Food from afar triggers memories of home

Red sausage, a scoop of fried pork and pickled Chinese cabbage－these are a few of the hometown foods sent by family members that Li Hongfei is excited to share with his colleagues.

He is not going home for Spring Festival, but that doesn't mean he can't enjoy a taste of home.

Li, from Liaoyuan, Jilin province, works in Wuhan, Hubei province, on the staff of Second Harbor Engineering Co. His duties include safety inspections at construction sites and handling company paperwork.

"I decided not to go back home because of the recent coronavirus outbreak in Northeast China－not only to protect myself but also to avoid any potential new burden I might place on medical personnel in my hometown. So I applied to stay in Wuhan," Li said.

Along with the food, he also received a handmade sweater and a letter from his father.

"I'm very close with my parents and we often have video conversations," he said.

Li's father asked him to stay away from the virus and be healthy, work hard, make more phone calls to his mother, who is very concerned about him, and get a girlfriend in the coming year.

In January, parts of China, including Hebei and Heilongjiang provinces and the municipalities of Beijing and Shanghai, experienced local coronavirus outbreaks. To curb the spread of the virus and limit the scale of the Spring Festival travel rush, the government has been encouraging people not to travel for the Chinese Lunar New Year, which begins on Feb 12.

So instead of family reunions, much of the love will come on wheels. Food packages delivered from home will have to do when it comes to filling the void and renewing relationships and fond memories.

Chat threads about food deliveries from home are popular on social media platforms. People who cannot go home to be with family share photos of the hometown treats they have received, along with feelings of homesickness.

Of the foodstuffs received from family members, preserved meat and pickles rank first on the list, according to a social media survey on Sina Weibo. Noodles and dumplings rank second, followed by fruits, sauces and local specialties.

A native of Jiangsu province, Song Dan, 23, will spend New Year alone for the first time in Yantai, Shandong province, 625 kilometers from home.

She couldn't hold back the tears as she carefully unfolded the cardboard flaps of the big box her mother had sent.

Inside, she found steamed buns, steamed stuffed buns, corn, green Chinese onions, Chinese meatballs and dried long beans.

"Every time I wanted to eat steamed stuffed buns, my mom always made them. I would sit beside her as her helper. We would chat about everything while making the food," Song said.

Scents and flavors often trigger memories, especially emotional ones, scientists say, because of the way the brain is wired. The part that processes scent and taste is interwoven with the part associated with emotions.

The steamed stuffed buns Song received were stuffed with leeks and eggs, her favorite. The green Chinese onions were grown in the yard of her home, reminding her of past winter holidays.

"When sending me things, my family is always so generous. I miss them very much," she said.

Zhang Sheng, 30, will remain in Beijing this year. It will be her first solo holiday since she graduated from university in 2014.

"I discussed this year's plan for Spring Festival with my family and decided not to go back home because of the epidemic," Zhang said.

She is from Fuzhou, Fujian province, and has been working in Beijing since 2015.

"My mother sent me some fish balls, turnip cake and pork wonton. These are things we eat for the New Year's Eve dinner," she said. "She also wanted to send me fruits and fish, but I had to turn down the offer because the refrigerator is already stuffed!"

While the food package is still in transit from Fuzhou to Beijing, Zhang has already received a chicken her mother bought online.

Online shopping ahead of the Lunar New Year is particularly hot this year. According to official data, the online sales volume of goods prepared for Spring Festival reached 510 billion yuan ($77 billion) between Jan 20 and Thursday.

"My roommate also received a box of cookies her mother bought online," Zhang said.

As she is unable to reunite with her family in person, Zhang will have her New Year's Eve dinner with her three roommates in Beijing, sharing regards and tastes from each other's hometowns.

Love packages even cross borders, making things special for people like Liu Yang, 33, a native of Beijing who lives in Tokyo with her husband.

"I moved to Tokyo after marrying a year-and-a-half ago," she said.

As the only child in her family, Liu had never been far from her parents. This will be the first time she and her family will spend Chinese New Year apart.

"Even though we miss each other a lot, we decided to stay put for safety reasons."

Her parents sent traditional Beijing snacks, including meat floss cakes and pastries.

"The food they sent expresses their love and care," Liu said.

Accompanied by 300 colleagues and the gifts of food from home, Li Hongfei, the safety inspector, will not feel quite so alone in Wuhan. It's his second Spring Festival away from his family.

But sometime over the holiday, in a flash of memory, his heart will warm and his emotions will flow, triggered by the unmistakable flavors of home. That's something all Chinese people share.