Introduce the traditional festivals in China in English.

Dragon Boat Festival

the 5th day of the fifth lunar month

Dragon Boat Festival, also called Dragon Boat Festival, is celebrated on the fifth day of May according to the China lunar calendar. For thousands of years, this festival has been marked by eating zongzi (glutinous rice) and racing dragon boats. Zongzi is wrapped in bamboo or reed leaves to form a pyramid.

The most famous dragon boat festival is the dragon boat race, especially in southern provinces with many rivers and lakes. This regatta will comment on the death of Qu Yuan, an honest minister, who is said to have committed suicide by throwing himself into the river.

Qu was a minister of Chu (located in present-day Hunan and Hubei provinces) during the Warring States Period (475-22 BC1). He is honest and loyal, and is highly respected for his wise advice to bring peace and prosperity to the country. However, when a dishonest and corrupt prince vilifies Qu, he is demoted and removed from office. On the fifth day of May, Qu realized that his country had fallen into the hands of evil and corrupt officials. He grabbed a big stone and jumped into the Miluo River. Nearby fishermen came to try to save him, but they couldn't even find his body. After that, the country declined and was finally conquered by Qin.

On the fifth day of May every year, people in Chu mourn Qu's death and throw rice into the river to feed his ghost. But one year, Qu's ghost appeared and caught a reptile mouse stealing rice in the river. The soul then suggested that they wrap ri. Tie it with five different colors of thread before throwing it into the river.

On the Dragon Boat Festival, people will eat a glutinous rice pudding called Zongzi to symbolize the rice sacrifice for Qu. Ingredients such as beans, lotus seeds and chestnuts, pig fat and golden yolk of salted duck eggs are often added to glutinous rice. The pudding is then wrapped in bamboo leaves, tied with a kind of raffia leaves and boiled in salt water for several hours.

The dragon boat race symbolizes many attempts to save and restore Qu's body. A typical dragon boat is between 50- 100 feet long and about 5.5 feet wide, which can accommodate two rowers sitting side by side.

There is a wooden faucet at the bow and a dragon tail at the stern. A flag hanging from the flagpole is also fixed at the stern, and the hull has red, green and blue gold edges. In the center of the ship is a covered shrine, and drummers, gongs and cymbals sit behind the shrine to make room for paddlers. Others stood at the bow and set off firecrackers, throwing rice into the water, pretending to be looking for Qu. All the noise and spectacle created a joyful and exciting atmosphere for the participants and the audience. The competitions are held in different tribes, villages and organizations, and the winners will receive medals, flags, wine and holiday meals.