Hongkongers are marking Mid-Autumn Festival this Friday for the first time since Covid-19 pandemic restrictions were lifted. Click here for Part 2.

Mid-Autumn Festival 2023 Victoria Park Causeway Bay
People take pictures with a Mid-Autumn Festival decoration in Victoria Park, Hong Kong, on September 27, 2023. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP

Also known as the mooncake festival, it marks the end of harvest time, and is when many East and Southeast Asian cultures believe the moon to be at its brightest and fullest.

Mid-Autumn Festival 2023 lantern Yuen Long
People at a stall selling lanterns at Yuen Long’s Tai Kiu Market in Hong Kong, on September 25, 2023. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP.

Local neighbourhoods come to life with lantern exhibitions, games, palm readings and traditional theatre, whilst families reunite to share mooncakes and meals together.

lanterns Mid-Autumn Festival 2023
Lanterns at a stall in Yuen Long, in Hong Kong, on September 25, 2023. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP.

With “Golden Week” celebrations coinciding with National Day on Sunday, the city is expected to welcome a million tourists from the mainland.

Mid-Autumn Festival 2023 Yuen Long Tai Kui Market
A child poses for a picture in front of a lantern decoration outside Yuen Long’s Tai Kiu Market, in Hong Kong, on September 25, 2023. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP
lanterns Sha Tin Mid-Autumn Festival 2023
Lantern decorations at Sha Tin, in Hong Kong, on September 25, 2023. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP.
moon Mid-Autumn Festival 2023
The moon on September 28, 2023, the day before Mid-Autumn Festival. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP.
Sha Tin lanterns Mid-Autumn Festival 2023
People pose for a picture in front of rabbit-shape lanterns in Sha Tin, Hong Kong, on September 25, 2023. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP.
Victoria Park Hong Kong Causeway Bay Mid-Autumn Festival 2023
People take a picture in front of lantern decorations in Victoria Park, in Hong Kong, on September 27, 2023. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP.
giraffe lantern Sha Tin Mid-Autumn Festival 2023
Giraffe lanterns in Sha Tin, in Hong Kong, on September 25, 2023. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP
panda lantern Mid-Autumn Festival 2023 Sha Tin
Panda lantern decorations in Sha Tin, in Hong Kong, on September 25, 2023. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP.
Mid-Autumn Festival 2023 Tsuen Wan
A Mid-Autumn Festival decoration in Tsuen Wan, Hong Kong, on September 25, 2023. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP
child security guard lantern Mid-Autumn Festival 2023 Victoria Park Causeway Bay
A child plays with lantern beside a security guard in Victoria Park, in Hong Kong, on September 27, 2023. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP

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Kyle Lam is a Hong Kong Baptist University graduate who has worked as a photojournalist and reporter since 2013. His work has been published by HK01, the European Pressphoto Agency, Bloomberg and Ming Pao. Lam is the recipient of several prizes from the Hong Kong Press Photographers Association and Human Rights Press Awards.