Crowds are swelling outside Shanghai's time-honored pastry shops ahead of Qingming Festival for qingtuan, a sweet, jade-colored treat eaten during the traditional Chinese holiday which falls on April 5 this year.
Qingming Festival, or Tomb-Sweeping Day, is a traditional Chinese festival for honoring the deceased and paying tribute to ancestors. The holiday also provides a short break for Chinese citizens as they engage in outdoor activities and sightseeing.
Qingtuan, literally "green balls," are rice cakes eaten during Qingming Festival across China. Looking almost like ice cream scoops, they are made from dough mixed with Chinese mugwort juice, which gives off a fresh scent as they are prepared. Fillings vary, from red bean paste and chestnut paste to dried meat floss, with the tradition stretching back thousands of years.
For many, the sweet green rice balls are more than a seasonal snack, their fresh mugwort scent and traditional fillings symbolize renewal and remembrance, making qingtuan a taste of both heritage and holiday in modern Shanghai.
At a well-known pastry shop on Shanghai's bustling Nanjing Road, nearly all of the windows saw long lines of locals and international tourists, with some buying more than a dozen boxes at a time. The shop says it has sold more than 1.2 million qingtuan since early March.
"Must be curious to know why everybody is queuing up and why is it so famous. So try it out. One of it, the green one is the red bean and the other one is a mixture. So I bought one of each," said a tourist from Malaysia.
"I tried it last night and it was good. So I wanted to have more because I'm leaving today. So I want just to have more," said a tourist from France.
To cater to younger customers, the shop has launched several new flavors this year.
"The newly created flavors are actually quite acceptable," said Zhao Jing, a local resident.
"We first bake the bacon in the oven, then steam and mash fresh potatoes, and add black pepper and butter," said Shen Xiaolong, a manager at the pastry shop.
This year's Qingming Festival holiday will last from April 4 to 6, coinciding with spring breaks in many Chinese cities and extending the travel period for the tourism market.
Locals, tourists swarm Shanghai pastry shops ahead of Qingming Festival
