AUCKLAND CITY COUNCILMEDIA RELEASE

17 February 2006

Walk around the world in a day

Experience the people, music, dance, arts and crafts of over 30 nations in just seven hours at the Auckland International Cultural Festival on Sunday 5 March.

The free festival, now in its eighth year, attracts about 20,000 people and is brought to you by Auckland City and RMS Refugee Resettlement, presented in association with The Aucklander and supported by Westpac, More FM, Wyatt & Wilson and Creative New Zealand.

It will be held in Potters Park (corner of Dominion Road and Balmoral Road, Mt Eden) from 10am to 5pm.

"The festival is a feast for the senses. It's a fantastic celebration of Auckland's richness and diversity of cultures and is a huge opportunity for new migrants to display with pride the cultural variety they bring to the city. Aucklanders should be proud to embrace, host and support events like this," says Auckland City event organiser, Linda Deverell.

Hundreds of performers, including the Burundian Drummers and the Bhajan Singers, along with traditional dance groups from Iran, Ethiopia, Greece, Assyria, Finland, the Congo and more, will perform on two stages located within the park.

There will also be 100 stalls showcasing arts, crafts and food from around the world.

The festival provides a great way to find out about other cultures and meet some of the people who are now living within the Auckland community. Many of the performers are refugees who are happy to share the various aspects of their culture with Aucklanders.

The Auckland International Cultural Festival is just one of more than 60 free events provided by Auckland City as part of the Ak@Play summer events programme.

For more information, please visit www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/culturalfestival

ENDS

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