You would have had lots of fun if you had attended the 2nd Annual Light Up Chinatown event in Vancouver Chinatown!

September 10th, 2022 was the lunar Mid-Autumn Festival (or Moon Festival) in the Chinese Community for Chinese families to dine together to celebrate a family reunion, enjoy mooncakes paired with tea, and be a part of some other festive activities like making lanterns or gathering in the bright and full moonlight. 

What made the Mid-Autumn Festival so special this year was the Light Up Chinatown celebration, a two-day community celebration, which happened on the same weekend. Great food, great shows, and numerous colourful decorations brought thousands of tourists and residents here to light up Chinatown.

I spent two afternoons celebrating with many people.

On the first day, I sat at the Kids Area table with other volunteers, helping kids to customize their simple lanterns. It was great to see parents and kids from different cultures come and be a part of this festival in Chinatown. While making the lanterns, some parents told their kids some facts or stories about the Mid-Autumn Festival and helped them to foster cultural awareness. I could tell how much kids enjoyed the festive vibe when they were running on the street with a lantern in their hands and a smile on their faces.

On the second day, I returned as a visitor to explore more of this event. Aside from watching dances and enjoying live music from the stage, my taste buds were satisfied by the limited special traditional Peking Duck croissant made by Chinatown BBQ and Beaucoup Bakery, both popular shops rated 4.5 points with over 1000 reviews on Google. 

BBQ pork and duck are must-haves whenever I visit Chinatown. However, I only had limited options this time because most foods at Chinatown BBQ and Daisy Garden Kitchen were sold out and I would need to wait in line to get what I wanted. Aside from these, the traditional Chinese bakeries from New Town Bakery and dim Sum from Kam Wai Dim Sum are both highly recommended if you are a Chinese food lover too. 

For many residents, Vancouver’s Chinatown might seem like a risky area given its Vancouver Downtown Eastside location, where many unexpected incidents happened. However, the community and the city hall are making efforts to make Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside better and to revitalize Vancouver Chinatown. The once-a-year Light Up Chinatown event is a great opportunity for everyone to connect with authentic food, shops, and other attractions in Vancouver’s Chinatown. In addition to the festivals, the new Chinatown Storytelling Center and the Canadian Chinese Museum open up to the public (both in Vancouver and Victoria) are also worth a visit.

Festival tip: you might have seen mooncakes being sold at lots of grocery stores. Make your purchase after the Mid-Autumn Festivals as you would get a HUGE discount on this traditional Chinese baked good.