Duanwu Festival
June 19 · Level 9 · #282 of 2238
Duanwu is a traditional Chinese festival held on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, and it is also known as the Dragon Boat Festival. Legend ties it to the memory of the poet Qu Yuan.
How it is celebrated: crews race dragon boats to the beat of drums on rivers and lakes, families make and eat zongzi, sticky rice dumplings wrapped in leaves, and people hang mugwort on doors to ward off bad luck.
In 2009 UNESCO added the Dragon Boat Festival to its list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.