9.27.2009

Happy Heritage Day - Sparrow Village





September 24th was Heritage Day, a public holiday to celebrate the diverse cultures of South Africa. In a country with 11 official languages and a city packed with peoples from all over southern Africa, the cultural backgrounds are vast and varied.

We had a festive afternoon to celebrate the holiday at Sparrow, complete with a fashion show, the crowning of Mr. and Ms. Sparrow, marimba performances and authentic foods (perhaps not my favorite highlight, as you'll see below - a bit of an unpleasant flashback to Malian cuisine). It was a gorgeous summer day in Joburg, and the kids were extra excited because they are now out of school for the week. Quite the holiday.


Contestants at the 'fashion show' -
which even included a swimsuit modeling section.


The kids' fashion show was a bit more
Hollywood than it was South Africa.


The founder of Sparrow, Rev. Corine McClintock,
showing off her Scottish & South African heritage.


Adults and staff at Sparrow modeling their cultural attire.


Traditional foods, including the often tasty Africaans boerewors,
very common pap, and a delicacy of -- I kid you not -- worms.


Mr. Sparrow and me.
(He broke one of the djembes I bought the music kids -
still trying to get it repaired. I'm keeping an eye on you, T.!)


No comments:

Post a Comment