It’s party time in the Middle Kingdom. Well, er, no actually. May 28 brings the calendar around to the yearly Dragon Boat Festival, or duānwǔ jié (端午節).

Many cities in North America celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival, or the Tuen Ng Festival, as it’s known in Cantonese. My former Canadian city held dragon boat races each June, in which drunken and out-of-shape businessmen raced big boats on a local river. None of them knew what the races represented, except a reason to be publicly intoxicated, and risk drowning hoping to win a trophy.

Like most folk festivals, the roots of the Dragon Boat Festival are not particularly pleasant. In the days of yor (or China’s Warring States Period), lived Qu Yuan, a government minister with the Chu regime. He was a good man that wanted to maintain Chu’s sovereignty in the face of the Qin dynasty’s advances (Did you see Hero, with Jet Li? Same time period.)

Qu Yuan was cast out of court by jealous and corrupt ministers. Depressed by thinking about the future, he wandered the countryside composing poems from folktales. His works are still considered classics in Chinese literature.

After the Chu capital was captured by Qin forces in 278 BC, Qu Yuan grabbed a rock and walked into a local river to commit suicide, a protest against the excesses and corruption of the new Qin Kingdom.

There a few different stories as to what happened next.

The more heroic version has local villagers racing across the river in their boats, attempting to rescue Qu Yuan. Today’s dragon boat races commemorate the villagers efforts to save the poet.

In an alternate version, the villagers take to their boats, bang drums and throw food into the water to keep the fish from eating Qu Yuan’s body. The zongzi, a reed-wrapped rice dumpling, was the food used to prevent aquatic creatures from consuming Qu Yuan’s remains. Zongzi, the traditional festival food, is eaten each year during the celebrations.

Of course, just like Christian holidays (Christmas and Easter’s pagan roots), there is yet a third explanation. Scholars have discovered other festivals in China, celebrating the harvest of winter wheat, held about the same time each year as Qu Yuan’s protest. These agrarian festivals were held in areas that knew nothing of Qu Yuan or his final swim. Researchers speculate that the harvest festivals and Qu Yuan’s legacy merged.

This historic day was made a national holiday a 2008  government revamp of holidays. International Labor Day (May 1) used to be a three day holiday, which was usually extended to five days to stimulate tourism. It was a dandy break, exactly half-way through the school term. This was nixed, and three long weekends, one in April, May, and June were substituted. It’s a lot like Canada and her summer long weekends.

I’m always happy to have a day off, especially when it involves eating dumplings and listening to sad yet heroic old tales.
qu yuan image from: biografiasyvidas.com
dragonboatimage from: chinatownconnection.com
zongzi image from: china.org.cn

ESL Teachers and a student take part in a basketball game as part of a school charity event in Shenzhen, China.

When I worked for a newspaper I loved shooting high school sports. The weather this day didn’t agree with me. This image looked much better before the JPG conversion. And, I’m way out of practice.  Michael at Expatriate Games has a great description of basketball in China (the nation is crazy for it). I recommend reading it.

The two weeks of sunshine were a tease. I spent most of the weekend inside thanks to torrential downpours. June 1 signals the start of the Pacific typhoon season. A school day canceled because of a typhoon is always welcome. Five weeks and counting…

I haven’t had much to say lately. Things have been busy. Finishing one phase of your life, and planning for another, is not an easy task, especially when government bureaucracy is involved. Such is life in China.

Random Conversation

As I sat on the 777 from Beijing to Shenzhen, a small boy, maybe six-years-old, climbed into the aisle from the bank of seats to my front.  The lad’s eyes opened wide when he spotted me. There was a brief consultation between the boy and his father before he walked over to me.

“Good morning,” he said.

It was 6 pm.

“Good morning,” I replied, my young-learners happy face prominent.

He stared at me, concentrating.

Finally, he said, clearly and loudly, “Snake.”

“Yes,” I parroted, “Snake.”

“Snake,” he said again.

I nodded. “Snake.”

Then he ran back to his father and I returned to Michael Palin’s Himalaya on my iPod. I am willing to bet that good morning and snake are the only English words he knows. I wonder about the curriculum of his kindergarten.

The Stevo eats Beijing Roast Duck. Yes, it is tasty.

Random Thoughts

Beijing Roast Dusk is as tasty as you have heard. Consuming it with 26 bottles of beer makes it more so. I wonder if Madame Donna can make it?

Don’t be in Tiananmen Square while experiencing distress in your lower GI tract. The square is 40 acres, and it is a long hike to the facilities.

Real men eat chili peppers, even if it leads to abdominal distress (see above).

