4 . The dragon is a great animal in Chinese culture. It brings the wind and rain. It is said that every year on the second day of the second lunar month the dragon wakes up from its winter sleep and raises its head. Because of this, the day is called “Dragon Head-raising Day (Longtaitou) ”. This year, it falls on March 4.

Old people believed that after Longtaitou, there would be more rain. And rain is very important to farming. So Longtaitou was the start of spring and farming.

People have many ways to celebrate the Longtaitou Festival. The most popular one is to have a haircut. Many believe that a haircut during the first lunar month may bring bad luck to your uncles, mainly your mother’s brothers. They hope getting a haircut on Longtaitou sweeps away bad luck.

Among Chinese people’s festival traditions, there is always a place for food. During the Longtaitou festival, people eat food named after dragons. Noodles are called dragon’s beard (longxu) . Dumplings are dragon’s ears (long’er) . And spring rolls are dragon’s scales (鳞片) (longlin) .

People also have activities like dragon dancing on the day. In some places in Shandong Province, people make dragon lanterns too. Small boats go down the rivers and carry the lanterns, which stand for people’s best wishes and good luck.

The Water-Splashing Festival, also     1     (know) as Buddha Bathing Ceremony, is the New Year’s celebration of the Dai ethnic minority in Yunnan Province. For Dai people, the annual Water-Splashing Festival is the most important holiday, attracting tens of thousands of locals and     2     (tour).

Jinghong, the capital of Dai Autonomous Prefecture, usually     3     (celebrate) it from Aprill3 to 15. On the first two days, a grand celebration marks the beginning of the festival. An outdoor market is set up,     4     locals come for new-year shopping. At night, the banks of the river are     5     (colorful) lit, and locals float river lanterns on the river. The third day     6     (reserve) for water splashing. The Dai people will put     7     their newest and best clothes, and then gather at the local Buddhist temple. It isn’t until people splash the Buddha statue with clear water     8     they can flock to the streets, parks or squares with pots or bottles, to splash each other with water.

For Dai people, water is     9     symbol of holiness, goodness and purity. Therefore, splashing others with water during the Water-Splashing Festival is     10     (wish) that person good luck and happiness.