This year the October 1 Chinese National Day falls on the same day
as the Mid-autumn Festival, a traditional time for family reunions
all over the country. This holiday convergence happens only once
every 19 years or so, and the tourist industry has embraced the
occasion with high hopes and in a variety of ways.
China's major airlines and railroads have added extra flights and
trains. Information about those schedules as well as other news
such as current hotel availability is being coordinated through a
National Holiday Forecast Center with outposts at major scenic
areas and through broadcasts on CCTV, including CCTV News 30'and TV
Guide.
Hong Kong has
simplified the entry procedures for tourists into Hong Kong, and
tourism officials predict that this year's holiday crowd will be
about the same as last years, around 13.06 million people.
Following the September 11 terrorist attacks in the United States,
Hong Kong channeled its tourism promotions away from the US and
Canada toward closer markets such as the Chinese mainland and
Taiwan, according to Clara Chong, executive director of the Hong
Kong Tourism Board.
Tourists are expected to flock to traditional attractions like Hong
Kong's bustling Victoria Harbor, the Stanley Market commercial
area, and Ocean Park, one of Southeast Asia's largest entertainment
and leisure complexes. For local Hong Kong residents, the barracks
of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) Hong Kong Garrison will open
its gates for exhibitions and shows.
While people in other parts of the country may be traveling long
distances to get to major cities, Beijingers seem to prefer to
escape the crowds and traffic jams by traveling a short distance to
enjoy their city's best season, the fall, in the charm and fresh
air of nearby suburbs. In response, many scenic areas in the
suburbs are offering special activities such as apple-picking in
orchards. As for people who stay in the city proper, major shopping
areas like Wangfujing Street will offer discounts to greet the
expected holiday rush.
Many provinces also have held or will hold festivals related to the
week-long holiday:
- South China's Guangdong Province holds the Fifth China Flower
Exposition, the largest of its kind ever held in the mainland, from
Sept. 28 through October 7, where people can enjoy spectacular
garden designs, landscape settings and exhibitions.
- East China's Fujian Province holds the Second Hakka Round Earth
House Festival in Yongding County from Oct 2-4, which features
visits to houses that date back 1,000 years.
- Shanghai holds a car
exhibition on Huaihai Road on Oct. 3-5 where car fans will be
treated to exhibitions and services.
The Mid-Autumn Festival - this year October 1 by the Gregorian
calendar but always the 15th night of the eighth lunar month
according to the traditional Chinese Calendar - is a time when the
moon is full and bright and the evenings are cool and pleasant (C a
time Chinese have found perfect since ancient times for families to
eat moonquakes while enjoying the light of the moon.
To
celebrate the traditions of the Mid-Autumn
Festival, scenic areas are planning many moon-gazing activities
for their guests. Guilin in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous
Region provides special activities involving lanterns and ethnic
performances visitors as they enjoy viewing the moonlit Elephant
Mountain and Moon Mountain. West Lake
in east China's Zhejiang Province is another good place for
enjoying the moon as it entertains its visitors with traditional
Chinese music and tea ceremony as well as boating on the lake.
(china.org.cn by Guo Xiaohong sources from Xinhua News
Agency, China News Net, Beijing Morning Post, , and China Central
Television Station)