A different Dragon Boat Festival in Pu’er

The Dragon boat Festival falls on the fifth day of the fifth month in Chinese lunar calendar. People in Pu’ er not only eat Zongzi(pyramid-shaped dumplings made of glutinous rice), but also dishes with Chinese herbal roots which have health-enhancing and disease preventing functions.

There is a long history and abundant culture in Dragon Boat Festival. However, the custom of eating the dishes from herbal roots originates from traditional diet and food therapy in Pu’er. The dishes are made into special delicacies with various cooking methods.

The festival implies the idea of health-maintenance from tradition Chinese medicine, which is a science focusing on the study of the physiology and pathology of the human body as well as the diagnosis, prevention and treatment of disease. In the ancient times, people found that the natural herbs could ward off diseases. The tradition passed down from generations to generations until modern times.

Reporting by Zhu Zheng (Pu'er Culture and Tourism Bureau); Trans-editing by Mo Yingyi