Dragon Boat race Traditions At the center of this festival are the dragon boat races. Competing teams drive their colorful dragon boats forward to the rhythm of beating drums. These exciting races were inspired by the villager's valiant attempts to rescue Chu Yuan from the Mi Lo river. This tradition hasremained unbroken for centuries.

Tzung Tzu A very popular dish during the Dragon Boat festival is tzung tzu. This tasty dish consists of rice dumplings with meat, peanut, egg yolk, or other fillings wrapped in bamboo leaves. The tradition of tzung tzu is meant to remind us of the village fishermen scattering rice across the water of the Mi Low river in order to appease the river dragons so that they would not devour Chu Yuan.

Ay Taso The time of year of the Dragon Boat Festival, the fifth lunar moon, has more significance than just the story of Chu Yuan. Many Chinese consider this time of year an especially dangerous time when extra efforts must be made to protect their family from illness. Families will hang various herbs, called Ay Tsao, on their door for protection. The drinking of realgar wine is thought to remove poisons from the body. Hsiang Bao are also worn. These sachets contain various fragrant medicinal herbs thought to protect the wearer from illness.

风俗习惯

端午节最重要的活动是龙舟竞赛，比赛的队伍在热烈的鼓声中划著他们多彩的龙舟前进。这项活动的灵感是来自於当时汨罗江畔的居民，在江中划船救屈原，而这个传统也一直保持了数个世纪。在端午节时受欢迎的食物就是粽子，粽子是以米包著肉、花生、蛋黄及其他材料，再以竹叶包裹。而粽子的传统则来由於汨罗江边的渔夫，将米丢入江中平息江中的蛟龙，希望他们不要将屈原吃掉。农历的五月，也就是端午节的这个时节，对中国人而言，除了屈原的故事还有许多其他重要的意义。许多中国人相信五月是一年中容易引发疾病的危险时节，因此必须有许多防备家人生病的措施。许多家庭会将一种特别的植物-艾草挂在门口，作为保护之用，而人们也会挂带香包，它是以含有多种香味的药用植物所做成，也可以保护人们远离疾病。