?The Dragon Boat Festival is a day celebrated by the whole country. No matter which city you are from, you have to celebrate it. It’s just that the customs in each city are a little different. Take food for example. It's different between provinces and cities.

?1. Fujian

?The family banquet of the Dragon Boat Festival in Fujian must be at noon, and the dinner must include rice dumplings, realgar wine, lotus leaf buns, rice noodles and meat, etc. After the family dinner, children wear new clothes, red bellybands, and uniquely shaped and brightly colored sachets made of mothballs wrapped in various colored silk threads, such as rice dumplings and lanterns. They also wash calamus soup, and some children even have to put it in their mouths and noses. A piece of realgar smoked fat is stuck between them, and then the adults take them to the riverside to watch the dragon boat race.

?In the Jinjiang area of ??Fujian, every household eats "Jian Dui" during the Dragon Boat Festival. The so-called jiandui is made of flour, rice flour or sweet potato flour and other ingredients into a thick paste, and then fried into a large piece in a pan. Legend has it that in ancient times, it was the rainy season in southern Fujian before the Dragon Boat Festival, and it rained continuously. Folks said that God had penetrated a hole and wanted to "repair the sky." After eating "Jiandui" during the Dragon Boat Festival, the rain stopped, and people said that the sky was repaired. This food custom comes from this.

?2. Chongqing

?Chongqing people choose to cook snake soup on the Dragon Boat Festival of the year and eat it to protect themselves.

?The main reason why people in Chongqing eat snakes is the influence of fertility culture. Snakes are a symbol of totem worship. Women believe that after eating snakes, they will reproduce. Similar to "There is a Tai daughter Jiang?" , stepped on the giant's footprints and gave birth to Houji" legend. Others also believe that after eating a snake, their ancestors will enter the body and be with them. However, snakes cannot be killed indiscriminately, nor can they be cooked at home. Usually, a pot of snake soup is cooked on the threshing floor and shared by the whole village.

?3. Guangxi

?In southern Guangxi, such as Ningming, Chongzuo, Longzhou and other places, during the Dragon Boat Festival, cool brown rice dumplings are made, called "grey water rice dumplings" . Before making rice dumplings, go to the mountains and cut down some branches and leaves of trees such as the neem tree. When they are half dry in the sun, they are piled on the ground and burned. The ashes are then put into a bamboo container and rinsed with clean water. Finally, use the filtered brown water to soak the prepared glutinous rice.

?After soaking, the glutinous rice will reveal a unique fragrance of plant ash in the original aroma. The rice dumplings will be light yellow or brown after being cooked.

?4. Guangdong

?Guangdong rice dumplings are more typical, larger in size and unique in shape, like a cone. And it’s very diverse.

?Egg yolk rice dumplings, assorted rice dumplings, roasted duck rice dumplings, etc. have unique southern flavor and have long been famous. Chaozhou's double-spliced ??rice dumplings are a style of their own, with salty ingredients on one side and sweet ingredients on the other, so there are two flavors in one rice dumpling, so it's called "double-spliced ??rice dumplings".

?In Conghua County, people wash their eyes with boiled talisman water at noon on the Dragon Boat Festival and then splash it on the road, which is called "sending disaster". During the Dragon Boat Festival in Xinxing County, people from nearby temples advocated the parade of gods and goddesses. The wizard also uses dharma water and amulets to drive away evil spirits. During the Dragon Boat Festival in Shicheng County, children fly kites, which is called "flying disaster".

?5. Jiangsu

?On the Dragon Boat Festival, people in Yangzhou enjoy eating "Twelve Reds". Which "Twelve Reds"? Braised fish, braised pork, braised chicken, braised old goose, braised cucumber, braised lettuce, braised radish, sword beans, amaranth, salted duck eggs, mustard mustard, braised vermicelli or vermicelli.

?Besides the "Twelve Reds", there are many more. For example, on this day, those who open bathrooms use calamus and mugwort leaves to boil water. Calamus and mugwort leaves are put in the pool. The water emits a burst of fragrance, which invigorates the spirit and makes the whole body refreshed and fragrant. It is known as "washing mugwort water". Some bathrooms with this custom still exist today. Common people also buy calamus and mugwort leaves and stick them on the door. It is said that they can drive away plague and eliminate filth.

?6. Anhui