What are the traditional festivals and customs in Hangzhou? Let's take a look at the sharing of Xiaobian!

1. Spring Festival

Time: the first day of the first lunar month

Introduction: On the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, also known as Laba Day, Hangzhou ancestors usually made Laba porridge with walnuts, pine nuts, lotus seeds, dates, Gordon Euryale, longan and lychee, and gave it to relatives and friends, which is a prelude to the Chinese New Year in Hangzhou. This bowl of porridge originated from the temples in the Southern Song Dynasty. It was originally used as supplies for monks' houses, and it was called "Seven Treasures and Five Flavors Porridge". This famous bowl of porridge spread from temples to the people, mixing monks and customs together, and gradually formed the custom of Hangzhou people burning incense in the eight temples on the eighth day of Laba. New Year greeting is an indispensable and important activity for the Chinese New Year. On the first day of the Lunar New Year, the first thing the ancestors of Hangzhou did when they opened the door was to shoot a stick, commonly known as opening the door, and put up a post to "open the door". Then they worshipped the gods of heaven and earth, the family hall, the kitchen secretary and the ancestor gods, and then they paid New Year greetings according to their generations. The entertainment activities in old Hangzhou during the Spring Festival are generally gongs and drums, kites, dragon lanterns and fireworks. The so-called gongs and drums are also called New Year's gongs and drums. In addition to the big gongs and drums, crisp drums, small gongs and bamboo boards are added. In the fifth day of the first month, Nian Gong and Drum are mostly used by merchants. In addition, Nian Gong and Drum also have the function of making fun of other entertainment activities.

2. Lantern Festival

Time: the fifteenth day of the first lunar month

Introduction: The Lantern Festival is the most prosperous in the Southern Song Dynasty and followed in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Until the Republic of China, Hangzhou Lantern Festival was still very prosperous. Lantern Festival usually starts on the 12th and ends on the 18th. On the 12th, the newly-made dragon lantern was carried to the Dragon Temple in Chenghuang Mountain. After the offering, it was touched with ink, which was called "opening the light", or "dragon lantern going up the mountain". In Hangzhou in the Qing Dynasty, according to the poem "Festival of Things in Jiangxiang", on the 13th Lantern Festival, every household made glutinous rice flour into a small dough and cooked it for their ancestors, which was called "Lantern Festival". On the fifteenth night, glutinous rice flour was rubbed into a big round, in which the stuffing was finely cut walnuts, peanuts, sesame seeds, dates, chicken oil, bean paste and so on, and it was called "Dengyuan".

3. Dragon Boat Festival

Time: the fifth day of the fifth lunar month

Introduction: The fifth day of the fifth lunar month is the Dragon Boat Festival, which is the most important traditional festival in summer in China. In ancient times, "noon" and "five" were homonyms, so it was also called the Dragon Boat Festival as "Duanwu", "Chongwu" and "Chongwu". There are different opinions about the origin of the Dragon Boat Festival. During the Wei Dynasty, Zhejiang began to be an activity to commemorate Wu Zixu, Cao E and other celebrities. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, the dragon boat race in Hangzhou West Lake was particularly prosperous. According to the Heritage of Hangs, there are four or five dragon boats in the West Lake, the length of which is about four or five feet, the head and tail are all high, and the colorful paintings are like dragons. On the upper and lower floors of the middle cabin, there are the dragon head prince and the swing frame, all of which are dressed as children and stand still. The swing goes up and down, and there are 18 kinds of martial arts flags and guns on the door. Five-colored umbrella with a centipede flag at the end. The lower deck of the middle cabin beats gongs and drums, and sailors row beside it. If you win the game, the big ship will be moored in the lake, and the dragon boat will turn around and go hand in hand. Such as throwing objects, the dragon boat sailors compete, and the most difficult thing to grab is money and ducks. Money sinks in the water, ducks swim in the water, and you fight for each other, which is considerable.

4. Chinese Valentine's Day

Time: the seventh day of the seventh lunar month

Introduction: There is a custom of begging for skills among folk women, so it is also called "Begging for Skills Festival" or "Girls' Day". Even now, it is widely spread all over Zhejiang. In Shaoxing and other rural areas, many young girls secretly hide under the flourishing pumpkin shed that night. If you can hear the whispers when Niu Lang weaves together in the dead of night, the girl to be married will get this eternal love in the future. These begging activities 1,5 years ago still have similar begging customs in various parts of Zhejiang today. Such as Hangzhou, Ningbo, Wenzhou and other places, on this day, all kinds of small objects are made of flour, which are called "proper fruit" after frying in oil, and proper fruit, lotus, white lotus root and Hong Ling are displayed in the courtyard at night. A girl puts a needle on the moon to pray for skillful weaving, or catches a spider and puts it in a box. If the box is opened the next day, it is called skillful weaving. Shaoxing and Hangzhou hold a bowl of water in the open air for the night, and the next day, put the bowl of water in the sun. If you see a thin layer of clothes on the bowl surface, throw a small needle on it and look at the reflection. If it looks like scissors, ruler and other shapes, women can be clever. Or there is a book shadow, you think that reading is promising. If you meet a hat shadow, you think you will marry an official.

