Outdoors

The Chinese dragon boat festival is one of the popular summer holidays in Taiwan. The festival is derived from an ancient scholar and hero who was a high official of the Chu State. It illustrated that a patriotic poet, Chu Yuan, drowned in the Miluo River, because the master of the empire did not have the ability to organize the country. Chinese citizens wanted to rescue the scholar and protect him from evil or ghost, so they threw the bamboo leaves that were filled with cooked rice into the water. By the way, the marine creatures could eat these foods rather than the poet’s body. Nowadays, people employ three methods to celebrate the honored poet. Firstly, people will take part in the racing competition on the fifth day in May every year. There is a drummer to drum, and paddlers must synchronize to propel the boat. The dragon boat that can reach the end early is the winner. Furthermore, citizens will throw the pyramid shaped cooked rice into the water. People believe that these foods will invite fish to feed, so these nutritions can protect the body of the honored from being attacked. Finally, residents will go to the Chinese temple, and invoke the scholar to have a suitable life in another world. In summary, the Chinese dragon boat festival is not only a significant memorial day, but also an interesting activity during the summer in Taiwan.