Colin Fuller, an American student in China, raves about the temple fair of "Boluo Birthday" Festival

At around 8:00 am on March 2, 2023, Colin Fuller, an American studying for an MBA at Sun Yat-sen University, arrived at the Nanhai (or South Sea) God Temple in Huangpu District, Guangzhou, with his wife and children. It was the opening of the 16th Folk Culture Festival and the Millennium Temple Fair of "Boluo Birthday" Festival in Huangpu. It was still early before the fair officially kicked off, but the square in front of the Temple was already swarming with people. Colin, who had been in China for three years but had never visited such a traditional fair before, brought his family to experience the most influential event of its kind in the southern Chinese Pearl River Delta region. On top of that, he was also on an important "mission": to broadcast the grand event live to the world as an invited overseas news reporter for the Huangpu District Converged Media Centre. 

The Nanhai God Temple, known as the starting point of the ancient Maritime Silk Road. [Photo provided by Chinadaily.com.cn]

"I am particularly interested in traditional Chinese culture. Having been in China for so long, I have barely heard about the temple fair of Boluo Birthday Festival and that's why I am here," said Colin, who lives with his Chinese wife and two kids on Huangpu's Changzhou Island, "I want to take my children to see how lively the temple fair really is, and how rich the Chinese heritage is."

Wearing Han Chinese Clothing to Appreciate its Beauty

Fragrant Boluo zongzi shops, toy stalls hung with golden pinwheels, and streets packed with tourists...... As soon as they got out of the taxi, Colin's family was drawn in by the hustle and bustle of the fair.

"I didn't expect it's so bustling!" Colin was apparently shocked.

As the live broadcast team were to wear Han Chinese costumes, Colin chose a Tang Dynasty mandarin costume. He wore a light blue round-necked robe with a rabbit floral pattern and a black hat with long wings on both sides.

"It is so exquisite! How many years ago did Chinese wear it?" Colin asked curiously.

"Over a thousand years ago."

"Over a thousand years ago!" Hearing the answer, Colin exclaimed, "That's amazing!" He said that it's one thing that he had learned about China's 5,000-year-old culture in one of his courses at Sun Yat-sen University, seeing and wearing such a historical Chinese clothing is quite another. 

The broadcast team told him that China is also known as "Huaxia", with hua referring to beauty of clothing and xia the greatness of etiquette. Colin listened with rapt attention.

Now in this Tang mandarin costume, blonde-haired and blue-eyed Colin instantly became a real head-turner. Tourists requested to take photos with him, and Colin was happy to oblige. 

"It feels so amazing," Colin said, who was born in Canada, which is obviously too young compared with a country with 5,000-year-old civilization, "the charm of Chinese culture is really unparalleled."

Touring the Ancient Town of Fuxu to Enjoy the Fun of the Fair

After his live broadcast, Colin took his children to the market in Fuxu town where the Naihai God Temple was located.

"I know the story behind the Fuxu town," Colin said, explaining that this was the place where Han Yu (768-824 CE), one of the greatest poets in the Tang Dynasty（618-907 CE) wrote about the "estuary to Fuxu ancient canal" in one of his works. 

At the market, Colin's family wandered from stall to stall. He didn't miss any of the specialties of the temple fair, such as the Boluo Zongzi, Wedding Cake, and Boluo Rooster. 

He had a keen interest in the Wedding Cake, which can be traced back to the Three Kingdoms Period (220-280 CE). Colin told us that the wedding cakes took its origin in the classic Romance of the Three Kingdoms, as Liu Bei, the founding emperor of one kingdom (Shu)，sent his soldiers around to deliver wedding cakes when marrying the sister of Sun Quan, the emperor of another kingdom (Wu). "It's fascinating to know the backstory behind this small piece of cake."

Another eye-opener for Colin was the Boluo Rooster. "I had previously thought of Boluo Rooster as a kind of chicken we could eat, but when I got here I realized that it was a handicraft with great craftsmanship and bright colors." He also learned about the sad story behind the Rooster. "There was an old lady who had her carefully fed rooster killed by a local wealthy man, so, heartbroken, she stuck all the beautiful feathers back to the rooster, with yellow clay as the body and paper as the skin Later she made a lot of crafty roosters and took them to the temple fair during Boluo Birthday Festival, hence Boluo Rooster. Since the Chinese character for 'rooster' shares the same pronunciation as the character for 'auspicious', the Boluo Rooster has thus become a mascot at the fair.

Loving Traditional Chinese Culture and the Warmth of Family

"One of the most important concepts that I have learned from Chinese culture is ren," said Colin, "I think ren means equality, mutual respect and treating people with sincerity, and with ren I believe my children can get the best nourishment here."

In Colin's eyes, Chinese are not only hard-working, kind, and optimistic, but also appreciate the great value of the family. His wife is from Huazhou city, Guangdong province. This family, with its Lingnan cultural tradition, has brought him a lot of familial warmth.    

"My wife's parents and brother-in-law are very nice people, and I feel more at home living in Guangzhou than I do in New York," Colin said, whose family lives near Zhongshan Park on Changzhou Island in Huangpu, which is dotted with palm trees, with a lake in the middle. "I feel very happy to live in such a wonderful location, which, in North America, would be a private place for the rich only, but this Park is for everybody here."

Colin, addicted to steamed rice noodle rolls, or Cheung Fun, for breakfast, is fond of not only the local delicacies but also the great sense of happiness and security the Huangpu district has to offer. He said, "I feel very relieved that my children can study and grow up in Guangzhou. Nourished with this culture, they will definitely grow up healthy and happy, and I don't have to worry that they will get into bad habits."

Colin Fuller (R3).

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