5. Mid-Autumn Festival

Time: July 15th of the lunar calendar

Introduction: Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as Lanpen Festival, is a different festival held by Taoism and Buddhism on the same day. Above Taoism, the middle, lower and three yuan are combined with heaven, earth and water. Heaven blesses, underground palace forgives sins, and water palace relieves Eritrea. Lanpen (that is, the Orchid Club) is a ceremony held by Buddhism in good faith to recommend ancestors. The word "orchid basin" is a transliteration of Sanskrit, which means "saving the upside down", which is related to the Buddhist story of saving the mother. In Zhejiang, the sacrificial ceremony of "Mid-Autumn Festival" is similar everywhere. In Hangzhou, on the night of July 12, every family must have fresh food such as lotus root, lotus root and old ling for their ancestors. It is said that the gate of hell opened in July, and their ancestors went in and out, so every family must take it. Two days ago, people who had recently lost their lives held white lights and tied white colors in front of their spirits for good snacks. It was called "Mid-Autumn Festival" to worship Buddha and chant Buddhist scriptures. On July 15th, Celosia cristata was offered to ancestors. On this day, a bowl of vegetarian wonton was required, with flour skin wrapped in snow shepherd's purse and dried bean curd as stuffing.

6. Mid-Autumn Festival

Time: August 15th of the lunar calendar

Introduction: In Hangzhou, every family worships the moon on this night, and the sacrificial products are moon cakes, square persimmons, chestnuts and other seasonal foods. Sacrificing the moon is to set up a stage, set up a case and light incense in the courtyard. If there are accompanying instruments, they will rap ancient and modern books, make up seven sentences, and sing them by one person playing the strings. However, this ceremony has been lost today. The Mid-Autumn Festival is a scenic spot to enjoy the moon, in the "Three Tanyue" of the West Lake. The so-called three ponds are actually three stone pagodas built in the lake, which are hollow, and each stone pagoda has five circular holes on its wall. For example, on the Mid-Autumn moon night, candles are lit at the midpoint, and the five holes are sealed with paper, so that there are 15 moon-like reflections in the lake, and even the moon in the sky has 16 moons in the water. The night view of the West Lake is beautiful and wonderful at this time. Sitting in a family group, drinking and enjoying the moon, and going out all try their best to get home together, commonly known as "Reunion Festival". Every family eats moon cakes, which are round symbols of family reunion.

7. Double Ninth Festival

Time: the ninth day of the ninth lunar month

Introduction: It is said that during the Eastern Han Dynasty, Huanjing, a native of Runan, learned Taoism from Fei Changfang. One day Fei Changfang told him, "On the ninth day of September this year, there is a great disaster in your family. You should go home immediately, make some colorful bags, put one bag in them, hang them on your shoulders, climb high and drink in the mountains. Huan Jing listened and followed suit. When I came home the next day, my chickens and dogs were all dead. In the future, the "Double Ninth Festival" can be a blessing from disaster and spread among the people and become a custom. "Double Ninth Festival" is in the late autumn season in Zhejiang Province. The golden breeze is refreshing, the sky is high and the clouds are light, and it is interesting to climb high and look far. In Hangzhou, on this morning, many shops selling snacks and cakes have "Chongyang" for sale. The cakes are square and diamond-shaped, with chestnuts embedded in them and flags cut from red and green paper. Every family buys this as breakfast for the holidays. On this day, I climbed mountains, such as Chenghuang Mountain, Yuhuang Mountain, Baoshi Mountain and Gelingchu balcony, and thought that after climbing, I was lucky, everything went well, and I was rising steadily. This custom has been popular until now.

8. Dragon boat race in Jiangcun

Time: fifth day of the fifth lunar month

Location: Jiangcun, Xihu District, Hangzhou

Introduction: Dragon boat race on the Dragon Boat Festival every year is a traditional custom in Jiangcun, Xixi, Hangzhou. Since the Tang Dynasty, it flourished in the Southern Song Dynasty, especially in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. During Qianlong's southern tour, he went to Jiangcun to watch the dragon boat and was named "Hezhu Dragon Boat Race". On the morning of the Dragon Boat Festival, villagers rowed dragon boats from all directions to Jiangcun, a village with dense water networks. The dragon boat is decorated with a dragon head in front and a dragon tail in the back. Strong oarsmen are arranged on both sides of the boat. There are helmsmen with long oars at the stern, colorful flags are displayed on the boat, and there are also colorful draperies, and gongs and drums are sitting in the boat. The spectators on both sides of the river have become a wall of people, and the cheers are thunderous. There are many tricks in the race back and forth, such as capsizing and drowning, and quickly overturning or climbing into the boat from the water. At this time, the oarsmen on board and the spectators on the shore are happy, and laughter overflows the water fields.

