Folk-customs during Dragon Boat Festival

Falling on the 5th day of the 5th month of the lunar calendar according to Chinese calendar, Dragon BoatFestival is also called Double Fifth festival, which can date back to pre-Qin period. It falls on June 23^rd in 2012, and people will have a three-day holiday from June 22 to 24. Eating rice dumplings (zongzi) is a tradition for people to celebrate the festival in common. Besides this, in celebration of this famous festival of long standing, people of various nationalities and areas also have their own folk activities of a variety.

Folk-customs in Zengcheng (a county-level city of Guangdong Province)

The folk-customs in various areas are in consideration of temporal weather condition. As the temperature in the fifth month of the lunar calendar is increasing day by day, in order to bring down temperature, local people will wash their hair with acorus calamus, drink realgar liquor and eating rice dumplings. They will also visit the parental home or exchange presents with their friends and relatives. The most characteristic activity is the dragon boat scene when friends and relatives gather together to watch dragon boat races and eat dragon boat rice. Dragon boat rice is a kind of fried rice, containing sleeve-fish, agaric, small shrimp and glutinous rice. Tourists coming to watch dragon boat race will be invited to have dragon boat rice.

Folk-customs in Zigui County (in the west of Hubei Province)

Zigui County is the hometown of the famous poet Quyuan of Warring States, which is also regarded as the birthplace of dragon boat customs and culture. Visiting Zigui County during dragon boat festival is an ideal opportunity to appreciate original customs and know about ancient cultures of dragon boat festival. Besides, you can also participate in bustling commemorative activities. For hundreds of years, dragon boat racing is the largest mass meeting in Zigui County. The best venue to appreciate dragon boat race is Muyudao harbor which is only 1 kilometer from Three Gorges Dam. The yearly dragon boat race is held on the nearby river. Local people in Zigui like to hang Artemisia argyi and drink realgar liquor. During the dragon boat festival 2012, there will be a commemorate evening party and an open tournament of dragon boat racing. Traveling to Zigui County, you can also go sightseeing of Three Gorges Dam and Jiuwanxi drifting spot. You can take a flight from Guangzhou to Yichang, and take a bus from Yichang to Zigui County.

Folk-customs in Suzhou

Generally speaking, the dragon boat festival is held in celebration of the famous poet Quyuan of Warring States. However, the dragon boat festival around Suzhou is in celebration of Ng Gee Sui, and the related celebration activities are 200 years earlier than the commemorative activity of Quyuan. In celebration of the festival, local people make rice dumplings according to ancient method by themselves and dragon boat race.

Folk-customs in Sanjiang County of Guangxi Province

During dragon boat festival, people of Sanjiang County in Guangxi Province will hold male and female dragon boat races. They will make dumplings, offering sacrifice to Quyuan, ancestors and Zombie. Besides, you can also appreciate Chengyang Bridge which is ranked as the world’s one of top 10 most spectacular bridges and the song of the Dong nationality which is national intangible cultural heritage.

Folk-customs in stockaded village of the Miao Nationality in Guizhou

People of Miao nationality hold dragon boat festival in celebration of dragons, rivers and ancestors, which is the world’s unique dragon canoe festival. There are unique dragon canoes which are very small and narrow, and they can only carry one person basically. In Shidong town of Taijiang County, there is a dragon boat museum that is the first dragon boat museum in China. The local dragon boat festival is held from the 20^th to the 24^th day of the 5^th month based on lunar calendar. You can take a flight from Guangzhou to Guiyang and then transfer to Kaili City. Taijiang County is about 38 kilometers from Kaili City.

Folk-customs in Mayang County of Hunan Province

The dragon boat festival is held in celebration of their ancestor of Miao minority, Panhu. The festival lasts 17 days from the first day to the 17th day of the 5th month according to lunar calendar. The nearby villages of Panhu temple will organize various entertainment activities and invite troupes to provide performances. Besides, dragon boat racing is also an unmissable activity held during that period. You can take a flight from Guangzhou to Zhijiang Airport of Huaihua, and then transfer to Mayang.