The Dragon Boat Festival
端午節
Introduction
People in China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan had the Dragon Boat Festival on Friday. They had boat races and ate special food.
中國、香港與台灣的人們在週五慶祝了端午節。他們舉辦了龍舟賽並食用特別的食物。
Main Body
This festival is very old. It is more than 2,000 years old. People race boats because of a famous poet named Qu Yuan. They want to remember him.
這個節日非常古老，已有超過2,000年的歷史。人們之所以賽龍舟，是因為要紀念一位名叫屈原的著名詩人。
In Beijing, men and women raced boats. Teams came from many cities. In Hong Kong, people wore special clothes for the party.
在北京，男女皆參與了龍舟賽，許多城市的隊伍都到場參與。在香港，人們穿上特別的服裝來參與慶祝活動。
People also eat zongzi. Zongzi are rice dumplings with meat or beans. One man, Li Maoshan, says the races help people work together and stay strong.
人們也會吃粽子。粽子是用米製成的，內含肉類或豆類。一位名叫李茂山的先生表示，龍舟賽有助於人們培養團隊合作精神並保持強健。
Conclusion
People still love this festival. In Beijing, the party at the Grand Canal ends on June 21.
人們至今依然熱愛這個節日。在北京，大運河的慶祝活動將於6月21日結束。
Vocabulary Learning
💡 The 'Past' Secret
Look at these words from the story:
- had (have)
- raced (race)
- wore (wear)
- came (come)
What is happening? We are talking about things that already happened. In English, the word changes to show the time is in the past.
Two Ways to Change:
-
The Easy Way: Just add -ed. Example: race raced
-
The Special Way: The word changes completely. You must memorize these! Example: wear wore
📦 Vocabulary Box
- Zongzi Rice dumplings (Food)
- Poet A person who writes poems
- Grand Canal A big water road for boats