The woman on a street corner that offers you a massage at 1:30 am is not really offering you a massage.

Don’t ever take a Hong Kong MTR train at 6:00 pm on a Friday afternoon. If you must, lube up first to increase your chances of  getting in and out of the train and station.

Half-asleep dreams, where your wife is so close you can touch her are sweet, but few and far between.

Watching three dogs try to mate is funnier after consuming too many beers than it would be sober.

Yogurt can be an almost adequate substitute for mayo when making tuna salad.

Imagine yourself in the Forbidden City, seeing the Terra Cotta Army, walking along the Great Wall, and sipping tea in an elegant classical garden. Now imagine yourself traveling on the odyssey of a lifetime on an unforgettable China river cruise the most luxurious, relaxing, and rewarding way to see China in all its glory.

The Yangtze is Asia’s longest river, and the third longest river in the world. Its importance in human history extends at least 27,000 years into the past, when activity in Yangtze harbor first began. Because of this long history, clues to China’s rich historical past are everywhere along the river, making it the perfect focus for an extraordinary getaway full of history and romance.

An immensely popular destination by itself, there are many options available, but in researching your next river cruise along the Yangtze, be sure to see these can’t-miss sights:

Beijing

One of the greatest cities in the world, Beijing has been key to China’s history for hundreds of years. With its opulent palaces, walls, and temples, Beijing’s cultural and political past speaks for itself. You’ll immediately sense the amount of history in Beijing and its virtually unparalleled national historical importance.

*Tiananmen Square

A PLA Soldier stands post at the Monument to the People's Heroes in Tiananmen Square, Beijing, China.

The site of several key moments in Chinese history, this enormous plaza is best remembered as a place of protest. The Square is also the site of the proclamation of the People’s Republic of China by Mao in 1949. Tiananmen also contains a large gate, which separates it from the Forbidden City in the north.

*Forbidden City

The largest collection of ancient wooden structures in the world, the Forbidden City was home to China’s Emperors for more than half a millennium. At 7.8 million square feet, it’s a sight to behold, and one well worth your time. You will be absolutely stunned from beginning to end.

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Xian

One of the four ancient capital cities of China, Xian is rich with cultural significance. You could spend weeks exploring this lovely city, but the Terra Cotta Army alone will give you the perfect taste of what Xian has to offer.

*The Terra Cotta Army

Discovered by a farmer digging in the field to create a well, this “army” is a collection of an estimated 8,000 unique sculptures of soldiers, created to protect Qin Shi Huangdi, the First Emperor of China. Seeing a photo of these soldiers is one thing, but you won’t believe your eyes when you see them in person.

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Three Gorges

One of the most picturesque spots along the Yangtze, this area is so important to China’s culture and history that it appears on the back of the 5 yuan banknote.

*Three Gorges Dam

The largest hydroelectric power station in the world. And it’s big! After more than a decade of planning, the dam will be fully operational in 2011.

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Jingdezhen

With its 1700-year history of producing some of the finest porcelain in the world, Jingdezhen is a souvenir buyer’s paradise!

*Ceramic Institute and Porcelain History Museum

The Ceramic Institute is the only institute of higher education devoted to teaching the art of ceramics. At the Porcelain History Museum, you can learn about the meanings of porcelain patterns, as well as the importance of porcelain in Chinese history and culture.

Shanghai

China is a country of superlatives, and Shanghai is its most superlative city! One of the largest metropolitan areas in the world, and home to more than 20 million people, Shanghai is the jewel in the crown of the world’s fastest growing economy.

*The Bund

Take a stroll down The Bund, one of the most popular tourist destinations in Shanghai. With its 52 buildings and mile-long walkway, a walk down The Bund is the perfect end to an extraordinary trip along the Yangtze.

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This short guide is by no means an exhaustive list of everything you must see and do on your cruise along the Yangtze, but hopefully it’ll give you some idea of what this fabulous river has to offer. Filled with the history of a continent, as well as the culture and romance that make every vacation special, a cruise along the Yangtze will be a trip you’ll remember forever.

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Editor’s Note: This is guest post on a unique way to travel China, by Nick Steele.

Photo Credit: Asian Ramblings

For the absent Mrs. Stevo. Only a few more weeks…

I was finally able to buy some flowers to shoot. Strobist info: This was done with an “O” flash on-camera, and a YN460 behind, bouncing off a white wall.  Triggered with Phottix Tetra wireless triggers.

The remnants of firecrackers, in small Hunan, China village, on the first day of Chinese Lunar New Year. In China the new year is called  Spring Festival. 2009 is the Year of the Ox. Children born under the ox sign will be quiet, dependable, and achieve great things through hard work.