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
