Bright moon, when was your birth?
Winecup in hand, I ask the deep blue sky;
Not knowing what year it is tonight
In those celestial palaces on high. I long to fly back one the wind,
Yet dread those crystal towers, those courts of jade,
Freezing to death among those icy heights!
Instead I rise to dance with my pale shadow;
Better off, after all, in the world of men.
Rounding the red pavilion,
Stooping to look through gauze windows,
She shines on the sleepless.
The moon should know no sadness;
Why, then, is she always full when dear ones are parted?
For men the grief of parting, joy of reunion,
Just as the moon wanes and waxes, is bright or dim:
Always some flaw-and so it has been since of old.
My one wish for you, is long life
And a share in this loveliness far, far away!

*This is a famous Mid-Autumn lyric written for his brother Zi-you(1039-1112) when the poet was away from the imperial court. According to some commentators, 'the palace on high' might allude to the imperial palace and therefore, after reading this lyric, Emperor Song Shen Zong said that Su Shi was loyal.

Image of the Mid-Autumn

Lantern                Pomelo

This story is about moon-cakes. During the Yuan dynasty (A.D. 1280-1368), China was ruled by the Mongolians. Leaders from the preceding Sung dynasty (A.D. 960-1280) were unhappy at submitting to the foreign rule, and set how to coordinate the rebellion without being discovered. The leaders of the rebellion, knowing that the Moon Festival was drawing near, ordered the making of special cakes. Backed into each moon-cake was a message of the attack. On the night of the Moon Festival, the rebels successfully attached and overthrew the government. Today, moon-cakes are eaten to commemorate this legend.

For generations, moon-cakes have been made with sweet fillings of nuts, mashed red beans, lotus-seed paste or Chinese dates, wrapped in a pastry. Sometimes a cooked egg yolk can be found in the middle of the rich tasting dessert. People compare moon-cakes to the plum pudding and fruitcakes, which are served in the English holiday seasons. Nowadays, there are hundreds varieties of moon-cakes on sale a month before the arrival of Moon Festival.