In celebration of the Dragon Boat Festival, the Dublin School of Mandarin Chinese (DSMC) and the Taiwan Center for Mandarin Learning in Ireland (TCML) organised the 5th Edition of the Chinese Character Festival on June 8th. This event was sponsored by the Overseas Community Affairs Council (OCAC) and the Taipei Representative Office in Ireland (TRO).
The event kicked off with a lucky raffle, featuring prizes generously donated by the stall owners. All proceeds went to the local charity organisation, Tiglin. Following this, the Hanzi Challenge tested participants' ingenuity, rewarding successful participants with zongzi sweets. The typing competition had participants swiftly reading and typing Mandarin, creating a lively and engaging atmosphere. Additionally, the Zongzi Workshop allowed participants to experience the traditional art of zongzi-making under the guidance of skilled instructor Patty Lin.
The dictionary skill competition challenged participants' knowledge of the radicals of Mandarin characters. In the Calligraphy with Royal Icing Workshop, participants wrote Mandarin Chinese characters on cookies with royal icing, honing their calligraphy skills while enjoying their creations. The Oracle/Seal Art Competition, themed on Qu Yuan's poem "Li Sao," featured both oracle and seal scripts. Participants emulated ancient characters, and winners were selected and awarded prizes by Evelyn Tzeng and Christina Hong, First Secretary of the TRO.
The stalls, organised by the Taiwan Ireland Association, offered a variety of traditional foods such as bubble tea, zongzi, Taiwanese bao, sausage wrapped in glutinous rice, wheel cakes, tea eggs and chilled noodles and other treats, attracting many participants.
This festival not only allowed everyone to experience the charm of traditional Chinese characters but also promoted cultural exchanges within the local community. DSMC and TCML in Ireland hope to help more people understand and love Chinese characters and inherit Taiwanese culture through this event. The event concluded with laughter and joy.
