LOOKS LIKE ULSTER, BUT ISN'T

(Top Left: Chinese get mad for it; Centre Left: a moon; Bottom Left: a red lantern raised.)

This is a sort of Chinese Christmas - except that they celebrate Christmas as well. The moon features heavily in Chinese celebrations, and this one is the most important new moon outside of Chinese New Year.

It's held on the 18th September because it's the 15th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar. Clear? Excellent.

Why they call it Mid-Autumn Festival when it's still 30C outside and the leaves are all on the trees I don't quite know.

Anyway, families get together for meals, and then go to a favourite place - in this case Hung Shing Ye (Picnic Beach) on Lamma, and light lanterns and have a midnight picnic.

And a jolly good thing it is too - apart from their special festival treat, the mooncake. This is a bit like a sweet scotch egg filling inside a sweet pork pie crust, if you can imagine that.

The mooncake tradition is in honour of 14th century Chinese, who used them to pass vital messages around when they were launching a rebellion against Mongol invaders. The Mongols didn't eat mooncakes, and were unaware of the subterfuge.

Frankly, I'm with the Mongols on this one. Mooncakes are pretty ropey, and are frequently offered to long noses such as myself, as gifts. I have a sneaking feeling the Chinese know we can't stand the taste. I now have a fridge full of the buggers.

The first stray dog to come near the house is going to get a REAL treat.

The reason for lighting the lanterns is hilarious yet extraordinarily mundane at the same time, so send me an e-mail if you really want to know.