As the Dragon Boat Festival approaches, Zhongshan's Shiqi District has entered the Dragon Boat Month period.

"Raising the Dragon Boat" is considered as the beginning of the Dragon Boat Festival period, with a history of over two hundred years. It implies good weather for crops and peace and prosperity.

In the fourth lunar month every year, villages usually choose a lucky day to worship the dragon boats at ancestral halls or temples before the Dragon Boat Raising ceremony. The dragon boats placed in the river silt are awakened for the annual dragon boat event.

In Yuanfeng Village, dragon boat team members lift the sacred "dragon heads" and carry them to the Beidi Temple, where they hold a blessing ceremony, attracting many villagers to watch the spectacle event.

After the maintenance with water and the raising ceremony, team members start the training, getting prepared for the upcoming dragon boat race in June.

From June 8 to 10, the 2024 Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (Zhongshan) Dragon Boat Invitational Tournament will be held concurrently with the Zhongshan Dragon Boat Culture Month event, which will give you a great opportunity to experience the allure of intangible cultural heritage up close.