1. Chinese Dragon Boat Festival 端午节

2. Dragon Boat Festival
In China, this festival is popularly known as Duanwu Festival
This year, the holiday will be celebrated on Thu, 9 June, 2016
The Dragon Boat Festival is among the three major Chinese holidays (Chinese New Year & Mid-Autumn Festival)

3. History
Commemorates the death of the poet and minister Qu Yuan (340–278 BC) of the ancient state of Chu, who committed suicide by drowning himself in the MiLuo River.
Today, these exciting races were inspired by the villager's valiant attempts to rescue Qu Yuan from
the MiLuo river

4. Activities
Three of the most widespread activities for Duanwu Festival are :
eating (and preparing) zongzi
drinking realgar wine
racing dragon boats.

5. Dragon Boat Racing
Competing teams drive their colorful dragon boats forward to the rhythm of beating drums.
Races can have any number of boats competing, with the winner being the first team to grab a flag at the end of the course
The dragon boats are brightly painted and decorated canoes ranging from 40 – 100 feet long.

6. Dragon Boat Race

7. Zongzi Traditional food for the Dragon Boat Festival
This tasty dish consists of rice dumplings filled with sweetened bean paste, dates, meat, peanut, eggs, beans, or a combination of both.
They are generally steamed and wrapped in bamboo leaves.

8. Zongzi

9. Origin of zongzi.
When minister Qu Yuan ’s body could not be found, people dropped balls of sticky rice into the river so that the fish would eat them instead of Qu Yuan's body.

10. Other activities…
Hanging up icons of Zhong Kui (a mythic guardian figure)
Hanging mugwort and calamus
Taking long walks
Wearing perfumed medicine bags

11. Thu, June 9, 2016