Vietnamese Student Association Celebrates Traditional Moon Festival

Baylor University's Vietnamese Student Association (VSA) will celebrate Eastern Asia's traditional Autumn Moon festival from 6 to 10 p.m. Saturday in the Barfield Drawing Room of the Bill Daniel Student Center.
To begin the festival, the VSA will serve a traditional six-course Vietnamese meal, including fried rice, egg rolls, Vietnamese style salad, wonton soup, char-grilled shrimp and moon cake. Moon cake, a special Autumn Moon festival tradition, is not sweet but contains "mung bean" seeds, a small amount of fruit and supports a whole pickled duck egg hidden in the center.
Following dinner, the students, in traditional Vietnamese dress, will perform songs, dances, martial arts, a lion dance and a dragon dance. There also will be a fashion show and a Miss Autumn Moon pageant.
At the end of the festival, each participant will light a Vietnamese lantern and follow the lion dancers outside to see the moon.
A traditional festival in Vietnam focuses mostly on children, who dress up and receive candy. The Baylor festival provides a chance for VSA members and the general community to learn more about Vietnamese culture in a fun environment.
Advance tickets are $7 for dinner and $5 for after-dinner entertainment. Tickets at the door are $15.
For more information, contact Dr. Robert Kane, assistant professor of chemistry and biochemistry and sponsor of the VSA, at 710-4556.