At 6:30 p.m on May 9th, 2008, fresh aromas wafted out of room 238 in the main building of Portland State University. On a desk in the middle of the room were green leaves and sticky rice. This afternoon, a lecture on “Rice Dumpling and the Dragon Boat Festival” was given here. Dr. Liu Meiru, the president of the Confucius Institute hosted this lecture and Dr. Lu Lina delivered the speech. Two teachers visiting Portland from China’s Northeast Normal University were invited to attend the “Chinese Corner” of Portland. This time, the Chinese Corner also prepared about 1000 delicious rice dumpling in advance for attendees.

First, Ms. Lu lina explained the origin and customs connected with the Chinese festival--- “the Dragon Boat Festival”. Using PowerPoint, she told the audience about the story of Qu Yuan, the relationship between Qu Yuan, dragon boats and the festival, the various activities for remembering Qu Yuan and celebrating the festival, the different types and filling of rice dumplings, the difference in shape and taste between northern rice dumplings and southern rice dumplings, the ingredients for making rich dumpling and the method for tying the dumplings. In addition to that, Ms Lu also taught guests to read and repeat words related to Dragon Boat Festival. As soon as the PowerPoint Presentation was finished, the audience could not wait to make some rice dumpling themselves. Ms Lu and the two teachers from Northeast Normal University taught with enthusiasm. And last, they voted on a best dumpling. This best rice dumpling was made by Wang Kai, a graduate student at Portland State University.

When the more than 200 rice dumplings were finished, all attendees had a chance to taste one, giving high remarks. The classroom was full of the sounds of laughter and chatting. After eating the rice dumplings, American students of Chinese practiced their language skills with Chinese students.

The audience had many good things to say about the lecture. They said that through the activities, they learned not only about Chinese culture but also how to make rice dumplings. Besides that, they also experienced the festive cultural atmosphere. This lecture was very vivid, and its form lively. It was yet another successful Chinese cultural activity held by the Confucius Institute.