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Chen Mei-Li sat close beside Chang Mui—General Li Zuocheng’s favorite granddaughter—as they shared a coconut ice cream upon the grassy bank of the Shunyi Water Park in Beijing. The Duanwu Dragon Boat Festival races were being battled out before enormous crowds who had flooded into the former Olympic Park.
The clusters of the smallest three-meter boats, each with a dragon’s eye painted on the prow, made for a colorful and joyous race, all jostling together, and everyone simply glad to be there on a warm, sunny June day.
The ten-paddler class were more serious, but still were clearly enjoying themselves. These had small carved dragon heads at the front.
The great dragon boats of twenty paddlers, a steerer at the stern, and a drummer in the front to keep time were splendid to watch, es
