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Last modified: 21 Sep 2021 2:10pm

Indian Cooking DemoCultureFest at Lincoln Event Centre may have been cancelled due to Alert Level 2 requirements, but there’s still plenty happening to celebrate the many cultures of Selwyn.

Over the next three weeks, you can travel the world from here in Selwyn, experiencing cultures – from Nigeria to Indonesia.

Events will include a Filipino cooking demonstration and language lessons, Japanese Budō, a Mexican Fiesta and a Family Cultural Diversity Day with Nigerian Hair Braiding, African Markets and International Games. The events will kick off on Tuesday 28 September with a demonstration on making Henna Candles at Leeston Library, Darfield Library on Wednesday 29 and Thursday 7 October at Lincoln Library.

Indonesia’s rich history will be on display through books, musical instruments, puppets and other beautiful items collected by host Dewi Bealing, who says she is really excited to share her culture with Selwyn and the wider Canterbury.

“The books will shed light on the untold history of Indonesia. For me, it was an eye-opener and it’s important because some of this I didn’t learn in school in Indonesia. People will learn that there’s more to Indonesia than holiday destination Bali.”

Dewi says she will wear traditional Indonesian clothing during the display’s debut on Wednesday at Lincoln Library and is hoping others will dress up too.

An Indian cooking demonstration will teach how to transform fresh seasonal vegetables into a healthy dish full of flavour and spice. Host Monika Rastogi says she pleased her cooking demonstration can still go ahead.

“I am looking forward to meeting everyone and explaining more about all the foods. It feels very good to be involved with CultureFest because it involves multicultural, multi-ethnicities and inclusion and this is what I demonstrate in my Indian cooking classes. It is open for everyone, without any age restrictions so even children can come and be a part of it.”

The many stories of Selwyn migrants will also be told through the new Faces of Selwyn podcasts playing 5pm every Tuesday to Thursday on PlainsFM 96.9FM, from 28 September until 14 October.

For a full list of events visit our culturefest page.