THOUSANDS of people from various cultures and ethnicities nationwide flocked to Western Australia to celebrate cultural diversity.
The city of Gosnells took this year’s Fusion Food and Culture Festival to a whole new level of excitement by demonstrating two magical nights of spectacular entertainment, captivating fireworks, delicious food, sights, and sounds.
Within the south-eastern suburbs of Perth, Western Australia, and just a few kilometers away from the state capital’s Central Business District lies a hidden gem – no other than the city of Gosnells.
The city is home to more than 120,000 people and boasts of a richly diverse community. In fact, more than 40% of its residents are born overseas and speak 157 different languages, according to its website.
For this year, thousands of visitors flocked to the city once more to celebrate two spectacular nights of Fusion Food and Culture Festival – the most popular annual community celebration in the city.
The popular community event among the locals was held on the first Friday and Saturday of the month, from 5 pm to 9 pm on November 10 and 11 at Mills Park, Beckenham.
The event offered a captivating combination of live performances across two stages, roving entertainment, a Global Village, thrilling carnival rides and sideshow attractions, youth and children’s activities, delicious food from a wide range of countries and cultures and so much more.
Maureen Eppen, the City of Gosnells Coordinator for Communications and Marketing gave a welcome speech to open the festival.
“It’s so wonderful to see so many people here enjoying this event and it really showcases so much of what makes the city of Gosnells a great place to live,” according to Adam Hort, Deputy Mayor, City of Gosnells.
The community was a picture of many colorful rides and enthusiastic performers wearing their dazzling costumes. Dozens of food trucks from all cultures have also arrived which made it a perfect setting to create memories with family and friends.
City of Gosnells Mayor Terresa Lynes shared her perspective on why she finds this initiative an important part of the community and how she believes it will contribute to the city’s rich cultural diversity background.
“The city of Gosnells is one of the most multicultural cities in the Perth area and one in three people are born overseas…,” said Mayor Terresa Lynes, City of Gosnells, Perth, Western Australia.
“So I think it’s great to bring effort together for different cultures and it creates that acceptance to diversity, and creates unity, and basically brings that interconnection among the community by sharing of cultures and just really like showing other people what happened around the world which is spiced here in the city of Gosnells,” she added.
What made the festival all the more exciting was that visitors were able to enter the premises for free during the two-day event. Thousands flocked not only from Perth but also from different places across Australia to witness a grand celebration of cultural diversity.
“Thank you mga kababayan. So what I’m feeling for today is that I’m very excited. I’m very excited to watch our fellow Filipinos who will be performing and to witness various cultures. I’ve wanted to watch this for so long and here comes my chance. I want to thank the City of Gosnells because if not for them I will not be able to witness this kind of event. So, that’s it,” stated Cecille Lanuza, Event Attendee.
“It’s a really good thing that’s happening today because everyone has their own culture and they are expressing it to everybody today and they’re sharing their own culture with everyone. So, I really think it’s great to show your culture to the world and just to communicate,” said Minnie Dechphum, Event Attendee.
And of course, the event was never complete without a spectacular fireworks display which started from 5 pm until 8:50 pm.
There were many performances based on their cultures and they performed with pride and love for their countries.
This year’s Fusion Food and Culture Festival demonstrated Australia’s vibrant and multicultural vibe. The community event was a picture of boundless excitement and joy as people came together to celebrate another year of multicultural food, music, values, and traditions.
