For Form One student Tom Chiu Kwong-hung, it was his first 'hands-on' experience with dumplings.

'My family always celebrates the Dragon Boat Festival with a round of tasty rice dumplings. But we usually buy them. This was the first time I actually put my hand to wrapping the festive food.'

The dumpling event was also an insight into traditional Chinese culture for non-Chinese students. Sri Lankan Baba Rashid and his friends picked up so fast that they were soon outdoing some of the local students in dumpling wrapping.

'Wrapping rice dumplings is teamwork,' observed 15-year-old Rashid.

'The hardest part is getting a grip on the leaves, because they come loose very easily. I held the leaves down firmly while my friends did the wrapping.

Until now, I had not heard the beautiful story of Qu Yuan,' added Rashid, a Form Three student.

'It was a great learning experience - and a lot of fun!'

Ms Ng saw the dumpling session as a necessary learning exercise. The young generation should not lose sight of traditions, she said.

All the wrapped rice dumplings were sent to a home for the elderly across the road from the school.

'So the students' good work also served a good cause, and the best part was that it was a lot of fun,' Ms Ng said.

The students were introduced to the rectangular, prism-shaped dumpling that requires a covering of four bamboo leaves per dumpling. But for the Guinness record, they were told they would have to make do with only two leaves.

This they discovered only on the day of the event, when they arrived at the venue.

'It's much harder to wrap with two leaves than the four we practised with. Frankly, I think dumplings with four leaves look nicer,' confided Chiu.

Kate White, a trainer for Guinness World Records, served as the adjudicator for Sunday's event.

'My job was to make sure all the rice dumplings looked the same and were nicely wrapped. We have different measurements for different attempts. I'm glad they broke the previous record,' Ms White said.

To become a Guinness World Record trainer, you have to undergo three months of professional training, said Ms White, who has been in the business for six years.

'I love my job,' she said.

'It's fun being a Guinness World Record adjudicator because you never experience the same

thing twice.'

Festival origins

The traditional Chinese festival is held every year on the fifth day of the fifth month in the Chinese calendar. The festival commemorates the death of Qu Yuan, a Chinese poet of the Warring States Period. Disgusted by the corruption of the Chu government, Qu Yuan committed suicide by drowning himself in a river.

Neighbours threw food into the river in order to distract the fish, who might otherwise have nibbled the corpse.

They paddled boats with fierce-looking dragons on the prow and beat drums to scare off the fish.

We remember Qu Yuan by feasting on bamboo-wrapped steamed rice dumplings and taking part in dragon boat races.

Dragon Boat

Races 2007

Event: The 40th AIA Stanley International Dragon Boat Championship 2007

Date: June 19

Time: 8am to 6.30pm

Venue: Stanley Main Beach

Organiser: Stanley Dragon Boat Association

Race course: 270 metres

Highlights: A big beach party on the beach as local and international boating teams head out to sea

Media: RTHK Radio 3 (FM106.8)

Event: The 31st Hong Kong International Dragon Boat Race 2007

Date: June 23 to 24

Time: 8.30am to 5pm

Venue: Tsim Sha Tsui East Waterfront, Victoria Harbour

Organiser: Hong Kong Dragon Boat Association

Race course: 300 metres

Highlights: The event is part of the celebrations to mark the 10th Anniversary of the Establishment of the HKSAR.

Media: CCTV (China Central Television)