Part of what makes the city of Ottawa wonderfully unique and particularly welcoming is not only its inclusion and diversity but, more importantly, its proud celebration of its people’s cultural identities.
This past weekend, the fifth annual Palestinian Festival took place at Marion Dewar Park. First held in August 2014, Ottawa remains the only city in Canada to celebrate the Palestinian-Canadian culture by hosting a 3-day long festival in its honor. This year’s festival has been the most successful, most popular and most engaging one yet. According to the festival’s website, the number of participants that attended its debut in 2014 has since increased to more than double that amount.
I had the chance to attend this year’s festival of Canadian-Palestinian culture, marking my first official participation in any cultural festivity in Ottawa. I was enchanted by all that this celebratory weekend had to offer!
If you were unable to attend this year’s festival, here is a recap of what you might have missed:
Palestinian cuisine
“If you ever visit a Palestinian household, you will not be leaving it without being fed and stuffed. It’s just our tradition,” said one of the hosts of the festival as part of her introductory speech. The most popular Palestinian dishes were provided to guests, including Fool (fava bean dish), hummus, falafel, spiced chicken (Musakhan), and a wide variety of Palestinian dessert.
The old Sooq of Jerusalem (Jerusalem Bazaar)
Ranging from traditional and cultural attire, handmade accessories, carved olive wood sculptures, souvenirs and books, guests had the exclusive opportunity to purchase these goods all throughout the festival. Some of the bazaar’s marketers had traveled all the way from Toronto and Chicago solely to attend this event. My personal favorite corner was that of the HennaTime, where a young lady was decorating guests' hands with beautiful artistic patterns.
Performances
Palestinian music, both in its traditional and modern forms, was the main focus of this festival as it kept the multi-cultural guests on their feet the entire evening, dancing and taking part of the folkloric Middle Eastern group dance, Dabkeh. Many Palestinian-Canadian artists performed including: Sameh Zakout, Mohammad Moussa, Maher al-Atili, Nancy Faris, Mary Hazboun, and many more! An informal fashion show of Palestinian attire also took place where the cultural meaning of traditional clothes was explained.
Finally, to make their guests' experiences exceptional, they also provided children with full time entertainment. The large bouncing castles were as busy as can be, ensuring that children were enjoying their time just like everyone else.