Eating Your Way Around the World through Cultural Food Festivals

A great resource for learning about World Cultures is Food Festivals. I was surprised just how many there are in my area. Not only is there food, but there is usually entertainment related to the culture and that includes dancing and singing. The key to saving money is don't buy souvenirs, don't go on any rides, catch the show and chose a few different entrees to share between you.

Once you've sampled the cuisine, try making it at home. I'm using this portion as part of our Health/Nutrition course and having my oldest research healthier options to cook at home.

Food Reference.com is great for searching for what's in your area. They have it listed by State, Month and even country in case your are traveling.

Here's a list of names to search for. I would link, but it appears each festival location has it's own website.

Italian
San Gennaro Feast

Greek
Greek Food Festival
Usually at your local Greek Orthodox Church

German
Oktoberfest
In October of course ;)

China
Chinese New Year
Between late January to early February

China
Moon Harvest Festival
Usually in September to October, but can be as early as August

Polynesian
Polynesian or Aloha Festivals

International
Heritage Festival or Culture Festival - town usually puts on.
Ours has Japanese, Korean, Irish, German, Mexican, Polynesian, and Bulgarian dancers and entertainers.

Japanese
Aki Matsuri

For even more culture, don't forget to look up holidays such as Dios De Los Muertos (Mexican Day of the Dead) - can be a bit scary for the younger kids.





There's a lot more out there, I'll be adding as I find them.