Benin students celebrate Chinese Dragon Boat Festival

The Confucius Institute at Abomey-Calavi University in Benin has celebrated the Chinese Dragon Boat Festival, a traditional Chinese festival that falls on June 9 this year.

On the occasion, four mixed teams of the Confucius Institute learners competed their talent on Monday in activities such as tug of war, picking up ping-pong balls with chopsticks as well as games with prizes that attracted also people from neighboring communities.

"These events are purposed to ensure, in the Institute, the intermingling of learners from different backgrounds", Confucius Institute principal Segbo Julien said.

He explained that conditions are not met for now in Benin to celebrate the dragon boat festival in pure Chinese tradition.

Thus, games are created to familiarize students with this traditional festival, officially named Duan Wu Festival in China.

Learners at Confucius Institute are mostly from French speaking as well as English speaking countries of the West African sub-region.

The festival falls on the fifth day of the fifth month of the Chinese lunar calendar and commemorates the death of Qu Yuan, a poet and minister from the Warring States period (475-221 BC) who committed suicide in the Miluo River in central China.

Racing of traditional longboats originated from the fishermen who raced to save the fallen statesman, and has become the centerpiece celebration of the Dragon Boat Festival nowadays. On this day, traditional Chinese food called zong zi, which is made of glutinous rice stuffed with different fillings and wrapped in bamboo, reed, or other large flat leaves, is eaten.