The Mid-Autumn Festival is not a big thing in Singapore. Besides the Chinese Garden, The Gardens by the Bay is another venue celebrating the Mid-Autumn festival. There might be a few other communities in the heartlands also celebrating the Mid-Autumn festival too. But there are on a much smaller scale.
In the Gardens by the Bay, there were lantern displays, market place, and stage performances. It will be a very busy evening tonight, after being a muted affair in the past couple of years, due to the pandemic. On top of that, today’s a weekend.
I was in the vicinity of the gardens two afternoons ago. So I dropped by to have a look at some of the displays. They looked rather plain in the day, but I am sure, when they are lit up in the evening, they will look very different.
Here are some pictures of the displays. There is a sign explaining the theme behind each of the bigger lantern displays. I have included them with the pictures.
Food stalls for you to grab a bite, or a drink if you are in need of one.
The Colours of Daily life – something about “looking forward to a joyful daily life in a post-pandemic world”.
Five Blessings -
In Chinese culture, tigers are believed to ward off evil and protect people. This colourful lantern display of five tigers is inspired by the traditional craftsmanship of cloth tiger-making, where each tiger is designed to represent a different blessing: Joy – Health – Love – Longevity – Peace
Joyous Reunion
The Mid-Autumn Festival is one of the important traditional Chinese festivals where families gather to enjoy lantern walks, moon-cakes and appreciate the beauty of the moon. On this night, the full moon appears at its brightest and largest, and just like the roundness of the moon-cake, symbolises reunion.
Colonnade of Lights
The Colonnade of Lights is a vibrant showcase of some 1,000 beautiful paper lanterns created by the community. Get up close with these colourful lanterns, designed and hand-painted by people from various walks of life as you enjoy a stroll along the Colonnade. Be sure to snap a photo with your favourite lanterns!
Flight to the Phoenix
Inspired by the Chinese mythological story of ‘Flight to the Phoenix’ this display showcases hundreds of birds soaring towards the phoenix, in honour of its generosity during a drought.
Legend has it that the Phoenix was an ordinary and inconspicuous bird with a plain appearance, who tirelessly foraged and stored food for times of crises. Later, an unexpected drought left many birds without any food to eat. The Phoenix generously shared its food with them, and saved them from starvation. To show their gratitude, the birds pulled out their most beautiful feathers, and together they made a dazzling garment, presented it to the phoenix and crowned him their king. From then on, the birds pay homage to the Phoenix every year.
School children in the gardens. It’s the school holidays. I guess this must be a school excursion.
One for the memory. A place for those who want to take a picture to remember the occasion.
