Darling Square Moon Festival 2020: Bringing light and colour to a crazy year
While 2020 didn’t pan out how many may have planned, the City of Sydney wants to bring some colour and culture to our lives as the year begins to draw to a close. Until Sunday October 11, every day from 8am to 11pm, the Darling Square Moon Festival is on.
The Mid-Autumn Festival or Moon Festival is celebrated in many East Asian communities. Traditionally if falls on the 15th of the eighth month in the Chinese lunar calendar, which is September or early October in the Gregorian calendar.
The Moon Festival is the second most important festival in China, after Chinese New Year. Many celebrate this festival by gathering for dinner with family and friends, and lighting paper lanterns.
The Moon Festival dates back to 2000 years ago when Chinese Emperors prayed to Heaven for a prosperous year. Each year the emperor would offer a sacrifice to the moon.
The custom of offering sacrifices to the moon has been replaced by celebrating the Festival with family and friends. This can be done through moon-viewing parties, sitting in gardens lit by paper lanterns with family and friends, and eating mooncakes.
Darling Square has embraced this Chinese Tradition and is holding the Moon Festival, and encourages the public to come out, as this is a time to celebrate love and happiness.
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Walk amongst hundreds of colourful lanterns lighting up the pathway at night. You can make a wish with your very own handheld lantern, available for purchase for $5 from selected retailers, with proceeds going to ‘The Haymarket Foundation’, supporting locals in need.
No Festival would be complete without food, so enjoy over 40 cuisines, some of which include;
- Limited edition mooncakes and Yum-Cha at XOPP
- Mooncakes and Authentic Shanghainese Feasts at Lilong by Taste of Shanghai
- Limited edition Tsukimi Dango at IIKO Mazesoba
- Hello Auntie’s Takeaway Special Banh Mi Kem
Darling Square Moon Festival is a COVID-safe event that is held outdoors, providing plenty of space for physical distancing.
To find out more about Darling Square Moon Festival Click HERE
