Trung Thu

Vietnamese children look forward to the 15th day of the 8th lunar month, when they celebrate Trung Thu, a mid-fall festival commemorating the moon at its brightest and most beautiful. Traditionally, the festival also marked the end of harvest, and parents who had been hard at work in the fields enjoyed spending extra time with their children and lavishing gifts on them.

The children wear colorful masks and dance in the streets with star lanterns that are illuminated by candles. The lanterns, which are made out of bamboo and plastic, represent the moon.

The children also feast on moon cakes. Shaped like fish or flowers, the sweet cakes are filled with sugar and meat or eggs.

During Trung Thu, Vietnamese also remember relatives who have died. They light incense and burn fake money as tributes to them.