PENANG INTERNATIONAL DRAGON BOAT FESTIVAL FROM MALAYSIA!!

Dragon Boat Racing History

On the fifth day of the fifth lunar month every year, Chinese communities worldwide celebrate the Duanwu Jie festival, which commemorates the death of the Chinese patriot/poet Qu Yuan.
As a rival state conquered his home kingdom, Qu Yuan committed suicide, drowning himself in the Miluo river on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month.

His countrymen paddled swiftly out to the middle of the river to retrieve his body, while others threw packets of rice in the water to distract the fish from eating the poet's body.
These two acts, it is said, are the origin of the festival's two main preoccupations - the glutinous rice dumplings known as zongzi, and the dragon boat races.

Dragon Boat Racing in Modern Times

Dragon boat racing, despite its roots in ancient tradition, are as exciting a sport as they come. Two or more boats compete against each other in heats spanning distances of about 1 1/4 mile (2000 meters) or less.
The boats conform to traditional designs, and are extremely eye-catching. Each boat is mounted with a dragon's head and tail, finely carved to meet the traditional Chinese dragon appearance (in case you didn't know, a Chinese dragon has an ox's head, a deer's antlers, a horse's mane, and a fish's tail).

Each boat is crewed by up to twenty paddlers, facing the front of the boat (as opposed to Western rowing sports, where the rower faces the rear). A drummer sits in front of the boat, facing the rowers, dictating the rhythm for the row team. A sweep, or tiller, sits aft, steering the boat.
Strength and endurance are necessary, but not sufficient, for success. Dragon boat racing, as a sport, demands the closest teamwork possible from teams that want to get through the finish line first.

Dragon Boat Racing in Penang, Malaysia

    In Penang, Malaysia, the dragon boat races are especially famous. The region's first dragon boat race was held here in 1956, on the occasion of the 100th founding anniversary of Georgetown.
    Initially, the races were open only to Malaysian teams. Overseas participation was allowed in 1979, attracting contestants from Hong Kong and Singapore.
    Today, the Penang International Dragon Boat Festival attracts contestants from around the globe, including teams from Europe and the USA. Any group affiliated with the International Dragon Boat Federation (IDBF) may join. 62 countries are represented in the IDBF.

A Safer, Controlled Environment

    The Penang International Dragon Boat Festival takes place at the Teluk Bahang Dam, Penang, from May 23 to 24. In two days, a number of races are staged, including races for men, women, and mixed teams.
    Teams come from all over, with some local teams representing government offices, fraternal associations, and corporations. The local teams bring along the most enthusiastic fans, cheering at the top of their voices for their favorites to win.
The reservoir at the Teluk Bahang Dam has served as the Dragon Boat Festival's venue since 2002, as it provides a safer, more controlled environment than the seafront venue used from the beginning of the race.
    The view, too, is top-notch, as punters get to see the race against the green hills of the Penang countryside.

VANILLA PEACH COFFEE CAKE!!

Did you know that the fruit this summer is supposed to be the best it has been in years? Apparently, fruit loves hot weather. I personally have eaten more peaches and cherries this summer than I have in about five years just for that reason. As I have been a little overzealous lately buying peaches and cherries I found myself with a few peaches that were going to be too ripe for me to eat on the same day. That is unless I wanted to have them for every meal plus a few snacks. So I decided to make this recipe for Vanilla Peach Coffee Cake. Vanilla Peach Coffee Cake Adapted from Allrecipes.com Batter: 2 eggs 1 C milk 1/2 C oil 1 tsp. vanilla 1/2 C sour cream 3 C flour 1 C sugar 1 tsp. baking powder 1/2 tsp. salt 1/2 tsp. baking soda Topping: 5 or 6 large peaches, diced. 3 Tbsp. butter, melted 11/4 C brown sugar 1Tbsp. cinnamon 2 tsp. nutmeg 4 Tbsp. flour Vanilla Icing: 1 T...

DIY GLASS CHRISTMAS TREES!

This diy comes from www.alderberryhill.blogspot.com . These are very cool and look like an upper end designer look. Start your Christmas decor now and you will have time to relax later when the holidays do arrive! Glass Christmas Trees Happy Weekend Everyone! Christmas crafting is in full swing for everyone by now and I am enjoying the crafting season as well. I love the color turquoise and am trying to work it into my Christmas decor. Here is my latest turquoise creation. Glass Christmas Trees And here is how I put them together. What you will need for the project: Styrofoam cones or stack trees. Craft paint Brush Glue gun Glue sticks Glass bowl fillers (the ones that are flat on the bottom). The process is so simple. Paint the styrofoam, let dry Glue on the glass I glued the glass on using a brick laying technique. The second row started at the seam of two glass pieces, not directly above the one ...

PRESENT TOPIARY TO DECORATE YOUR PORCH AND FRONT DOOR!

This comes from www.thatvillagehouse.blogspot.com . I made something similar a couple years ago, without the pots. It was about 6 feet high. I got the inspiration from a Chirstmas dectoration that we bought at Target. This is a very good idea and make a great enterance to your home. So here's a little something to thing about for next year. Before you know it December will be here again. You could also do something like this for an Easter theme. Enjoy! A Merry Welcome! So here is my first Christmas project for the year!! I saw something similar at our church's Advent celebration & pretty much straight up copied it. I couldn't help it. It was love at first sight! I plan to make a 2nd stack to go on the other side of my door, so I'm not completely done, but I thought I would share it with you anyway. I started with 3 different sized boxes...9, 12 & 14 inch cubes. I used an ice pick to punch ...

DECK THE HOLIDAY'S

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