Flushing holding Moon Festival

For the eighth year in a row, downtown Flushing will glow under the Harvest Moon during the Moon Festival, an Asian traditional celebration dating back thousands of years. It’s time to enjoy nature’s splendor, and “moon cakes.”
On Saturday, September 13, festivities begin at 3 p.m. and include a “Fantasy Parade” from Main Street and 40th Road to the Queens Botanical Garden (QBG), from 5 to 6 p.m. Following the parade, there will be multicultural performances at QBG, 43-50 Main Street, from 6 to 8 p.m. A fireworks display is scheduled from 8 to 8:15 p.m.
Organized by the Flushing Development Center and QBG, participants include: Community Board 7, Flushing Chamber of Commerce, Flushing Chinese Business Association, Korean TV, Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Queens, Hindu Temple Society of North America, Masjid Hazrat-i-abu-Bakr, Multicultural Committee of the Jewish Community Council, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, Queens Botanical Garden and Sikh Center of Flushing.
Though its origins are clouded in a half-dozen legends, the common characters include not the “Western” man in the moon - but a lady and a rabbit who floated to the moon. Here’s a hint; the rabbit is easy to spot if you view the moon’s disc “upside down.”
- Victor G. Mimoni