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QC08042016

6 The Queens Courier • dragon boat • august 4, 2016 for breaking news visit www.qns.com dragon boat festival s Photos courtesy: NYSE (L-R): Steve Barclay, Director of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office; Henry Wan, Chairman of the Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival in New York Dragon boat festival at the Stock Exchange Officials of the 2016 Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival visit the NYSE, along with a colorful dancer and custom made dragon. To highlight the 26th anniversary of the Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival in New York, Henry Wan, Chairman of the Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival in New York, joined by Steve Barclay, director of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, rang the closing bell last month. The legend of the dragon boat Dragon boat racing is based on a legend of the ancient patriot-poet Qu Yuan, who lived from 340 to 278 B.C. He was a court minister who advocated reforms for his home state of Chu. The King of Chu, however, disliked him for it and banished him from the state. While in excile, Yuan wandered the country, writing poetry expressing his concerns for his homeland and its people. In 278 B.C., when Qu Yuan heard that his home had been invaded, he jumped into the Mi Lo River and drowned himself. According to legend, local fishermen raced out into the river to same him, but they were unsuccessful. To prevent his body from being eaten by the fish, they threw rice dumplings into the water as an offering to his heroic spirit. This was the beginning of dragon boat racing. Today, rice dumplings are eaten on the day of the Dragon Boat Festival, which is commemorated on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month. Four days prior to the festival, the dragon boats are taking from their resting places, and their heads and tails are attached. They are then ritually blessed by a Buddhist monk and later brought to life before the races by having their eyes dotted in red paint. In Hong Kong, the fishermen of the outlying islands such as Lantau, Lamma and Cheung Chau observe these rituals. Following the races, it is customary to spend the remainder of the day observing street theater, traditional Chinese dance performances, martial arts and cother cultural demonstrations.


QC08042016
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