![]() Under the new schedule that comes to effect as of 2008, the number of annual holidays rises from ten to 11. Their efforts have been largely ineffective, however.China’s travel industry insiders are still coming to grips with the country’s new public holiday schedule, re-emphasizing traditional festivals at the expense of the former week-long May Day celebration, the affect of which are still to be determined. ![]() This has led campaigners to press the government to promote environmentally friendly mooncake packaging. The packaging, which far exceeds that which is necessary, mostly ends up in the city’s landfills, which are nearly full. As Mid-Autumn approaches, individuals and businesses indulge as much as HK$10,000 (US$1,200) on luxurious, lavishly packaged mooncakes to offer as gifts. In recent years, mooncakes have become associated with modern-day excess. One legend puts them centre stage in an uprising under the Yuan dynasty (AD1271–1368).Īccording to the legend, Han Chinese revolutionaries smuggled messages inside mooncakes to orchestrate an uprising against their Mongolian rulers. New varieties come along every year.Īlthough origin stories of the mooncake vary, historians generally agree that they first appeared during China’s Tang dynasty (AD618–907). These days, there are thousands of mooncake varieties – with fillings including red bean, minced pork, green tea, fruit, custard and even ice cream. The quintessential food of the Mid-Autumn “Moon” Festival is the mooncake, a dense pastry traditionally made of lotus seed paste and salted duck egg yolk. Having been cancelled in 20 because of social distancing rules to curb the spread of Covid-19, the dragon dance was again suspended in 2022, for the third consecutive year. The event has been inscribed on a national list of intangible cultural heritage. In 1880, so the legend goes, Tai Hang suffered a plague that was dispelled only after villagers made a dragon from straw, covered it with lit joss sticks and paraded it around the village. In the 19th century Tai Hang was a poor fishing village populated by people of the Hakka minority. The fire dragon dance can feature up to 300 performers, who parade a dragon made of straw stuck with glowing incense sticks through the narrow streets of Tai Hang village, on Hong Kong Island near Causeway Bay. That idea of celebrating together imbues the festival in Hong Kong, where the Monday following Mid-Autumn Festival is a public holiday, giving families a three-day weekend to fully appreciate the coming and going of the full moon. “May we live long and share the beauty of the moon together, even if we are hundreds of miles apart.” Song dynasty Chinese poet Su Shi wrote of the festival: When picturing Mid-Autumn Festival, most think of sharing mooncakes – the sweet snack synonymous with the festival – but as the lanterns begin to hang anew, the Post explores the festival beyond the food and decorations. It is celebrated on the night when the moon is at its fullest and brightest – on the 15th day of the eighth month in the lunar calendar. The glow of lanterns, savoury and sweet mooncakes, and a beaming full moon will mark celebrations for the second biggest Chinese holiday of the year, Mid-Autumn Festival, on September 10.Īcross many cultures, celebrating the harvest is of great importance, but no harvest festival comes with such a history and collection of tales as the Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival. The second biggest Chinese holiday of the year is celebrated with the giving of mooncakes, family dinners of seasonal autumn foods and, in one corner of Hong Kong, a fire dragon dance. How Mid-Autumn Festival is celebrated, from mooncakes to lanterns
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