Moon Cakes

Of course, just like the US Thanksgiving, it’s full of lots of food!  Moon cakes are one of the most popular treats during the festival.  They are a round semi-sweet pastry, filled with all sorts of goodies from savory to sweet, and they sort of resemble the moon.  You may find yourself waiting in very long lines to buy moon cakes, but they’re worth the effort.

San Francisco’s Chinatown Autumn Moon Festival will be held the weekend of September 19 – 20th, 2009, 11 am – 6 pm daily.  During the Moon Festival, Grant Avenue in Chinatown will be closed to automobile traffic, and the street will turn into a big bazaar, full of shopping, entertainment, arts and crafts, activities,  lots of food, and teeming with life.  There is no charge to visit the festival, and if you’ll be in town, it’s a fabulous cultural experience.

Some other related Moon Festival events include:

Moon Festival Photo Contest – As a way to encourage people to take lots of photos, this amateur only contest is simple to enter.  Fill out a Moon Festival photo contest registration form, and snap away.  Top prize is $500.  More details are available from the Chinatown Photographic Society.

Autumn Moon Film Festival – A new feature this year, the mini film festival will be held at the Four Seas Restaurant (731 Grant Avenue), both days.  Check out the viewing schedule and see if there’s something that interests you.  It’s a great opportunity for film buffs, and also a nice break in an otherwise busy festival day.

Follow the Moon Festival on Twitter @SFCMA.

Photo credit: miss karen @flickr

Post from: Blisstree

Celebrate Autumn Moon Festival in San Francisco’s Chinatown

Today, we get to celebrate Chinese New Year. I thought it would be fun to have Chinese food, but I didn’t want to make my favorite restaurant deliver on a special holiday, so I hunted around for some delicious recipes.

Let’s start with Chinese style green beans from Busy Family Meals. Mmm. I love these beans. The key is to make sure you don’t overcook them. The best way to eat this dish is with very crisp beans.

Next, let’s move on to Chinese dumplings from Noodles and Rice. Not as good as the entire Dim Sum experience, but still a delicious little treat.

These Chinese Fried Noodles from Nook and Pantry sound heavenly.

Do you have a favorite recipe? I’m always up for more Chinese food adventures.

By the way, 2009 is the Year of the Ox. I couldn’t come up with a good ox craft, but DLTK Kids has an ox related craft and other Chinese New Year kids’ crafts.

Photo by Miguel Ugalde

Post from: Blisstree

Happy Chinese New Year

August 31 is Merdeka Day, the national independence day, in Malaysia. It celebrates the proclamation on August 31, 1957 that gave the Federation of Malaya independence from Britain. It wouldn’t be until 1963 (and the breaking off of Singapore into a separate state) before Malaysia, the country, would come into being.

Merdeka Day is celebrated with parades, music, and the showing of the flag. Above is the 2008 celebration in downtown Kuala Lumpur.

Whether Malaysia is as free as it could be is open to debate. Read more about this on b5media’s blog about Malaysia, “The Kuala Lumpur Traveler.”

Post from: Blisstree

Merdeka Day

August 12 is a national holiday in Thailand. It’s Queens Day as well as mother’s day, a day that celebrates the birth of the country’s Queen Sirikit Kitiyakara (pictured above) as well as mothers throughout Thailand.

Queen Sirikit is a much-loved sovereign in this constitutional monarch and the wife of King Rama IX. This will be her 76th birthday.

Post from: Blisstree

Queen’s Day in Thailand

August 9 is National Day in Singapore. The day marks the anniversary to that country’s independence from Malaysia in 1965. The biggest event on National Day is the National Day Parade, a huge event that includes military presentation, parachutists, musicians, dancers, and all sorts of displays. NDP 2008 is being held at Marina Bay as was last year’s event (pictured above) and is expected to draw more than 100,000 spectators.

^{(photo © waycool27/cc license)}

Post from: Blisstree

Singapore National Day

We’ve been talking a lot lately about July 4th, but (of course) the United States holiday isn’t the only Independence Day that we’ve written about here at All Holiday Cafe…and we’ll be covering more (Bastille Day is coming July 14th). Below are just a few of our Independence Day posts:

Philippines Independence Day (June 12)

Italian Republic Day (June 2)

Texas Independence Day (March 2)

Lithuanian Independence Day (February 16)

Sri Lankan Independence Day (February 4)

Post from: Blisstree

Independence Days around the World

June 12 is Philippine Independence Day, a public holiday in that country. It commemorates that day that the Philippine “Declaration of Independence” was signed following the defeat of the Spanish army by Philippine revolutionary forces under General Emilio Aquinaldo (who would become the Philippines first president).

The date is marked by patriotic speeches and parades throughout the Philippines. In the United States, a large parade is held in New York City, a city with a large Filippino population.

b5media has a number of bloggers who live in the Philippines. I wish them and other Filippino readers a very happy Independence Day!

^{(photo © Newscom)}

Post from: Blisstree

Philippine Independence Day

Ruth at b5media’s “Let’s Visit Asia,” reminds us that May 19 is Vesak Day through the Buddhist countries of Asia. This day, sometimes called “Buddha’s Birthday,” celebrates the birth, enlightenment, and passing of Gautama Buddha.

To celebrate Buddhists assemble at their temples for services, hymns, and offerings of jost sticks and flowers.

^{(photo © Newscom)}

Post from: Blisstree

Vesak Day

Today, in Vietnam, the holiday is marked as a national holiday with festivals and feasts. In Vietnamese communities overseas, the day is generally marked as a somber day of reflection.

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Liberation Day in Vietnam

April 29 is Shōwa Day in Japan. It is the anniversary of the birth of the Emperor Shōwa (Hirohito), who reigned from 1926 until his death in 1989. Hirohito’s reign saw Japan move from a primarily rural country into an industrial power. He also oversaw the turbulent years of Japan’s involvement in World War II, the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and the subsequent occupation of Japan. Rather than a day to celebrate, Shōwa Day in Japan is a day to reflect on this troubled part of the nation’s history.

Shōwa Day also begins Golden Week in Japan, a week that includes Consitution Memorial Day (May 3), Greenery Day (May 4), and Children’s Day (May 5).

^{(photo of Hirohito’s coronation/Library of Congress Photo)}

Post from: Blisstree

Shōwa Day in Japan