Mid-Autumn Festival of children or Tet Trung Thu is a wonderful time to visit Vietnam. The festivities last for several days and there is singing and shouting. Children wear masks, parade happily in the streets and bang their drums. Parents buy lanterns and toys for their children and prepare their favorite dishes. Special cakes are made and exchanged, and fruits are plentiful.

The moon cakes festival is celebrated on the fifteenth day of the eighth lunar month, the day of the first full moon closest to the autumn equinox when the moon is at its fullest. The autumn mooncake equinox always falls on September 23. This year, the Children’s Festival will occur on October 8. At the spring and autumn equinoxes the duration of day and night is equal and the sun appears directly overhead at noon at the equator. After September 23 the days become shorter and the nights grow longer.

During the Children’s Mid-Autumn Festival, although the moon is then at its greatest distance from the earth, it appears larger than at any time of the year and takes on a reddish glow. In the West, this large, full autumn moon is called a harvest moon. In its partial phases, the moon represents the incompleteness of life and potential for completeness, fullness and prosperity. The Mid-Autumn celebration is then a celebration and a prayer for the fullness and completeness of life.

In many ancient agricultural cultures, when the nights got longer and the light and heat from the sun decreased, there were prayers and ceremonies urging the sun not to forget to rise again the next year. The theme of light after darkness is a key to understanding fall festivals. In ancient times in northern Europe farmers held a great festival with bonfires and they rolled firewheels down hills to recall the descent of the sun and then to invoke its ascent and return. The lanterns which Vietnamese children play with on this festival day recall the wish for the return of the sun’s warmth and light. There are several different shapes of lanterns including the five-star lantern representing the sun and the frog-shape representing the moon. There are lanterns which spin around when a candle is placed inside, symbolizing the seasonal spinning of the earth around the sun.

During the festival, children wear paper-mache masks of Ra Hu who looks somewhat like a tiger. According to the myth, during the creation of the world the gods stirred up the sea to activate the ambrosia of immortality. The demon Ra Hu, lord of the nine planets and ruler of the gods of the nine planets, stole it and the sun god punished him by cutting off his head. The myth also says that Ra Hu ate pieces of the full moon and that is why it has phases and eclipses. Children wear the masks and growl like tigers to frighten Ra Hu so he will not gobble up the entire moon. Nowadays there are also many kinds of plastic masks, including Mickey Mouse and Superman, to frighten off the monster.

The masks, lanterns, toys, decorations and drums are sold on Hang Ma Street in the commercial quarter of Hanoi. Days before the fifteenth of the month the street is crowded with children and their parents. In the evening, pagodas and temples, especially those temples dedicated to goddesses, are open for worshippers to light incense and make offerings of flowers and fruit and to pray.

Several types of special cakes called banh trung thu are eaten at the festival time and are sold all over town. Some cakes take on the shape of a carp. In Vietnamese tradition the carp represents the soul of the moon. Other cakes are round and white and still others are square and golden brown. The brown ones represent the yang elements, or the sun, and the white ones are the moon. Most of the children don’t know the symbolism but just enjoy the taste. We see a yin and yang aspect to many of Vietnam’s seasonal festivals. In the balance of the female and male elements of the universe, the fall festival represents the ascendancy of the female powers over the male, the prominence of the moon over the sun’s influence.

Banh trung thu are not raised like Western cakes. They are filled with lotus seeds, orange peel, ground beans, and sometimes egg and pork fat for flavor. It is traditional that one offers a box of these special cakes to someone that you want to please or owe a favor, like your landlord or the local police. In addition to cakes, fruits are plentiful during this time, especially watermelon and grapefruit. Grapefruit sections can be transformed into animal shapes like the rabbit of the moon, who according to legend pounds the ambrosia of immortality at the foot of a cassia tree. In addition to the rabbit, there are other mythical inhabitants of the moon. One is the three-legged toad, an incarnation of the moon maiden who stole the elixir of immortality from her husband. And the old man who, as a punishment for displeasing a revengeful god, is forever cutting down cinnamon trees which regrow as soon as his ax chops them.

The dragon dance is an important aspect of many festivals including the Mid-Autumn Children’s Festival. The dragon dance expresses the duality of Vietnamese festivals. The dragon dance is a re-enactment of the earth and sky duality, the yin and yang of the world. The Lord Earth, called Ong Dia in Vietnamese, is the dancer who dances around the dragon, urging it on. Ong Dia has a very round, happy smiling moon-face. He represents the wealth or fullness of the earth.

The meaning of the Mid-Autumn Festival has been transformed over time. Originally it was not specifically for children. The Vietnamese people believe that only when one is innocent and pure can they get close to the natural and sacred world. So by becoming like children, they can acquire attributes of the gods. Because of its interesting legends and customs, and because the weather is mild, the Mid-Autumn Festival is a special time to see Vietnam.

