The Mid-Autumn Festival, which is every Oct. 4, celebrates family, community and giving thanks in the Chinese culture. The holiday typically falls on a full moon and is commemorated with eating traditional Chinese pastries called mooncakes and solving riddles.
Chinese Student Association
When she sat in the Reitz Union for the Mid-Autumn Festival on Saturday night, Grace Li felt at home.
The student from China said the Chinese Student Association’s annual festival was the only place she found that was celebrating the holiday.
“Every year I come here,” said Li, a 26-year-old UF electrical engineering sophomore.
This year, Li brought a friend she met through the International Friendship organization to experience the festivities and share a mooncake with her.
The CSA’s president, Yifei Liu, 22, said the Mid-Autumn Festival is comparable to Thanksgiving. She said it’s a time to bring everyone in your family together in unity and share a mooncake.
“That’s like the traditional food,” she said. “Just like you eat turkey for Thanksgiving.”
During the show, students performed a ballet duet, hip-hop routines, live music on traditional Chinese instruments and ballads sung in Chinese.
Liu, a UF mathematics senior, said since many CSA students aren’t from the U.S. and can’t celebrate with their family, they come to the festival to celebrate with friends.
“We feel very happy that we can provide them a place to be together with their friends and their classmates here to celebrate this awesome festival.”
Savannah Lai, the director of public relations for the association and a UF biological engineering junior, said Mid-Autumn Festival is one of the biggest Chinese traditional festivals. It’s an event the CSA holds annually, but this year the organization reached out to other communities.
“So we’re not only inviting a lot of people from the Chinese community, we also invite a lot of people who’s like outside of the Chinese community,” the 21-year-old said. “We’re trying to bring people in and share our culture to them.”
Yucai Chinese School
Yuquin Weng and her son, Yanjun, worked on a riddle together.
It didn’t matter to Yuquin Weng what the puzzle was about — she was happy to spend time with her son.
“It is all about family being together,” said Xiaoman Wang, an event organizer.
Weng was one of about 20 people who participated in Mid-Autumn Festival activities at Yucai Chinese School, located at 4426 SW 35th Terrace, on Sunday from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. Although the holiday isn’t for another three days, participants ate mooncakes and solved riddles that were written on the wall and on orange and pink lanterns. The lanterns were donated from the CSA event, Wang said.
Children who attend the Chinese school, like Yanjun, ran around the common room and enthusiastically ate traditional Chinese candies from a buffet table of treats. There were about six varieties of candy.
On Oct. 4, Weng will be at her parent’s house. Weng said she visits her parent’s home every year and shares a meal with them.
“The most important (of the holiday) is that the family will all stay to eat and drink together and talk with each other,” she said.
The Chinese Student Association Dance Team presents a dance that portrays a legend involving a tragic love story and alludes to the origin of the Mid-Autumn festival.
Traditional Chinese music pours over the audience as members of the Chinese Student Association create the melodies on their instruments. "This festival and the traditions in the gala is how we celebrate the holiday and bring the Chinese community closer to each other," said Savannah Rai, the public relations representative for the CSA.
