This past Saturday shoppers and visitors took part in a Mid Autumn Moon Festival at the Henderson Shopping Mall. The event was well attended by a predominantly Chinese-Canadian crowd. If you don’t normally visit this mall, you should add the event to your To Do list next year. Children had their faces painted; received a twisted balloon of their choosing; jumped in a large bouncy castle for as long as they wanted; had a calligraphy picture made for them; and, made lanterns. Parents and children watched the cultural shows on the main stage including musical performances and dancing, and buy goodies at the Maxim’s bakery.
Kristal from Faceaballonza operated the face painting booth. One glance at her dazzling array of makeup colours confirmed that this was going to be a memorable face painting session. The lineup was remarkably short considering how long you have to wait for face painting at other events. The results were outstanding and onlookers couldn’t help but notice how gentle Kristal is as she works with the children. If you are looking to hire a face painting artist for your event or private function, do check out the Faceaballoonza website. She works at birthday parties, special events, picnics, open houses, year end parties, carnivals and fairs and grand openings.
Kristal’s brother was twisting balloons of various shapes on request for the children. His Spiderman balloon matched the Spiderman face Kristal did as did the flower balloon and the flower painting. Kristal also twists balloons.
The calligraphy booth featured an artist creating detailed images of a fish, birds and butterflies. The finished piece could be framed and displayed during Mid Autumn Festival or throughout the year. If you or your children are interested to learn the art of calligraphy or Chinese brush painting, his father operates an art workshop where he teaches art, pencil drawing, Shiwan ceramics and Chinese calligraphy and brush painting.
The renowned Lorita Leung Dance Academy dancers performed on the main stage. Their presentation was an important reminder that opportunities to study dance traditions help Canadian youth to learn more about their heritage. This dance academy is located in Richmond; however, you can find other dance academies that teach Chinese dancing around the Lower Mainland.
The Mid Autumn MoonFestival takes place this week. If you live in the Lower Mainland, Victoria or a larger urban centre, check out the celebrations in a local business or mall that caters to Chinese Canadian customers. The festival is a sweet and fun way to kick of the autumn season.
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Celebrate the Mid Autumn Moon season with a visit to Aberdeen Mall, Richmond Centre Mall , Landsdowne Mall and the International Centre Mall downtown. You can also find Mid Autumn products such as moon cakes and decorations at T&T grocery stores and in China Town.
Fly Me To The Moon – Mid Autumn Moon Festival
If you would like to catch Kristal at a public event, check out her events page on her website.
Faceballoonza on Facebook.
If you haven’t been to Henderson Mall it’s worth a visit. (Despite the fact that there are a number of empty stores.) The gift store sells Sanrio products that might make you squeal and there are restaurants and other services worth checking out. See these tips on Yelp.
Video featuring the traditions and history of traditional Chinese dancing. (Mandarin language.)
Here’s another example of how much fun you can having learning dance traditions from other countries. This is a video featuring traditional dancing from the Philippines (tinikling) set to Michael Jackson’s music. It’s a must see!
Video featuring the Lorita Leung Dance Academy
Wow, that looks like so much fun! I wished I’d known, it’s walking distance from where I live.
Hi, Salma, In order to get a passport, you have to have a receipt acquired within a certain amount of weeks that is for a minimum of $30 purchase. For us we had a restaurant receipt and one from the gift shop. You could also use one from the grocery store. It’s something to plan for in the weeks leading up to the event.