The Mid-Autumn Festival or Moon Festival is held on the 15th day, August of the Lunar calendar, placing the holiday in either September or early October. This year the festival will be on September 24th, 2018.It has evolved into an event with both cultural and commercial value.
The Mid-Autumn or ‘Trung Thu’ Festival is associated with the legend of Cuoi, a popular Vietnamese fairy tale that explains the origin of the festival.
According to the legend, a man named Cuoi was very famous because he owned a magic banyan tree that could cure any illness. Cuoi’s wife got angry because Cuoi seemed to love the tree more than her so one day when Cuoi was out treating a sick neighbour, she poured dirty water on the roots of the tree, which made it leave the ground. Cuoi suddenly returned at that very moment to see the tree fly up to the sky. He tried to grab it but failed to pin it down and was taken up to the moon, where he lives together with his tree to this day. That’s why every year children light lanterns and take part in processions on the day of the festival to show Cuoi the way back to Earth!
In Vietnam, there are many traditional activities for both adults and children during the festival including lion dances performed by both trained professional groups and amateurs. On the occasion of the festival, parents buy their children rattles, drums and star lanterns. Many children also take great interest in traditional paper toys, lion heads and masks of animals from old tales, as well as modern battery-run plastic ships or tanks with remote controls.
The tradition of the Mid-Autumn festival is reflected in the way the children play games. They carry beautifully ornate lanterns while singing and parading along the streets in a candlelight procession at dawn. The candles represent brightness and the procession symbolizes success in school. The lanterns come in different sizes and shapes such as fish and butterflies. There are also spinning lanterns in which candles can be inserted to represent the sun surrounded by the earth. Hang Ma street in downtown Hanoi is renowned for such Mid-Autumn festival toys.
Mid-Autumn Festival parties in the evening are a good opportunity for children to enjoy the festive food and also learn things from their parents such as how to make the party attractive. The whole family will enjoy the feast in a cozy, sacred atmosphere.
Below are the activities to enjoy the Mid-Autumn Festival of teachers and students from Iris Preschool:
“Thằng Cuội” song – performed by students of Iris Gia Hòa Campus
Making Moon-cake
