During our stay in Tianjin there have been two different holidays
celebrated with a “bang” …. fireworks that is.
Fireworks are used to celebrate about everything it seems and are set
off at any time of the day. There are
many weddings outside our hotel and all weekend long fireworks are set off in
celebration.
The Festival of the Moon and National Day were both
celebrated this fall and enjoyed by everyone just like we enjoy holidays in the US ; time off work, great food and
celebration with family. During the
Festival of the Moon one tradition is to give moon cakes as gifts to family and
friends. There are many different kinds
of fillings from traditional red bean to the more exotic tiramisu. They are sold everywhere with hotels and
bakeries taking orders months ahead of time and are sold by the thousands. Making and sharing
moon cakes is one of the hallmark traditions of this festival as in the Chinese culture the round shape
symbolizes completeness and unity.
I never did get to eat a moon cake during the festival however
one of the translators that Greg is
working with recently brought us homemade moon cakes made by her mother and they are wonderful. They are rich, dense, have a fig like filling and are extremely addicting. I have been nibbling on them constantly for two weeks.
The Moon festival seems to have several different stories behind it. My favorite story is an ancient
fable from the Zhuang people saying the
sun and moon are a couple and the stars are their children. When the moon
is pregnant it becomes round and then becomes crescent after giving birth to
a child.
Next time you are staring at a
full moon know that she is pregnant and about to give the world one more star.
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