Edmonton's Heritage Festival 2015

This melting pot we call home will be on full display at the 40th annual Heritage Festival this August long weekend

by emil tiedemann

EDMONTON is without a doubt a diverse city, a virtual smorgasbord of citizens and visitors from around the world, stretching over six continents and more than a hundred countries. Just look around your workplace, visit a shopping centre, or scour your friends list on Facebook, and you'll notice faces that represent all corners of the globe.

One of the 85+ cultures that will be represented at the Heritage Fest!

That's something that we should not only be proud of, but something that we need to continue to recognize and to celebrate. Diversity is what Canada is all about after all; it's what we were built on and how we flourished as a nation. It's also one of the many encouraging reasons why we stand out from most of the rest of the world.

The Servus Heritage Festival (August 1-3) in William Hawrelak Park is how Edmontonians celebrate the vibrant multicultural heritage right here in our own backyard, and has been for 40 years now! It has grown into one of Edmonton's most beloved and important festivals all year round, inviting anyone and everyone to indulge in cultures from Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, South America, and even North America without ever having to leave city limits.
 
The Ukrainian pavilion is always a popular one!

More than 85 different cultures will be represented at the 62 pavilions of this year's Heritage Festival, which gives visitors the opportunity to experience the food, performances, artwork, crafts and stories of people indigenous to foreign lands.

The 3-day Heritage Festival also happens to be the single largest event for the Edmonton Food Bank, which is why organizers ask that attendees bring a donation (food or monetary) in lieu of an admission fee. Since it started in 1984, the festival has accumulated about 3.2 million pounds of food for the local food bank.

Come hungry, because there are hundreds of ethnic dishes to choose from!

Tickets must be purchased for food & beverage items, and are available on the grounds of the festival, although advance tickets can be purchased in sheets of 30 for $25 at Tix on the Square, Save On Foods stores, and all branches of Servus Credit Union.

Individual tickets are available on location for $1 each, 6 for $5, 12 for $10, 24 for $20, or 30 for $25. You can also donate any unused tickets to the Edmonton Food Bank, which will exchange them back to the Heritage Festival for their monetary value.

There is no parking at the festival grounds itself, but there will be ETS Park 'n' Ride service; or of course there's always the option of cabbing it, walking it, biking it, or Ubering(?) it!

The official map of the Servus Heritage Festival grounds 2015!

The Festival kicks off at Noon on Saturday, August 1st and runs until 9PM. It opens at 10AM that Sunday and goes 'til 9PM, and then runs 10AM to 7PM on Monday, August 3rd. For any of you who may not know, William Hawrelak Park is located at 9930 Groat Road.

Click HERE for a complete menu of the more than 500 culinary delicacies, as well as how many tickets will be required per item. Main stage information can be found by clicking HERE! Unfortunately, pets are not allowed at the festival. See you there, Edmonton!

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