Mid Autumn Festival
As my family gears up to celebrate the Mid Autumn Festival (Moon Festival) this Friday night, I thought I’d share a few news articles about how China is celebrating this week and gearing up for the big night.
Some information from Tourists lost and found in world’s largest square: Tian’anmen Square can hold more than 1 million people. It is the world’s largest city square, spanning 63 football fields, and for many, getting lost can be a nightmare. More than 3,700 people reported lost friends or relatives in Tian’anmen Square during the first three days of the holiday. Long queues formed at lost-and-found centres, which broadcasted messages alerting lost people where to meet. Some lost visitors gave up looking for loved ones and police provided public transport information so they could return home. Cleaning workers were kept busy having to remove 113.8 tons of rubbish on the square in the first three days of the holiday, 20 times the usual daily amount.
The National Day holiday is a favorite travel time for many Chinese and in some small scenic cities tourists far exceeded the local population. On Tuesday, more than 70,000 people visited the Forbidden City and 60,000 climbed up the Great Wall in Beijing. There were so many people at the Badaling section of the Great Wall that they had to walk slowly in long queues.
In Suzhou in East China’s Jiangsu Province the ancient gardens received more than 700,000 guests on Tuesday. Meanwhile, 4.4 million people travelled on the train and more than 400,000 in airplanes on Monday, according to the CNTA report.
In major tourism cities such as Beijing and Shanghai, more than 70 per cent of the hotel rooms were booked on Monday. At some scenic spots, like the Yellow Mountain in East China’s Anhui Province, almost all the hotels were full on Monday.
Biggest mid-autumn moon in 9 years to be seen on Oct. 6 This article tells us that Chinese people can see the biggest mid-autumn moon in nine years on Friday night. Experts with the Astronomical Association of south China’s Guangdong Province forecast that the fine mid-autumn moon will be seen at 10 p.m. Friday (Beijing Time), when the moon is nearest to the Earth. The last time the mid-autumn moon was nearest to the Earth was in 1997 and the next time will happen in 2015. But experts say that Chinese can not see the most orbicular mid-autumn moon that will occur at 11:13 a.m. Saturday when it is daytime for China.
There is also an interesting story on Mooncakes you should check out.
My family will celebrate the Mid Autumn Festival tomorrow night. We have other family members coming over, we will have a fire outside (a safe one, in an enclosure), and we will have moon cakes and moon pies. Yes, you read that right. Not everyone likes moon cakes. We will have lanterns hung, we will have soft music playing in the background. Kids will play, adults will play, adults will watch the children play.
Friday during the day I will think about my daughter’s birth family, and I will wonder whether they are looking at the moon and wondering where she is and hoping she is okay. And Friday night I will look at the moon and hope that they are okay and wish there was some way to let them know how happy she is and how much she is loved.
This year I will also be thinking of the daughter that is not yet home. I will look at the same moon that hangs above her orphanage or foster home and hope that her needs are being met. And I will make a wish upon a star that she can soon join her family.
October 5th, 2006 at 8:57 am
RQ,
Tears are flowing. I think we will all be looking at the moon Friday with the same thoughts and feelings. Thank you for putting it into words.
October 5th, 2006 at 9:08 am
Please don’t think I am a horrible mother to be of a daughter of Chinese descent…but, I can’t find moon cakes or moon pies. I checked our local Wal-marts section of Asian food..and NOpe. Can someone help? PLEASE don’t tell me that I have to bake them…I’m not very good at baking…BUT I will try!
October 5th, 2006 at 9:13 am
RQ, I will wish upon a star that your daughter and all of our daughters will soon join our families. One day, maybe we could have a Rumor Queen reunion and bring our girls/boys. Now wouldn’t that be a blast, we could all wear purple and white. Enjoy this day.
October 5th, 2006 at 9:13 am
3tsmom, You can order them from chinasprout.com. I’ve never tried one, but someday, I would like to.
October 5th, 2006 at 9:14 am
Moon Cakes can be found at Asian bakeries and sometimes at Asian grocery stores. If you don’t live near a large city then it will probably be best to order them and have them shipped to you.
October 5th, 2006 at 9:19 am
jfkof3 – an RQ reunion some day would be a wonderful thing!
