(Reporter: Xiong Donghua; Correspondent: Peng Xiao) “The 2018 Qu Yuan’s Hometown Dragon Boat Festival will be held in Yichang in June”, as is learned from the preparation work meeting of the event on March 29.

　　With the theme of “Chinese Dragon Boat Festival and Poetic Yichang”, the event will lastone month and be divided into five parts: the Dragon Boat Festival opening ceremony & the Dragon Boat Festival Memorial at Qu Yuan’s hometown, the intangible cultural heritage inheritingactivity of “Chinese Dragon Boat Festival in Yichang”, a series of “PoeticYichang”cultural activities, tour-relatedeconomic and trade investment promotion, and a cross-strait cultural exchange activitythemed “Eat zongzi to celebrate the festival and inherit the Culture”. By then, a wonderful opening ceremony anda high-standard poem recitationwill be held. You can watch adragon boat race and enjoy a dinner at Qu Yuan’s hometown. And famous poets and recital artists will also come to schools and communitiesto communicatewith the public face to face. Stamp design experts will visit the scene to sign the special Qu Yuan stamps. In addition, the folk song and dance drama Dragon Boat Festival will also be staged atBeijing National Grand Theater, displaying the spirit of Qu Yuan and the culture of Dragon Boat Festival.

　　Our city will follow the idea of “governmental leadership, social participation, market operationand developmentthrough thefestival” and thecelebrationrequirement of “Yichang feature, national level and world influence”, striving to make 2018 Qu Yuan’s hometown Dragon Boat Festival a “cultural eventandpeople’s holiday”.

　　It is understood that starting from 2010, the Dragon Boat Festival has been held once every two years in Yichang and so far it has been held for four times successfully. In September 2013, as approved by the National Festival Cleanup and Regulation Leading Group, Qu Yuan’s Hometown Dragon Boat Festival will be held in Yichang for a long time as an important cultural activity reserved by the state.