Overseas Chinese and local residents in Cape Town celebrated the Dragon Boat Festival this weekend, with dragon boat races making a splash Saturday in South Africa's legislative capital.
Also known as Duanwu, the festival is a traditional Chinese holiday observed on the fifth day of the fifth month of the Chinese calendar, which falls on June 10 this year.
This year's dragon boat race was the second event of its kind held in Cape Town following the success of last year's celebrations. The race featured 10 teams competing in various categories, including 100-meters, 500-meters and the popular tug-of-war competitions.
Dong Gang, a representative of the Chinese community in Cape Town and one of the event organizers, said that among the 10 teams participating this year, one team is composed entirely of local Chinese.
"For us overseas Chinese, we are very proud to see the traditional culture of our country being carried forward and expanded at the southernmost tip of the African continent," he said.
The holiday commemorates Qu Yuan, a loyal statesman and a patriotic poet in the State of Chu during the Warring States Period (475 B.C.-221 B.C.). He tragically drowned himself in the Miluo River after he was accused of treason and banished for his well-intended advice to the king.
Legend has it that upon learning of his death, locals took to boats on the river to search for his body, dropping rice into the water in an effort to prevent the fish from eating him.
Both the legend and the festival have been passed down through generations since ancient times.
The festival is celebrated with dragon boat races and the consumption of sticky rice dumplings called zongzi.
Cape Town celebrates Chinese Dragon Boat Festival with thrilling races
The sixth edition of Shanghai's iconic "5·5 Shopping Festival" kicked off on Thursday, alongside the 2025 International Consumption Season, in a renewed push to boost domestic demand and revitalize consumer spending.
Co-hosted by the Ministry of Commerce, China Media Group (CMG), and the Shanghai Municipal Government, the event promises a vibrant mix of promotional campaigns, themed events, and immersive retail experiences across the city's commercial districts.
Centering on the theme "Quality Consumption, Demand Creation," the festival targets four key consumer sectors: services, big-ticket purchases, inbound spending, and emerging consumption trends. It also highlights new economic frontiers such as the debut economy, the silver economy, the nighttime economy, and the ticket-based economy—aimed at unlocking consumer potential and enhancing Shanghai's commercial vitality through new product launches, senior-friendly services, dynamic nightlife, and spending on cultural activities.
The festival launch ceremony also included the Fourth International Consumption Center City Forum. In a video address, Marwan Ahmed Bin Ghalita, Acting Director General of Dubai Municipality, expressed hopes for deeper cooperation between Shanghai and Dubai as the two metropolises mark the 25th anniversary of their sister-city relationship. He emphasized their shared vision for urban development and prosperity.
Another highlight of the festival was the debut of the "CMG Select: Shanghai Pavilion." Combining celebrity hosts, culture, art, and premium brands, the pavilion leverages CMG's influential media platform to energize consumer activity and support Shanghai's drive to become a world-class consumption center.
The shopping festival will run through the end of June, with over 1,000 companies and thousands of brands set to launch more than 1,000 special events.
The 2025 International Consumption Season is a flagship event under the "Shop in China" campaign. Jointly launched by the Ministry of Commerce and five other government departments, the initiative will mobilize regions across the country to spotlight premium international and domestic goods. It will feature product debuts, first launches, and consumer-friendly measures to help both domestic shoppers and inbound tourists access high-quality global merchandise and enjoy top-tier services.
Shanghai launches major shopping festival to boost consumer spending