October 5th, 2006 at 9:59 am
RQ, thanks so much for posting this. We are awaiting (SN)TA for our daughter, and her first birthday is October 6th. We will definitely be thinking of our little girl waiting for her forever family, and thankful that this will be her last birthday and moon festival without us!Also thinking of her birth mom, and wondering how she is feeling and praying she knows her daughter is already loved and planted in our hearts, half-way across the world.
October 5th, 2006 at 10:05 am
RQ, I am rolling about the moon pies. Now I know what you mean when talking about moon pies. You are So right about the moon pie being a southern thing. We used to live in the south…and while we were there my DH ran a large grocery there and he could not get over how fast moon pies sold! LOL! He just could not get over it! We have never tried them, so unless I find an Asian store real soon…we will be having moon pies. I cannot NOT stop giggiling about the moon pies!
October 5th, 2006 at 10:07 am
Here I thought moon pies were some secret recipe! Even though my hair all sorts of shades…I was born a natural blond!! LOL
October 5th, 2006 at 10:08 am
RQ,
We also celebrate with Moon Cakes and Moon Pies! As military brats both my dh and I have very fond memories of moon pies. No matter where we moved in the states or overseas, my mom would bring home moonpies as a treat from the commissary. Happy Moon Festival! Look for the rabbit in the moon too.
October 5th, 2006 at 10:10 am
LOL, that’s why I figured I should include a picture so you’d know what I was talking about.
October 5th, 2006 at 10:13 am
grover – it’s nice to know we aren’t the only family that does the Moon Pie thing.
October 5th, 2006 at 10:19 am
here is a guy who was really moved by what you posted RQ.
the DW and I have talked about celebrating the mid-autumn festival as well as CNY of course. we’ve talked about what kinds of things we can do and how our daughter and us will celebrate with family and friends. since family is such an intergral part of Chinese culture, and as we’ve all discussed the past day or so, family needing to be a big foundation in our children’s lives: reading what you wrote RQ really hit home. that was awesome and thank you.
October 5th, 2006 at 10:31 am
Oh my, I had to laugh about the moonpies. We attended our locall FCC Autumn Moon Festival the other night and it was a little chilly and drizzly. I had our little girl all cutie-fied up even though it seemingly appears she is going to be a tomboy. At one point in the evening she was stomping around in a puddle and munching away on her moonpie! I am still kicking myself for not taking a photo of that! We had also purchased a mooncake but she told us “NoLikeDat”.
October 5th, 2006 at 10:51 am
RQ -
Thanks for the beautiful words about Mid Autumn Festival and the very interesting info about what is going on in China. Last year at Mid Autumn Fest, we were paperchasing & my dh and I went out to see the giant, beautiful moon and I thought of our daughter and how that we were under the same big moon. Even though I think of her all the time, I feel especially close to her when the moon is full each month. It’s hard to believe that it’s been a year since our paperchase… I remember last year thinking that she would be here for this year’s festival.. but as for many of us the wait continues.
I am a southern girl too and love Moon Pies… they were a staple of my diet when I was a little kid and my grandmother still has them at her house for me when we visit. Banana are my favorite!!!
October 5th, 2006 at 11:03 am
Any excuse to eat a moonpie without that tinge of guilt works for me. Pure sugar, pure delight.
October 5th, 2006 at 11:05 am
Simply beautiful,I will do the same
October 5th, 2006 at 11:13 am
Thanks, RQ, for expressing what so many of us are feeling. And throwing in that bit about moon pies is too funny. Even though my “baby” is nearly 3, I’m still wondering whatinthehecko a moon cake is (ingredients).
October 5th, 2006 at 11:30 am
I’ve posted some mooncake recipes in the forum for anyone interested!
October 5th, 2006 at 11:40 am
This will be the first year in several years that I will be in the US and not in China for the Mid Autumn Moon Festival. I do not like mooncakes so I’ll be skipping those (maybe I should try a moon pie – never had one), but will enjoy the evening with my daughter and my FCC friends!
October 5th, 2006 at 11:41 am
Hi everyone,
I don’t post very often, but I just wanted to thank RQ for posting this information, her family traditions, and sentimental thoughts.
Recently a Chinese friend gave us a gift box of 12 tiny moon cakes. The box/packaging is beautiful. He said that they were from Hong Kong. Inside there were 4 cakes w/a pineapple filling, 4 w/ a strawberry filling, and (my personal favorite) 4 cakes w/lotus seed paste and a salted duck egg center. I know that the duck egg thing sounds strange, but it’s delicious. Coconut is another good one.