9. Daciyan Temple Fair

Time: July 3th, Lunar New Year

Location: Daciyan Scenic Area, Hangzhou

Introduction: The annual grand temple fair of Daciyan in Jiande, in addition to rich national performances, the famous natural Buddha will also be "opened" for the first time, and visitors can see Daciyan in the night by using modern lighting technology. Every year on the 3th day of the seventh lunar month, residents and pilgrims from all directions gather in this mountain all night to "catch the temple fair" and set off lotus lanterns. Many tourists will also come here, and vendors from all over the world will also carry local products on the cliffs for tourists to choose from. Daciyan Temple Fair can not only watch foreign songs and dances in front of the Hanging Temple, but also ring bells and pray in Qingyin Pavilion on the mountainside, and put lotus lanterns in Yuhua Lake on the mountain. The breeze is blowing, pink lotus flowers are blooming on the lake, and candlelight is swaying. In the middle of the night, thousands of lights will be lit around the giant Buddha, which is a solemn scene.

1. Bell ringing to welcome the new year

Time: Lunar New Year's Eve

Location: Jingci Temple, Hangzhou

Introduction: Every year on Lunar New Year's Eve, bells ringing to welcome the new year are held in front of Nanping Late Bell in Jingci Temple, Hangzhou and Liuhe Bell in Pagoda of Six Harmonies. During this period, Chinese and foreign friends gathered together to ring the bell 18 times on the eve of the Lunar New Year to pray for happiness and prosperity in the new year.

11. Hangzhou Chaoshan Plum Blossom Festival

Time: February to March every year

Location: Yuhang Chaoshan Scenic Area

Introduction: During the Plum Blossom Festival, visitors can not only enjoy the plum blossom in Chaoshan Scenic Area, but also see the beautiful scenery of "Ten Miles of Plum Blossom Fragrant Sea" written by Mr. Wu Changshuo, and they can also visit the Wu Changshuo Memorial Hall and the Stone Painting and Calligraphy Gallery to appreciate the connotation of stone culture. During the festival, there are wonderful activities such as enjoying plum blossoms, exhibiting fine plum bonsai, plum blossom photography contest and "Mei Wu Tian Xia".

12. Xixi Plum Exploration Festival

Time: February to March every year

Location: Xixi Wetland

Introduction: There are more than 15, plum blossoms and 3 mu of merlin in Xixi Wetland, mainly including cinnabar, palace powder, green calyx, jade butterfly, Jiangmei, Meirenmei, Nanjing Red and Changxing Red. The main locations of Xixi Xun Mei are in Meizhu Mountain Villa and Xixi Meishu, especially the plum trees in Xixi Meishu are very concentrated, forming Meilin, which is the essence area for viewing Xixi Meihua.

13. Hangzhou West Lake International Osmanthus Fragrans Festival

Time: September to October every year

Location: Guiyu, Manlong, Hangzhou

Introduction: Osmanthus fragrans is the flower of Hangzhou. Hangzhou people cultivate Osmanthus fragrans, watch it and love it. In September 1988, the first Hangzhou West Lake International Osmanthus Fragrans Festival was held. It is now held at the same time as Hangzhou Golden Autumn International Tourism Festival and is one of its activities. Festivals include opening ceremony, cultural performances, bridge, Go and chess competitions, Mid-Autumn Festival moon appreciation, osmanthus appreciation, tea drinking by trees, tea ceremony performances, floral performances, temple fairs and other activities. People can also taste sweet-scented osmanthus chestnut soup, sweet-scented osmanthus and other famous points.

14. Hangzhou West Lake International Expo

Time: October to November every year

Location: Opposite to Huanglong Cave, Hangzhou

Introduction: The first West Lake Expo was held in 1929, and now it has become the most concentrated exhibition of Hangzhou's history, culture and scenery. During the West Lake Expo, dozens of exhibitions, forums and performances will be held, covering culture, art, fashion, science and technology, commerce, tourism, food and other aspects.

15. Yangguo Festival in front of Cangqian

Time: November to December every year

Location: Yangguo Village in front of Cangqian

Introduction: Cold air is coming, and it is a good time for steaming mutton pots. Yangguo is a folk food spread in front of Cangqian in Yuhang ancient town for hundreds of years. Cangqian has been a place for mutton for a hundred years. Generally, farmers keep sheep's heads, feet and offal that can't be sold at a good price. If they can't finish it at home, they call their neighbors, relatives and friends, and a table of people drinks and eats from the pot. This "scoop" means to scoop out some belly goods from the sheep, and the other means to scoop out some chop suey from the pot to eat.