice into the bowl. A few minutes later, before the guest eats up the rice in the bowl, the host will take the bowl away and throw away the rice left in the bowl, and fill hot rice into the guest’s bowl again. They will do so even when the weather is hot. This is a way for the host to show his hospitality and the well-off conditions of his family.
2. Single Chopstick to Entertain Guests
When a guest visits the Tujia ethnic people for the first time, the host will treat the guest to a bowl of sweet rice wine or pop rice in sweet water, but give only one chopstick to the guest. These kinds of food are generally called “tea” or “greeting tea,” or “night snack” or “night tea” before going to bed. It is said that one chopstick means “half of a feast,” and the greeting tea indicates hospitality and welcome.
3. Drinking Cold Wine
The Xiagu Township in Shennongjia is the inhabitation region of the Tujia ethnic people. When a visitor goes to the home of a Tujia family, the host will first of all present the guest with a bowl of wine, saying “please have some tea.” This custom, with wine replacing tea, is called drinking cold wine. Only when the guest drinks the wine, the host will then feel happy. If the guest could not drink wine, he should explain it to the host and have a sip of the wine to show respect to the host. After drinking the cold wine, the host will then make hot tea for the guest.

Ⅲ. Special Snacks and Famous Dishes
The famous snack eateries in Wuhan include: Fresh bean curd with vegetables of Laotongcheng, the dumplings of Sijimei, the stewed soup of Xiaotaoyuan, the bean curd slices of Laoqianji, hot-dry noodles of Cailinji, the boiled dumplings of Tanyanji, the grilled plum-shaped dough with meat of Shunxiangju, the rice noodles of Fuqinghe, the rice wine of Luyuanxing, the glutinous rice dumplings of Wufangzhai, the noodle with soup of Tianqiheng, and the fried flour rolls of Xierongde.