Let’s go to pick Litchi

Good news to all the fruit lovers, it’s the season of litchi and this year is a very good year of litchis!

Litchi is a very special fruit that can only grow in tropical areas like the south of China, and the harvest season is very short (normally one month for each litchi variety). And it’s very difficult to store litchis and keep them fresh, that’s why litchi is so precious.

Luckily, we are in Shenzhen, where the weather is perfect for litchis.

There are different litchi varieties and one of the most famous varieties is “妃子笑(fēi zǐ xiào)”, the literal meaning of the name is the smile of the concubine. And there is a history story behind the name.

In Tang dynasty, there was this women who was one of the four most beautiful women in Chinese history - Yang guifei, a concubine of emperor Li longji. She loved litchi very much. But the capital city was in Xi’an, and litchis grew in the south of China, and it’s very difficult to retain freshness. The emperor loved his beautiful concubine so much that he sent special crew to the south and bring the litchis back to Xi’an at top speed every year when it’s the season of litchis. The poet Du mu wrote a very famous poem about this, and that’s where the name 妃子笑(fēi zǐ xiào) came from.

This is part of the poem:

The meaning of these two sentences is: the concubine smiled after seeing the dust raised by horses, but no one knows it was because of the litchis.

Litchis are loved by Chinese people throughout history. They are juicy and sweet and very nutritious. But the best time to eat litchi is only these few months and it tastes the best when it’s fresh.

Do you want to enjoy the freshest litchis? Here are some infomation about where you can go and pick Lichis in Nanshan.

【地址/Address】: 南山区沙河西路4833号（西丽果场） NO. 4833, Shahe west road, Nanshan District.

【交通/Transportation】: 公交车67路;316路;325路;326路;332路;392路等，至荔枝世界站 You can take Bus NO. 67; NO.316; NO.325; NO.326; NO.392 and get off at 荔(lì)枝(zhī)世(shì)界(jiè) station.

【最佳采摘时间/The Best Time To Go】 6月8日左右 Around 8th June

【参考费用/Fee for Reference】 门票80元/人（可携带一名1.2以下的儿童，购票入园任吃任摘） Entrance Ticket: 80/ person (you can bring a kid under 1.2-meter tall, entrance ticket includes the litchis you pick and eat in the litchi garden, but you should pay extra money if you want to pick some to bring home)

【联系电话/Contact】 0755-86005035 0755-86005007（Please confirm before you go）

【地址/Address】

西丽店：乘坐5号线，至长岭陂站A1出口，步行697米;

It’s around 697 meters from Changlingpi station Exit A1 (Line 5)

【最佳采摘时间/The best time to go】：

6月8日左右

Around 8th June

【参考费用/Fee for Reference】

Door ticket: 50/person