This is just a cute little story that happened to my husband and I.
Last year we went to Chinatown (Philly) the weekend of the Harvest Moon Celebration. We missed the actual celebration by one day, but the streets were still busy with shoppers and the moon cakes were still available at the bakeries. We went into a bakery to purchase some moon cakes. We figured it must have been the best, because the line was out the door. When we got to the counter/display case the sales woman (with a very thick Chinese accent) asked how she could help us. We told her that we wanted to buy some moon cakes. She asked what kind. Well we didn’t know. We had never had them before. All of the signs in front of the trays of cakes were written in Chinese. (The outer parts of the cakes all look the same, just with different fillings. There are raised Chinese characters on top of the cakes that say what the fillings are.) Anyway, we just pointed to a tray and asked what kind they were. We couldn’t understand hardly anything the woman was saying. So we would just answer, “Yes, one of those please.†It didn’t matter. We just wanted to experience all of it! When we got to the last tray the woman said it was red bean. We finally understood her. So we both acknowledged back, “Red Bean!†The woman with her thick accent said, “No – red bean.†Once again we said, “Red bean.†She said, “No – Red Bean.†We did one more round of Red Bean, trying to let her know that her English was good and we knew what she was saying before we finally said, “One, please.†It would have made a good “Seinfeld†episode! We were on such a high. We had just finished out paper chase, had sent all of our paperwork to be translated, and were waiting to hear of our dossier arriving in China. We just enjoy being in the environment, interacting with the people, and my husband (who has now been studying this past year) gets the opportunity to practice his Mandarin. Everyone in the shops and restaurants has been very receptive to him speaking in Mandarin. He is doing really well.
We won’t be able to make it into Chinatown this weekend, but I highly recommend it. We certainly don’t need a reason to go to Chinatown, though we do plan to go next weekend Oct. 14th to mark our one-year LID anniversary. Who would have ever imagined!
Enjoy the Harvest Moon everyone!!
NoGuanxi
October 5th, 2006 at 11:46 am
i have a request…
can anyone (or RQ) point me in the direction to where I can find when the holidays fall next year? is there something out there that says for 2007…CNY begins on ‘this’ day, dragonboat festival is on ‘this’ day, mid-autumn is on ‘this’ day.?
thanks
October 5th, 2006 at 11:54 am
TG – a quick google turned up this Hong Kong page, the days should be the same as on the mainland
http://www.info.gov.hk/info/holiday_e.htm
October 5th, 2006 at 11:58 am
RQ- thanks. have been wanting to find a good reliable source and haven’t had the time to find it yet. lol
of course I guess I could have checked with our agency as well.. huh?! DUH.
:)
October 5th, 2006 at 12:55 pm
Rumor Queen,
I am still in the paperchase and hoping that you will continue your blog after your adoption is completed. It is full of hope and good information.
October 5th, 2006 at 1:03 pm
DH and I went to San Francisco a few years ago. One of the bakeries in Chinatown had moon cakes. We bought one and tried it. It wasn’t bad. I plan to order them starting next year when we will have our child home (surely by then). :o)
Moon Pies, now they’re awesome. I rarely ate them when I lived in the South (the majority of my life), but find I miss them now. I’ll usually buy one at a gas station stop on our way south to visit my family. I’ve seen some knock-offs around here, but not the original as depicted in the posted photo.
October 5th, 2006 at 1:31 pm
Fine, RQ, makes us cry why don’t you!!!
Happy moon festival, everyone!
October 5th, 2006 at 2:34 pm
Thanks RQ for sharing your family tradition with us, it makes me realize how much I already love this little peanut that I don’t even know yet. I too will be looking up and thinking of my child on Oct 6th.
Hope everyone gets a chance to enjoy the autumn moon and moon pies. Thanks again RQ.
LID Late March 06
October 5th, 2006 at 3:10 pm
NoGuanxi
You make me long for my Philly Chinatown days oh so long ago. Used to work downtown and eat Chinese food at least 3X aweek. Loved Sang Kee on 9th St. and Joe’s Peking Duck House on Race St (though I understand he doesn’t cook there/own it anymore) and Mai Lai Wah which stayed open late. MMMMmmmm.
