中秋節快樂!!! Happy Autumn Festival!!!

It's that time of year again - the days are getting shorter, the leaves are turning red, and if you are in the UK you must give up all wishful thinking of a summer.

Good thing then, that we have the Autumn festival (中秋節)  - which by the Lunar calendar is always August 15^th, but in the Gregorian calendar varies year to year - either late September or early October.  In China and Taiwan it is a big public holiday.  We obviously don't get a day off here but we celebrate anyway and make mooncakes! (月餅)

Lots of mooncakes!

My genius mum is the head chef and with her help I was able to sell some at work to raise enough funds for my Great North run!

Mooncakes are only made for this one occassion and compared to western cakes are much more dense and rich.  Usually each one contains a sweet filling and a salted duck egg yolk (that symbolises the moon) encased in a thin pastry.  Traditional fillings include lotus paste, red bean, soy bean or taro but you can have others like coffee and ice cream! You can also have mooncakes that are non baked and are served chilled.  These are aptly named ice moon cakes (冰月餅) where the pastry is made of glutinous rice flour. 
 

 Beautiful colours

 Of the coffee kind!

 More lovely colours - the green is from pandan leaf extract.

 

With ice cream!

 To make the traditional ones at home with the flower pattern on top you need cake moulds like this:

 

Or you can be really inventive!

 

 Enjoy!

I DID IT!!!

THREE HOURS 7 MINS AND 48 SECONDS!!! AM WELL CHUFFED!!! :) :) :)

Some pics from the day:

 Newcastle Millenium bridge

 

 The Tyne bridge - that we got to run over

 At the start of the race with crowds gathering

 Mo Farah!!!!!!!!! (He cheated!!! He got two strong lads to cart him to the finish!!!)

 My number 11s - with the time chip attached

 

As pinned to the back of my Tee! :)

 

 Red Arrows doing their thing!!!

At the finish - look closely, you will see a rainbow...

All in all it was a fantastic journey for me - from the initial training I was doing at the gym and the street running to the actual big race, it was hard but it was worth it.  I recommend anyone able-bodied to give this a go! In the good ol' Chinese way of selling it - "it's good for you!" :D :D :D 

BUPA Great North Run 2012

I have decided that since it is the year of the Dragon that I should  pluck up the courage and take on a challenge that I have always wanted to do - the Great North Run!

The BUPA Great North Run was set up thirty years ago and is the world's biggest and most iconic half marathon.  Every September 54,000 people take part in the 13.1 mile race that takes them from Newcastle Upon Tyne to South Shields on the coast.

I will be running this marathon for Diabetes UK since a number of my relatives and family friends have this condition.  According to statistics there are close to 3 million diabetics in the UK, not including the undiagnosed.  The number of British Chinese with diabetes is unknown at this stage, but it has be reported that the number of cases in China has risen exponentially  -so much so that China is now considered as the 'diabetes capital of the world' (Reuters; BBC).

The impact of diabetes (糖尿病) on life is huge.  You must always take into strict consideration what you eat - alcohol and smoking is a no-no.  You must keep check on your blood glucose levels several times a day, everyday. You must also to inject yourself with insulin every time before or after you eat or drink.  This makes going out or going on holiday difficult as you will need to have access to your insulin and other medicines with you at all times and if you are caught short you are in serious trouble, especially if you abroad.  Being diabetic also means that your immune system is not as strong as that of a healthy person (if a healthy person catches a cold they have it for a week at most; someone with diabetes catches cold they could have it two or three times as long).  You are also less able to handle physical and mental stress -  both impact on your blood glucose, insulin and adrenaline levels that can go wildly out of control.  All in all, diabetes affects your everyday living.       

At present the only treatment is to keep taking insulin and the associated medicines - a huge responsibility for the people concerned.  However, work is being done to find a permanent cure.  There are also preventative measures you can take to help reduce the chance of developing diabetes.  I hope that by taking part in this challenge I can help raise awareness.  I will be providing some more insight into diabetes, the preventative measures you can take, as well as my training progress - this is my first marathon and the biggest physical challenge of my life!!!

So please wish me luck. If you would like to sponsor me I have a Justgiving page where you can make secure donations online.

            

 Symptoms of diabetes include:

• Extreme thirst
• Needing to go to the toilet a lot, especailly during the night
• Fatigue and sudden drowsiness, fainting spells
• Unexplained weight loss and loss of muscle bulk
• Cuts and sores take longer to heal
• Taking longer to recover from illnesses
• blurred vision

These symptoms can be an indication of something else, but it pays to be on the safe side.  Please go to your doctor if you are at all in doubt.  A small blood test is all that is needed to check your diabetes status.

Thanks for reading! :)

Sources: 

Diabetes UK
Diabetes UK (Chinese)
Reuters
BBC News
BUPA Great North Run
Just Giving