The Litchi Festival

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Litchi is a tropical fruit native to southern China.It is world famous as“king of fruit”，due to its wonderful color，flavor and taste.Bananas，Pineapple and Longan were called jointly”the Four Southern fruits”.

When we mention litchi，you may first think of a poetic sentence which goes“A steed galloping up dust wins the imperial concubine’s smiling；but no one knows it is litchi that is coming”，Through the ages，numerous poets have written poems in praise of litchi.The poem entitled“Passing Qinghua Palace”by Du Mu is especiallyexquisite beyond compare.Today，”Concubine Smiling”also became the name of one of the varieties of litchi.

Litchi flesh is soft and smooth and juicy.It taste sweet and contains trace elements very good for health.Litchi is full of the energy of sugar，vitamin C and protein.It helps produce saliva，reduce thirst，nourish the blood and strengthen thestomach；especially，it is very good for women with postpartum blood loss as well as the elderly and infirm.

No wonder Su Dongpo，a famous ancient poet of China，once wrote:As long as I am privileged enough to enjoy tasting 300 litchi nuts，it is feasible to live in Lingnan perpetually.

Since 1990s，the annual Litchi Festival will be held in July in Zengcheng，Guangzhou，winning Zengcheng a good name”The Hometown of Litch”.During the Litchi Festival，the tourists can not only taste and enjoy the fresh and delicious litchis，but appreciate the song and dance performances，sports performance，FineArt Photography，book exhibition，products fair and trade negotiation.Therefore，thousands of tourists at home and abroad are attracted by its reputation every year.

They can pick fresh litchis themselves in litchi orchard，which has special charm.

During the Litchi Festival，the tourists can also taste litchi wine，which is made from the spring water，tasting mellow and savory.It can help eliminate pathogens and strengthen the body.