Don’t get me wrong, I truly love Vermont, but decent Chinese foood? Feh. Only a couple places and they tend to be pricey. So i have to *settle* for maple syrup, apple cider, sugar on snow parties and the occasional smoked trout. Life is tough. ;o)
October 5th, 2006 at 3:12 pm
RQ- Thank you for the information regarding the Mid Autumn Festival. Your thoughts about the moon really hit hard this afternoon. I was in tears by the time I was done reading. The length of this wait has been longer than anyone could have ever imagined. Thanks to your realistic attitude and advice – I have managed to cope day to day. Thanks again, you are soo appreciated!
October 5th, 2006 at 3:35 pm
I live in Moon Pie city, Chattanooga, and I’ve never been a big fan. My teenage daughter works at a local grocery store and she was surprised at how many people buy them. I guess I’ll give them another try tomorrow night since I don’t have a moon cake. :)
DTC 9/15/05
LID 10/21/05
October 5th, 2006 at 4:06 pm
pettrout – Sang Kee (Duck House) is one of our favorites too! It’s one of those places that (on the weekends) always has a long line waiting. People will wait outside in the rain or snow, it’s that good. We also enjoy going to Chinatown for dim sum on a Sunday morning. For anyone in the Philly area, Ocean Harbor on Race St. is excellent for dim sum. All this talk is making me hungry for some dumpings!
And moon cakes!
October 5th, 2006 at 5:31 pm
We are celebrating the Autumn Moon Festival…my daughter’s name is AUTUMN so I feel even more special about the holiday. :)
We are meeting about 25 friends and family at a local Chinese restaurant…it has more authentic Chinese food than most places and specializes in dumplings.
Then we will all caravan to our house were we will enjoy moon cakes, chinese tea, and pomelos. An adult will read the story of Chang-O. Then, we will have a little parade over to the pond to gaze at the moon and send out our prayers/wishes. The children will carry lanterns with glow sticks inside.
I’m going to have to add Moon Pies to the menu now. What a GREAT idea.
I’m curious about something I haven’t been able to find on-line. There is a tradition of placing the rinds of the Pomelo (citrus fruit similar to grapefruit) on top of your head. I can’t find any significance to this and I’m wondering if I’ll be able to convince anyone to do it. :)
I bought various flavors of the moon pies. I’m told the Red Bean Paste is best and to avoid the ones with Durin (stinky but sweet fruit). Authentic moon cakes have an egg yolk in the center which symbolizes the moon. I found the Pomelos and moon cakes at Hong Kong market. I tried some Chinese bakeries but they didn’t make them fresh and the selection was limited and pricey.
I look forward to adding the celebration of this wonderful holiday to our family traditions.
sasha
October 5th, 2006 at 5:45 pm
I cannot wait to share these new and wonderful traditions…
It will be so special to celebrate with our daughter, family and friends. We all be learning the holidays and their significance together!!!
So many blessings from China on the horizon – a beautiful baby girl, an adopted country, culture, new holidays and traditions to share…
…I too will be looking at the moon tomorrow night and feeling the pull of China….the red thread.
October 5th, 2006 at 11:36 pm
I am Chinese, not to say I am an authrity, all the same. …but I may know a thing or two about the moon festival. I usually buy mooncakes in Chinatown, but this year…I found them at Costco!!! But as my mom informed me a while back, the best moon cakes are the ones made in North America, not in China or HK.
My daughter and I have polished off many a moon cake already this year…we started feasting in mid-September and have not stopped…what can I say..It is a bit of an acquired taste. …I acquired the taste early in life. The fillings do vary…in my view the best are the ones filled with lotus bean paste. The red bean paste filled are good, but the best are the lotus bean. You can buy the mooncakes without the duck egg yolks too. As a child I preferred yolkless ones…but as an adult…I prefer to see the moon in my cakes. BTW: the moonless cakes are less expensive. …I Re: celebrations and dates of Chinese holidays…Chinese follow the lunar calendar…no chinese holiday has a “fixed” date. – Happy feasting!
October 7th, 2006 at 10:19 am
Hi All,
What a beautiful moon last night – reminded me of Cosmo’s moon in one of my favorite movies Moonstruck.
My husband read a book titled Moon Lake to our son and niece. It had nothing to do with China or the Moon Festival but I was going with a theme. The book has foil stamping in it so I just thought it was pretty.
We lit sparklers in honor of our little girl and all the little girls waiting for their forever families. We even looked for the Rabbit – it made this whole process seem real again.
Jo-Anne