Hall-Reppens in Singapore: The Mid Autumn Festival in Chinatown

The Mid Autumn Festival happens on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month, coinciding with a full moon. In 2013, that happened on September 19th. Because that was a Thursday, the lantern parade was held the previous Sunday. I had bought 3 lanterns, and was all ready to go, but a persistent downfall and a devastating Badger loss had taken all the fun out of the event. Instead, I decided to venture to Chinatown on the day of the full moon.

According to my research, the 3 universal aspects of the Mid Autumn Festival are gathering, as in getting together with family, thanking for a bountiful harvest, and praying for good things for the coming year. Some families treat it much like American Thanksgiving, and some just have the kids walk around with their lanterns, imitating the light of the full moon.

Mooncakes are a traditional part of this celebration. A hard boiled egg yolk, symbolizing the full moon, is surrounded by a rich lotus paste cake, bearing Chinese symbols or pictures of the moon or other creatures. I read one article that likened mooncakes to American fruitcakes. They're a traditional part of the holiday, that must be exchanged, and some people love them, and some people hate them. Regifting them is a strong tendency! Speaking to many Singaporeans, most preferred them with no moon, or egg yolk, in the center. Some are made with double yolks, and cost more. There was one type that Rich was given, that had to be refrigerated. It was made with the traditional lotus paste, but the center, which looked like an egg yolk, was made from candy, and had fillings such as Baileys, champagne truffle, chocolate grenache, rum raisin, and mango. Rich ate one of those, but found the lotus paste too rich, so I was forced to eat the rest of them. They were minis, and I didn't think eating one a day was too bad, until Michelle's pilates teacher, Nadya, told me that 1/10th of one of those was a 90 calorie portion, and was all you should eat. Wow!!!

I headed to Chinatown at 6:30 on Thursday. After my experience at the Gardens by the Bay the previous evening, I knew it didn't pay to be early. As I walked past the food court, I noticed many more people gathering with friends to partake of a meal together. Unfortunately, I didn't know if this was unusual, because I'm usually home making our dinner at that time. I thought of accosting people and doing a reporter on the spot, to find out what they would do to celebrate the Mid Autumn Festival that evening. Two things prevented me from doing that. First, many Singaporeans are not sure what to make of me already, and, second, many people in Chinatown don't speak English as a first language. But, as I wandered around Chinatown, taking pictures of the thousands of lanterns, I noticed many people from many cultures doing the same thing.