 Hong Kong – Dragons go head-to-head
One of Hong Kong’s signature events takes to the water between May and July with the staging of the Dragon Boat Festival at a variety of locations.
The event commemorates the death of a popular Chinese national hero Qu Yuan who drowned in the Mi Lo River 2,000 years ago to protest against corrupt rulers. Legend has it that the townspeople attempted to rescue him by beating drums to scare fish away from eating his body. The real highlight of the modern festival is the fierce-looking dragon boats that are raced to the beat of heavy drums.
During the festival, fishermen’s associations in Tai O fishing village in West Lantau organize a religious activity known as the Deities Parade in which they take their deity statues aboard their dragon boats to local temples for blessing.
This event is listed on China’s national list of intangible cultural heritage and will take place this year on Saturday 23 June. |
|
|
