There’s An Autumn Moon Festival Coming To Northern California And It’s Downright Magical
By Lysa Allman-Baldwin|Published July 22, 2022
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Lysa Allman-Baldwin
Author
For over 25 years Lysa Allman-Baldwin has fed her wanderlust for “everything the world has to offer” by passionately writing travel and feature articles for numerous global print and online publications. A Digital Nomad, Lysa is also a professional speaker, workshop facilitator, and author.
As festivals go, Northern California is home to some of the biggest and the best. Among them is the annual Autumn Moon Festival in San Francisco. Held August 27-28 this year, it showcases the history and culture of the city’s Chinatown neighborhood at its finest.
This year’s Autumn Moon Festival takes place along historic Grant Ave between Broadway and California Streets.
The event, created here in 1991, is just one of the many events sponsored by the San Francisco Chinatown Merchant’s Association (SFCMA). Its goal is to share the rich cultural heritage of one of America's most unique historic neighborhoods.
Throughout the festival, visitors can stroll by several historic Chinatown landmarks.
Among them is the Gateway to Chinatown where the inscribed characters represent peace, loyalty, integrity, and compassion for all people. Waverly Place is where you will find many of the neighborhood’s distinctive temples and multi-hued balconies. And perhaps the most well-known landmark is the Fortune Cookie Factory, reportedly the only such factory where these universal symbols of good luck are still made by hand, just to name a few.
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Bursting with color, tradition, and symbolism, the festival is a feast for the senses.
In Chinese mythology, lions symbolize happiness and joy. During the festival, lion dancers move in concert with the rhythms of drums, gong instruments, and cymbals to ward off the devil as well as bring in good luck.
Traditional dances play a major role in Chinese storytelling.
Her role, as are all Miss Chinatown pageant winners all over the world, is to act as an ambassador for the Chinese community and help promote its rich culture and heritage.
San Francisco’s Chinatown is one of the most culturally rich and diverse neighborhoods in the city, as well as in the Bay Area. Its annual festivals here draw thousands of locals and visitors from far and wide and are not to be missed!
Have you been to the annual Autumn Moon Festival? If so, we’d love to see your photos and hear about your experience there.
