Hangzhou Asian Games technical officials try handmade mooncakes at a restaurant during the Mid-Autumn Festival on September 29, 2023. Photo: Lin Xiaoyi/GT

 

Athletes experience a traditional Chinese beanbag game at the Asian Games Village in Hangzhou, East China's Zhejiang Province, on September 29, 2023. Photo: Lin Xiaoyi/GT

 
 
Friday, the sixth competition day of the 19th Asian Games, marked the traditional Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival - a time for Chinese people to celebrate reunion. However, on this day, athletes, technical officials, and journalists from different countries and regions who left home to attend this sporting event also felt right at home in Hangzhou, East China's Zhejiang Province.

In the Asian Games Village and main media center, guests enjoyed delicious holiday treats and colorful artistic performances, and they also went to the Mid-Autumn Festival fair, experienced making mooncakes and lanterns by themselves, and tried Hanfu (an ancient clothing traditionally used to be worn by ethnic-majority Han Chinese).

In the stadiums, after many games, the spectators sent warm holiday wishes to their favorite athletes.

Many athletes reached by the Global Times said that they experienced an unparalleled sports event in Hangzhou and were amazed by the opportunity to experience Chinese traditional culture. The staff members of the Hangzhou Asian Games Organizing Committee (HAGOC) who provided warm services to guests also expressed their happiness in the recognition and praise they received for their efforts.

"We also celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival in Hong Kong, but this is the first time I wear Hanfu. I was pleasantly surprised by the festive atmosphere in the Village today," Tsang Cham-yuen, a basketball player from China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, told the Global Times on Friday.

Alka Kshirsagar, a bridge sports athlete from India, collected paper lanterns with Mid-Autumn Festival wishes from staff at a cultural fair in the Village. She told the Global Times that she is deeply fascinated by traditional Chinese culture and is determined to experience more before leaving Hangzhou and buy more souvenirs such as silk to send back to India for friends and family.

The staff of the Media Village and the Technical Officers Village got a busy Friday morning. "We have been planning and preparing for the Mid-Autumn Festival since a week ago, and the three different groups of us all worked hard to provide ideas in order to offer better experience for our guests," Ye Yanxia, operating director of the restaurants of Hangzhou Asian Games media and technical officials villages, told the Global Times.

Ye noted that in the restaurants they operate, they set up lanterns, riddles and arranged for guests to participate in activities such as making mooncakes.

"During the Asian Games, we spend the Mid-Autumn Festival and China's National Day with technical officials and the media friends. This is a rare experience, and we all try to offer the best service to the guests and show the hospitality of the Chinese people, leaving them with a good impression," Ye said.