Texas Dragon Boat Association

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Orient Express
Buffalo Bayou goes Beijing at the Houston Dragon Boat Festival

SAT 5/7

They may look like vessels out of some fairy tale or opium dream, but the centuries-old tradition of Chinese dragon boat racing will turn Buffalo Bayou into the Yangtze River at the 2005 Houston Dragon Boat Festival. "It's visually dynamic and requires a lot of teamwork," says Texas Dragon Boat Association organizer Eugene Lee. "And it's not only an Asian cultural tradition but an international sport." The 40-foot-long, colorfully decorated boats are made of fiberglass and teak.

Each will carry 20 paddlers, a steersman and a drummer; teams will compete for the revered Dragon Cup in a series of races.

Dragon boat racing began around 277 BC to honor Qu Yuan, a Chinese scholar, statesman and poet who fell out of favor with the government and drowned himself in the Mi Lo River. Distraught villagers paddled their fishing boats for days in search of his remains, decorating their vessels with dragon heads to ward off evil spirits and pitching rice dumplings into the water to keep hungry fish away from his body. (And this in a time before bass-finding sonar systems.)

In addition to races, you can expect entertainment, music, local celebs and a closing ceremony with everyone's favorite ambassadors of Asian culture: the Houston Texans cheerleaders. 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, May 7. Allen's Landing, Commerce at Main. For information, call 832-687-7208 or visit www.texasdragonboat.com. Free. -- Bob Ruggiero

The Texas Dragon Boat Association is a 501(c)(3) Texas non-profit corporation. Our mission is "to promote the tradition and art of dragon boating, increase awareness of Asian and Asian-American culture, and enhance cross-cultural understanding."