The annual Qingdao Tang Qiu Hui (糖球会) celebrates the candied hawthorn (tanghulu) and other sugar coated fruits. The traditional festival takes place during Spring Festival (Chinese New Year) in Sifang district. View some pics and more info on Sohu. Here is the sweet and low down from Qingdao(nese) contributor Cherie. If you’d like to contribute Qingdao related content, please contact us.
Compared to the busy downtown, I prefer the suburbs or a village. I appreciate that peace and harmony. But there are some moments that you really want to enjoy a roaring atmosphere. The Qingdao Haiyunan Candied Hawthorn Festival is one of those moments. It is an annual event in Qingdao and it usually lasts for eight days. Visitors to the festival can see performances of traditional cultural customs, such as the yangko, and other folk dances including the dragon-lion dance. Snacks include goodies for adventurous eaters such as fried spider, fried centipede, taiwan oyster omelet, smelly bean curd, and of course, candied hawthorn and other fruits.
Dating from the late Ming Dynasty, the festival originated at the Haiyunan Buddhist convent and coincides with the end of Spring Festival and Lantern Festival. Over time, different types of snacks from around Qingdao became the main feature of the traditional festival. Among these snacks, the most popular one was the candied hawthorn (糖球). Gradually, people started to call it the Candied Hawthorn Festival and today it is a huge event spreading out over blocks around the temple.
Snacks include goodies for the adventurous eaters such as fried spider, fried centipede, taiwan oyster omelet, smelly bean curd, and of course, candied hawthorn and other fruits.
To get there by bus, take number 1 / 5 / 7 / 15 / 21 / 24 / 32 / 206 / 210 / 227 / 305 / 319 / 322 / 325 / 371 / 373 / 378/ 602 / 609 and get off at the Sifang or Sifang Xiao Xue (elementary school) bus stop. By taxi, tell the driver Tang Qiu Hui (糖球会).
Relevant Links:
Candied Hawthorns
Photos of Haiyunan Nunnery in Sifang Qingdao
Chris
Is that sugar coated sushi on the last photo?? o.O
Steven
I think it might be eggplant ?
I went last night and the Kao rou guys were serving up some good kebabs, dancing around to disco music the whole time they were cooking. The site is across the street from the nunnery, the buildings are really cool classic Chinese architecture, very picturesque at night from the foot bridge over the road. I took 32 bus all the way to Sifang stop, it’s way out past the CSR factory in a part of Qingdao that always seems like another city to me. Anyway, it was worth the trip out!