Tuen Ng Festival (The Dragon Boat Festival)

Tuen Ng Festival, also known as the Dragon Boat Festival, is the 5th day of the 5th month of the Lunar calendar. It goes with the traditional dragon boat racing with its origin dating back over 2,200 years ago. The festival commemorates the death of the poet Qu Yuan, who drowned himself in the Miluo River in protest against state rulers. Local villagers rowed their boats to the river, beating drums, hitting the water and throwing glutinous rice dumplings into the water to scare away fishes from eating Qu's body. The act has developed into races of boats in the shape of a dragon. The traditional Chinese folk ritual has transformed into a modern international sports. In Hong Kong, on top of the dragon boat races at Tuen Ng Festival, an international dragon boat competition is usually held in June every year, during which intense racing with a profusion of coloured boats, exciting sounds of drummers and spectators at the waterfront cheering winners on to the finish line.