CultureFest celebrating the world in Selwyn
Last modified: 01 Sep 2023 3:21pm
A celebration of the sounds, flavours and fun of cultures from around the world is returning to Selwyn next week.
Experiencing delicious food and incredible entertainment is on the cards for people attending the annual CultureFest celebration at Lincoln Domain on Sunday 10 September from 10am to 2pm – kicking off three weeks of celebration.
The popular free family event showcases the diversity of the district with crowds of around 3000 people enjoying interactive activities, exciting cultural performances, delicious food and much more from local community groups and residents.
Food stalls featuring food from 28 different cultures stretching from Bulgaria to Korea, Nigeria, Japan and beyond, will be joined by performers and have a go activities from 18 different cultures from Aotearoa to India, Tuvalu to Brazil.
Among the stallholders returning this year is Yoruba South Island New Zealand, a non-profit organisation dedicated to promoting and preserving the culture, welfare and human rights of the Yoruba people from Southwest Nigeria.
General Secretary Omotosho Aina says the groups Selwyn members are looking forward to sharing interactive activities such as tasting traditional cuisine and learning basic Yoruba phrases.
“We are excited to connect with people from different backgrounds and share the vibrant culture of the Yoruba people. We want to create a memorable experience for everyone who visits our booth. Additionally, we are eager to learn from the other cultural organisations participating in CultureFest and celebrate the rich diversity of our community,” Omotosho says.
Katharina Halkhoree of MyBretzel will also be back at CultureFest, serving up traditional German pretzels which will be baked fresh on site.
“Last year was my first time at CultureFest and it was a great day. People of all ages were wanting to try authentic pretzels for the first time or talk about their own travels to Germany,” she says. “It’s a good way to meet people and the pretzels are always a hit.”
Katharina uses a recipe from a Bavarian friend who is a baker, and says the perfect pretzel is golden and crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside.
This year, the Council and community groups are continuing the celebrations of the many cultures that make up the district with a community events series, running for two weeks following the main CultureFest event.
With everything from henna art workshops to music and dance performances, cooking demonstrations, hair braiding and through to the return of the popular women’s only swimming night at Selwyn Aquatic centre and Faces of Selwyn radio show and podcast interviewing residents about their journey to Selwyn, the series will have something for everyone.
Selwyn Mayor Sam Broughton says CultureFest is a high point on the Selwyn calendar.
“CultureFest is such a fun and enjoyable time of the year, embracing the many different people that bring colour and life to our district. Over the years the community has really got behind the event and made it a great day out and it’s been good to see how people are enjoying the wider event series.”