Attend the festival to learn about and embrace new cultures
Looking for something to do this summer, but don’t want to go all the way to Toronto and Mississauga to visit multicultural environments? Check out the Guelph and District Multicultural Festival happening this year from June 12 to 14.
Festival head Cinthuja Leon spoke with The Ontarion about why University of Guelph students should attend the festival’s 40th anniversary.
“You get to experience a lot of stuff that you wouldn’t unless you travel,” Leon said. “Nothing beats travelling, but we do bring that experience right here.”
The festival will host around 29 food vendors each day. There will also be vendors for clothing, jewelry and arts, and live performances. Leon said that about 70 per cent of the vendors and performers are local to Guelph, while the rest come from neighbouring cities.
The festival “is extremely family friendly, which is why we want to keep it free as there are people with multiple kids that can’t afford to keep coming over and over again,” Leon added.
In 2022, the festival introduced a youth and family activities tent. Leon described it as an outdoor game tent that is given to a different cultural group every two hours so each can have the chance to teach their traditional games, crafts and activities.
“The Chinese cultural groups would do tai chi and mahjong, and Indian groups will get someone [to] teach you to play cricket,” Leon said. Leon encourages any diverse groups of students at U of G to contact the festival’s organizers if they would like to sign up for a two-hour timeslot in the tent.
The fashion show is an older tradition and a highlight of the Guelph and District Multicultural Festival. Leon relates to people’s love for the fashion show, and said, “I’ve been in Canada only for the past 17 to 18 years, and we do crave showing our cultural customs sometimes. So when we get the chance, I’m dressing up!”
The festival’s committee is always looking for volunteers, including U of G students, Leon said. “One time, a couple of masters degree students from the university came [to volunteer] and that was the year we got the highest donations! They were great talkers. Never in the history of our festival have we made so [many] donations,” Leon shared.
“The festival will be very reflective of the diversity of Guelph,” Leon said. “I think people locally are waiting to showcase their talent to the world and we give [them] that stage.”