Source: http://www.thingsasian.com/stories-photos/1055

Bongo drums, also know as bongos, are one of the most recognizable of percussion instruments. Due to the pervasive popularity of Latin music (thank you, “Dancing With the Stars”), the sounds of these little drums are familiar to people around the world. Bongos, as the name implies, always come in attached sets of two. One drum is slightly bigger than the other; the larger is the “hembra” (the Spanish word for “female), while the smaller is the “macho” (the Spanish word for “male”). Bongo drums are capable of a great deal of versatility and their music is usually upbeat and rapid.

Like some other drums of the Americas, the steel drum, bongo drums were originally brought to South America from Africa via the Atlantic slave trade. The African nations of Nigeria and Cameroon had fraternal organizations that utilized a trio of drums called “bonko.” When the Africans were brought to the Americas, vestiges of these organizations and their traditions came with them. The Abakua is a society of Afro-Cuban men that evolved from those fraternal organizations. It continued to use the bonko drums, but the instruments eventually spread beyond the fraternity. It is believed that this was the origin of the bongo in South America. The Abakua still exists in modern Cuba and it still uses bonkos that, if joined together in pairs, very closely resemble bongo drums.

The bodies of bongo drums are usually made of wood, metal or composite materials attached by a thick piece of wood. The head is traditionally of animal skin, but as with other modern drums, synthetic materials are commonly used in modern times. Originally, in the late 19th century, the heads of bongo drums were tacked on and tuned with a heat source. But since the 1940s, metal tuning lugs have been used to allow for easier tuning.

The sound of the bongo drums is high-pitched and as mentioned, the tempo is generally fast. When played, the drums should be held between the player’s knees; the larger drum should be on the side of the player’s dominant hand, which is usually the right one. The drum heads are struck with both the fingers, palms, and sometimes sticks and brushes, although these last are contemporary innovations. The sound of the bongo drum can be muted by placing part of one hand on the drum head while striking with the other hand.

Some of the most famous dance styles of Latin America, including the mambo, the salsa and the conga, utilize the music of the bongo drum. The instrument’s capacity for distinct percussion is essential to these styles, which showcase distinct and often rapid rhythms. In fact, the music of the bongos is often used as a solo instrument in such music, a tactic that highlights the importance of a song’s rhythm.

On a side note, although bongo drums are generally considered instruments of Latin America, drums resembling bongos can be found in Morocco, Egypt and some Middle Eastern countries. These drums have rawhide heads like their American counterparts, but the bodies are of a ceramic nature. Such drums can also be heard in some other traditional Spanish music, such as flamenco, probably due to the Moorish influence in that country.

Source: http://www.floweradvisor.com.sg/lifestyle/interests/music/52226/bongo_drums_and_latin_culture/

See Also : Mid autumn festival, Moon cakes festival, Autumn mooncake

A relationship is usually a fine kettle of fish. It requires kid gloves to handle it. A relationship between a man and a woman requires all the available resources to make it to the list of successful relationships. To make a better relationship, a lot of spices plus other additives are added to the union. Relationship is an institution that has many related departments that call for your undivided attention. Careful and articulate co-ordination of all departments is necessary to ensure this institution does not experience hitches. It requires a person to go that extra mile with personal sacrifices on the way. Love relationships are the best adopted to absorb the constant shocks of life. There are many surprises in store for any relationship. Unpreparedness and lack of flexibility can throw a once thriving relationship off-balance

Relationships are built on mutual trust. It is a two way traffic with trappings of care and love. Affection is given and reciprocated in equal measure. It is an interaction between peers and no one is a subject of the other. It is the key to successful relationships. Even love relationships have their foundations built on this concept. Lack of these ingredients in a relationship makes everything almost unworkable. This is a union that is either on a very rocky stretch or one that is surely headed for doom. A separation is most imminent if the arrangement is not as it ought to be naturally. A lot of rehabilitation and renovation is required to mend such a union and make it a better relationship. Mutual trust is the password that opens all the doors to a better and more fulfilling relationship.

If you are person in pursuit of a better relationship, ensure that the lines of communication between you and your partner are always open. Create a conducive atmosphere where any topic under the sun can be discussed between the two of you. Any pertinent issue facing the relationship should be tabled and laid bare as a subject of debate. Love relationships do not shy away from real issues, they tackle them. Leave no stone unturned in the quest for successful relationships. When a couple in a relationship fail to speak out on the discontent and dissatisfaction they have in their hearts, tension starts building up. This transforms into pressure that is bottled up with no vent to diffuse through. This is time bomb in the offing. It explodes with devastating effects to the union.

If you truly love your partner, let it be an open secret, let it be known. There are many ways to say “i love you”. Different ways to express the abundance of your heart. Actions have been known to speak louder than words. In love relationships, it is the small things that matter. Love should speak through your actions. Every little thing that you do should be a manifestation of your love. Successful relationships are full of affectionate and passionate love themes. Surprise your partner with presents from time to time for a better relationship.

So, what you waiting for. Find your true love and don’t let them away from you. Because, partner is an important in your life.

Source: http://www.floweradvisor.com.sg/lifestyle/women/dating/8455/in_pursuit_of_better_relationships/

See Also : Mid autumn festival, Moon cakes festival, Autumn mooncake