The Dragon Boat Festival，also called the Duanwu Festival， is celebrated on the fifth day of the fifth month according to the Chinese calendar. This festival is to commemorate the death of QU Yuan， an upright and honest poet and statesman who is said to have committed suicide by drowning himself in a river.
The most important activity of this festival is the Dragon Boat races.As the gun is fired, people will see racers in dragon-shaped canoes pulling the oars harmoniously and hurriedly, accompanied by rapid drums, speeding toward their destination.
Besides， the festival has also been marked by eating zong zi （glutinous rice）。Glutinous rice（糯米） filled with meat, nuts or bean paste and wrapped in bamboo leaves. It is associated with Dragon Boat Festival with historical meaning.The custom of eating tsung-tse is also popular in North and South Korea, Japan and Southeast Asian nations.
With the changes of the times， the memorial turns to be a time for protection from evil and disease for the rest of year. People will hang healthy herbs on the front door to clear the bad luck of the house. Although the significance of the festival might be different with the past， it still gives the observer an opportunity to glimpse a part of the rich Chinese cultural heritage.
