Dragon Boat Festival

Dragon Boat Festival of 2018 falls on June 18 (Monday). The holidays in China start from June 16th to 18th, 2018.

Dragon Boat Festival, also called Duanwu or Tuen Ng Festival, is a traditional 3-day holiday observed annually over 2,000 years in China to commemorate Qu Yuan (340-278 BC), an ancient Chinese patriotic poet. Originated from south China, Dragon Boat Festival enjoys higher popularity in southern areas, such as Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Guangdong and Fujian Provinces.

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Origin & History

Why is the Dragon Boat Festival celebrated? With a history over 2,000 years, it used to be a hygiene day when people would use herbs to dispel diseases and viruses. However, the most popular origin is closely related to the great poet Qu Yuan in the Warring States Period (475 – 221BC). To engrave his death on the fifth day on the fifth lunar month, people celebrate the festival in various ways. Great people like Wu Zixu and Cao E also died on the same day, so in certain areas, people also commemorate them during the festival.

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Legend of Qu Yuan

As a minister in the State of Chu - one of the seven Warring States, Qu Yuan was a patriotic poet who wrote a lot of works to show his care and devotion to his country. Composing masterpieces like Li Sao (The Lament), he was regarded as one of the greatest poets in Chinese history. After he was exiled by the king, he chose to drown himself in the river rather than seeing his country invaded and conquered by the State of Qin. He died on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, thus people decided to commemorate him on that day every year.

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Traditions & Customs

Many traditional customs and activities are held on the specified day by people in China and even by people in neighboring Asian countries. Dragon boat racing and eating Zòngzi are the central customs of the festival. In some regions in China, people also wear a perfume pouch, tie five-color silk thread and hang mugwort leaves or calamus on their doors.

>Eating Zòngzi<

Most Chinese festivals are observed by eating a particular food as a custom, and the Dragon Boat Festival is no exception. Zòngzi, a pyramid-shaped glutinous rice dumpling wrapped in reed leaves, is the special food eaten on the day. It has various fillings. In north China, people favor the jujubes as the filling, while the south prefer sweetened bean paste, fresh meat, or egg yolk. Nowadays, Zòngzi has become a common food, which can be easily found in supermarkets. However, some families still retain the tradition to make Zòngzi on the festival day. 

粽子 Zòngzi

Traditional food for the Dragon Boat Festival

Drinking realgar wine (雄黄酒xiónghuángjiǔ) during the festival day is an old custom, and kids' cheek and forehead will also be rubbed with the liquid. In fact, there are toxins in the wine, so it is not proper to over drink or heat the wine.

Wearing a five-color string bracelet is also a popular tradition for kids, which can be an appeal to prosperity and good health. The five colors are composed of green, white, yellow, red and black. They need to cast it away in the first rain after the Dragon Boat Festival.

Kids rubbed with realgar wine and wearing a five-color string bracelet

>>Dragon Boat Racing<<

Dragon boats are thusly named because the fore and stern of the boat is in a shape of a traditional Chinese dragon. A team of people work the oars in a bid to reach the destination before other teams. One team member sits at the front of the boat beating a drum in order to maintain morale and ensure that the rowers keep in time with one another. Legend holds that the race originates from the idea of the people who rowed their boats to save Qu Yuan after he drowned himself. Now it has turned to be a sport event not only held in China, but also observed in Japan, Vietnam, and Britain.

The best places to experience the dragon boat races during the festival are:

a. Yueyang International Dragon Boat Race: Miluo River Dragon Boat Race Center, Yueyang, Hunan

b. Zigui Dragon Boat Racing: Xujiachong Bay, Zuigui County, Yichang, Hubei

c. Miao People’s International Canoe Festival: Qingshui River, Guizhou

d. Hangzhou Xixi Dragon Boat Race: Xixi Wetland Park

赛龙舟sài lóngzhōu

Dragon Boat Racing

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Travel Smart During the Festival

The 3-day holiday of Dragon Boat Festival usually gives rise to crowds in China. You’d better make an early-bird booking for hotels, air and train tickets. To have a worry-free and smooth journey, you are suggested to arrange it in advance. 

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us.

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See you next time.

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