Mid-Autumn Festival is held on 15th day of the eighth lunar month to celebrate biggest full- moon in the year. In Vietnam, this festival is for children specially and children are center of all activities on that day.
In the occasion of Mid-autumn Festival, moon cakes are usually used as gifts of people to the others, especially their parents and grandparents. Vietnamese also put moon cakes and variety of fruits on ancestral altar to offer their ancestor. At night, all members of family will gather around a lavish tray of fruits and of course, moon cakes, and savor it together while admiring the full moon. The adults will teld kids the story about Ms. Hang Nga – beautiful daughter of the Jade Empire and Mr. Cuoi. Kids enjoy art performance all the night (including singing, plays, lion dances, drum performance, etc.) and then walk in a procession with colorful lanterns held in their hands. The procession will go through all streets in the area and light up the night.
Mid-autumn Festival emerged very early in Vietnam and has many distinct features. However, Mid-autumn in Vietnam also share similar features with other countries in the regions such as moon cakes, lion dances, lanterns, etc. On that occasion, everyone longs to hear the sound of drums and take part in procession. It’s a memorable experience in childhood of every Vietnamese child.