Fast Boats, Sticky Rice, and Good “Duck”: A Festival Like No Other

Dragon Boat Festival traditions
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Chen Wang

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Fast Boats, Sticky Rice, and Good “Duck”: A Festival Like No Other

China celebrates the Dragon Boat Festival with exciting races, tasty zongzi, and fun traditions.

The Dragon Boat Festival is one of China’s oldest and most exciting traditional festival. It’s usually celebrated in June with fun, food, and lots of splashing!

Dragon Boat Festival traditions
Chebei Village in Guangzhou was established during the Tang Dynasty. Its long-standing dragon boat racing tradition is a classic example of Cantonese dragon boat culture. The photo shows a dragon boat race in action. (Photo by Chen Jimin, CNS)

Race like a dragon!

The big highlight? Dragon boat races! Teams paddle fast to the beat of drums. It’s loud, intense, and full of energy. This tradition honors Qu Yuan, a poet from 2,000 years ago. Today, the race also stands for teamwork and good luck.

Dragon Boat Festival traditions
On May 22, vendors on ‘Zongzi Street’ along Ma’an East Road in Chengdu, Sichuan, filled the air with the aroma of bamboo leaves as they busily prepared traditional treats. (Photo by Zhang Lang, CNS)

Zongzi time!

Zongzi are sticky rice dumplings wrapped in bamboo leaves. They can be sweet (with dates or beans) or savory (with meat or egg yolk). Each bite is a taste of tradition—and family love.

Dragon Boat Festival traditions
On May 28, in Jiajiang, Sichuan, skilled swimmers competed to catch ducks in the Qingyi River. ( Photo by Liu Zhongjun, CNS)

Catch a duck!

In some places, people jump into rivers to catch live ducks! It sounds wild, but it’s all in good fun. In Chinese, “duck(鸭)” sounds like “suppress(压),” so catching one is believed to chase away bad luck.

The Dragon Boat Festival is more than just a holiday. It’s a mix of legends, flavors, and fun, where the past meets the present, and everyone gets to join in.

If you liked this article, why not read: Modern and Traditional Twist on White Snake

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