Moon Festival at Eden Center features lion dance, eating contest

A cold, rainy day didn’t stop the Vietnamese community from celebrating
the annual Moon Festival at Eden Center in Seven Corners Saturday afternoon.

Five women and one man compete to see who can eat two moon cakes, including all the crumbs, the fastest.

The eating contest resulted in a tie. Falls Church Mayor David Tarter presented $100 Eden Center gift cards to the two winners: Thanh Do (left), 17, a student at JEB Stuart High School, and Alida Huyn (right), 26, of Sterling. Both were first-time competitive eaters.

Katarina Nguyen (in crown), 21, Miss Vietfest for D.C., Virginia, and Maryland, welcomed the audience to the Moon Festival. Nguyen, of Baltimore, played the zither in the talent portion of the pageant, which also includes swimsuit and public speaking components.

A participant in the children’s art contest.

The lion dance is performed by the Hung Vuong Lion Dance
Team, which is part of Boy Scout Troop 612, based in Falls Church. The lion dance brings good luck at community events and store openings, says
Jonathan Tran, a 10th-grader at George Mason High School, who formed the rear
of the white and purple lion. The team practices Friday evenings at Graham Road
Elementary School.

Students from the Vietnamese Youth Education Association,
based in Burke, perform a traditional Vietnamese dance. The girls practice at
Lee High School during evenings and in the summer.

Teletron, a store specializing in cookware, small appliances, and furniture, was also celebrating its grand opening at the Eden Center this weekend.

A moon cake.

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