LOS ANGELES, Sept. 15 (Xinhua) -- Americans and Asians all across Southern California enjoyed the traditional Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival celebrations over the weekend.
California played host to a plethora of events and activities, ranging from kid's mooncake baking parties and Chinese story times to neighborhood street festivals and high-art cultural performances at museums and universities.
The festival, which falls on the 15th day of the eighth month of the Chinese lunar calendar, or Sept. 13 this year, is one of the most important festivals in China, which features family reunions, watching the full moon while eating mooncakes together.
The Ni Hao Chinese Learning Foundation in Southern California on Friday hosted an event designed for parents and their kids to learn how to make mooncakes, and the traditions of the festival through stories.
On Saturday, the 6th annual Rosemead Moon Festival took place in Rosemead, California, presenting Asian crafts, products, and especially the mooncakes.
"We come every year and bring the kids. It's a fun way to spend the day, learn something new, and the kids love it," Manuel and Rosita, a local couple from Monterey Park, an East Los Angeles suburban city, told Xinhua.
Also on Saturday was the downtown Chinatown Mid-Autumn Festival, now celebrating its 81st year. The festival presented speeches by local officials and celebrities, and offered a chance for people to view the full moon through scientific telescopes.
"I'm always curious about how other cultures are related to the moon. It's a great festival, I'm glad I came," Tina G., a Pasadena resident, told Xinhua.
On Saturday evening, the University of California, Irvine (UCI) held a performance entitled "The Moon Represents My Heart," staging traditional Chinese songs and dances.
"We have a very strong China Studies program with a high Asian population, so we love to celebrate the culture of the entire Pacific Rim," Tracy A from the UCI told Xinhua.
The Denong Tea Tasting Club of Pasadena held a Chinese tea tasting event over the weekend, during which residents can enjoy tea and mooncakes.
A more high-brow Mid-Autumn Festival event is scheduled to take place at the Richard Nixon Library in Yerba Linda, California, on Sunday to enable visitors "to experience an outdoor reunion of friends and families under the moon."
U.S. search giant Google also honored the festival by changing its iconic search engine logo to feature moongazing Chinese folk and mooncakes.
