The Mid-Autumn Festival is a big day for the overseas Chinese in the Philippines. When it arrives, Chinatown in Manila, the capital of the Philippines, is filled with an exciting and bustling atmosphere.
Various activities are held by the overseas Chinese to celebrate the festival, which lasts for two days. The main business blocks in the settlement of the overseas Chinese are decorated with lanterns and streamers. The main crossings and the bridges to Chinatown are covered in colorful fluttering streamers.
All kinds of mooncakes are sold in many stores. Some of them are made in Philippines, while others are imported from China. In addition, there are other interesting activities.
Various Parades — Exotic Chinese Customs
The celebrations include a dragon dance parade, an ethnic clothing parade, a lantern parade, and a float parade.
On the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, many people wearing ethnic clothing hold different shaped lanterns and walk along the streets. There is also a dragon dance parade and a float parade, which normally displays a lantern resemblign Chang'e, being a typical symbol of one of the Mid-Autumn Festival's legends.
Every year, it attracts lots of people who gather and enjoy the festival. The happy and joyful festival atmosphere pervades the old China town.
Pua Tiong Chiu — A Popular Dice Game
There is a popular activity called Pua Tiong Chiu (a dice game in the Hokkien dialect). It's peculiar to Chinese Filipinos, who play for mooncake prizes.
The game involves rolling six dice into a large bowl and winning prizes based dice combinations. Rolling 'fours' are especially good. To qualify for the largest piece of mooncake, rolling at least four 'fours' or five-of-a-kind is required.
The game is said to have originated in Fujian Province, China as most of the Chinese Filipinos are immigrants from south Fujian Province and took this tradition with them to the Philippines.
Want to share the Mid-Autumn Festival story with your family? The 3-minute video below will show you all about it.
