Mid Autumn Festival

Yesterday was Mid Autumn Festival. I would have been quite happy staying at home as I do on all Sundays but Max convinced me to go to Leon's Zhongqiu do at Lusongyuan Hotel. Zhongqiu Jie is that traditional time of the year when Chinese families gather around a table, sit under the stars, drink tea and eat mooncakes, and our family here in Beijing is no different. It was great being with the people I love and meeting new friends and I'm glad I didn't go the slippery road of Nip/Tuck on DVD and a Dominos pizza TV dinner.

Leon, thinking that Matt D and I knew each other and got along well enough, sat the two of us next to each other. But that was before I encroached on to Matt's territory and he felt threatened enough to do something about it...

Me: Do you think this perfume does anything to mask my natural aroma, Matt?

Matt: This crazy ass chick has GOT to go!

... and we were caught like a couple of elephant seals defending their hood from would-be invaders. Or in the middle of what looked like an elaborate mating ritual between two giant pinnipeds.

Oh maaah gaawd maah Mom's poe-tay-toe seealaaad! It's amaayzing!

But seeing as it was Zhongqiu Jie and all we decided to put our differences behind us and made up fairly swiftly...

The normally territorial sea-dwelling shellfish eaters bonded through their mutual love of the marine biologist's lenses...

Mooncake chomping elephant seals weren't the only pretty things at the table...

Matt K and Jia in yet another of their sickeningly picture perfect poses...

But that was before a particularly delicious looking fruit platter caught Matt K's eye and they were soon flirting furiously...

Juicy...

Max decided that a fruit platter was far more than any one man deserved and made off with the cocktail umbrella...

Max always made sure that he wore the right colour accessories to complement his outfit especially on a special night like this...

And Jia discovered that it was far more fun to hang out with the other girls after all.

Me, Jia and her cleavage vying for blogspace

We never got to see the moon of course, this being Beijing, the city of perpetual smog and pollution but this whole Chinese obsession with lunar rabbits is overrated anyway. Happy Zhongqiu, everyone!