FestivalThirteenth Annual Asian Festival set for Memorial Day Weekend at Franklin Park (May 26~27).
More than 125,000 people expected to enjoy food, entertainment, children’s activities, health screenings and job fair May 26-27
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Thousands of people from all over the Midwest and the United States will converge on Columbus to enjoy the 13th Annual Asian Festival at Franklin Park on Saturday, May 26 and Sunday, May 27.
“The Asian Festival was launched in 1995 with a mission to present the Asian heritage and culture to the Central Ohio community. More than 10,000 people attended the inaugural Asian Festival,” said Dr. Yung-Chen Lu, one of the founder of the Asian Festival. “Last year, in our 12th year, we were thrilled that more than 120,000 visitors from Central Ohio, the state and throughout the United States traveled to the Columbus to experience the Asian Festival.”
The Asian Festival will be open from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Saturday, May 26 and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Sunday, May 27. Admission and parking are free.
The 2007 Asian Festival will feature cultural displays, colorful entertainment, artist demonstrations, delicious food, health and wellness screenings and activities from 15 ethnic groups, including:
• Cultural Activities: Each country will have a cultural booth display showcasing richness and cultural traditions in the multipurpose center. Throughout the day cultural demonstrations and crafts display will be featured in this area. There will be a display of herbal medicinal plants from China in Cultural area.
• Food: Restaurants and food vendors will prepare food that spans the continent, from Indonesian Sate skewers to Chinese spicy home style noodles, green onion pancakes and Indian tandoori chicken . Additionally, there will be cooking demonstrations on proper techniques, utensils and ingredients to use for select traditional dishes.
• Entertainment: There will be Martial Arts from Korea, China, Japan, Philippines, and Thailand. The full entertainment schedule on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. will also feature dancing, martial arts and musical groups. This year’s featured countries are China and India. The visiting artists from India will be performing both days, in addition to all the local groups from different dance schools. Local Chinese schools in addition to artists from China will be participating in the Festival.
• A Sepak Takraw tournament will be held on the grounds. It’s defined as” soccer, volleyball and gymnastics played in one.” It was created by the royal family of Malaysia about 500 years ago. Sepak means “kick” in Malay and Takraw means “ball” in Thai.
• Children’s Activities: The Asian Festival is truly a family event and includes a children’s area with games, crafts and entertainment such as Origami, shadow puppets, Japanese Fish print, dressing up in ethnic costumes and much more.
• Health Pavilion: The Asian Festival is partnering with the Komen Breast Cancer Foundation and the Komen Race for the Cure to promote Breast Cancer Awareness. The Asian Festival will have a major presence at the Komen Race for the Cure in downtown Columbus on May 19, and the Komen Breast Cancer Foundation will sponsor a mammography unit at the Asian Festival on May 26. Cholesterol, prostate, osteoporosis, glucose, allergy, dental and vision screenings will also be provided free of charge throughout the weekend. In addition to screening, we will be setting up education sessions for those interested in learning how to lead a healthy life style. Traditional healing practices such as acupuncture, alternative medicine, Yoga and meditation are featured in demonstrations and workshops.
• Market Place: The Market Place allows visitors to experience the hustle and bustle of an Asian marketplace by strolling through exhibits of artwork, gift items, jewelry, toys, clothes, pottery, snacks, spices and much more.
• Career Fair: Job Fair is the second year, and as always we have added more employers to Career Fair this year. Success of this new will be evaluated after the Festival. The participating organizations will be looking to employ a diverse work force.
The Asian Festival is free and open to the public and will be held at Franklin Park (1777 E. Broad St.) over Memorial Day Weekend (10 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Saturday, May 26 and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Sunday, May 27). Additionally, there will be free parking at Wolfe Park, East High School, St. Charles High School, OSU Medical Center East, American Red Cross, Columbus State Community College and several parking lots on East Broad street will be used. (a free shuttle will take patrons to and from the Festival). For more information, visit www.asian-festival.org or call 614-402-3384
More than 125,000 people expected to enjoy food, entertainment, children’s activities, health screenings and job fair May 26-27
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Thousands of people from all over the Midwest and the United States will converge on Columbus to enjoy the 13th Annual Asian Festival at Franklin Park on Saturday, May 26 and Sunday, May 27.
“The Asian Festival was launched in 1995 with a mission to present the Asian heritage and culture to the Central Ohio community. More than 10,000 people attended the inaugural Asian Festival,” said Dr. Yung-Chen Lu, one of the founder of the Asian Festival. “Last year, in our 12th year, we were thrilled that more than 120,000 visitors from Central Ohio, the state and throughout the United States traveled to the Columbus to experience the Asian Festival.”
The Asian Festival will be open from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Saturday, May 26 and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Sunday, May 27. Admission and parking are free.
The 2007 Asian Festival will feature cultural displays, colorful entertainment, artist demonstrations, delicious food, health and wellness screenings and activities from 15 ethnic groups, including:
• Cultural Activities: Each country will have a cultural booth display showcasing richness and cultural traditions in the multipurpose center. Throughout the day cultural demonstrations and crafts display will be featured in this area. There will be a display of herbal medicinal plants from China in Cultural area.
• Food: Restaurants and food vendors will prepare food that spans the continent, from Indonesian Sate skewers to Chinese spicy home style noodles, green onion pancakes and Indian tandoori chicken . Additionally, there will be cooking demonstrations on proper techniques, utensils and ingredients to use for select traditional dishes.
• Entertainment: There will be Martial Arts from Korea, China, Japan, Philippines, and Thailand. The full entertainment schedule on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. will also feature dancing, martial arts and musical groups. This year’s featured countries are China and India. The visiting artists from India will be performing both days, in addition to all the local groups from different dance schools. Local Chinese schools in addition to artists from China will be participating in the Festival.
• A Sepak Takraw tournament will be held on the grounds. It’s defined as” soccer, volleyball and gymnastics played in one.” It was created by the royal family of Malaysia about 500 years ago. Sepak means “kick” in Malay and Takraw means “ball” in Thai.
• Children’s Activities: The Asian Festival is truly a family event and includes a children’s area with games, crafts and entertainment such as Origami, shadow puppets, Japanese Fish print, dressing up in ethnic costumes and much more.
• Health Pavilion: The Asian Festival is partnering with the Komen Breast Cancer Foundation and the Komen Race for the Cure to promote Breast Cancer Awareness. The Asian Festival will have a major presence at the Komen Race for the Cure in downtown Columbus on May 19, and the Komen Breast Cancer Foundation will sponsor a mammography unit at the Asian Festival on May 26. Cholesterol, prostate, osteoporosis, glucose, allergy, dental and vision screenings will also be provided free of charge throughout the weekend. In addition to screening, we will be setting up education sessions for those interested in learning how to lead a healthy life style. Traditional healing practices such as acupuncture, alternative medicine, Yoga and meditation are featured in demonstrations and workshops.
• Market Place: The Market Place allows visitors to experience the hustle and bustle of an Asian marketplace by strolling through exhibits of artwork, gift items, jewelry, toys, clothes, pottery, snacks, spices and much more.
• Career Fair: Job Fair is the second year, and as always we have added more employers to Career Fair this year. Success of this new will be evaluated after the Festival. The participating organizations will be looking to employ a diverse work force.
The Asian Festival is free and open to the public and will be held at Franklin Park (1777 E. Broad St.) over Memorial Day Weekend (10 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Saturday, May 26 and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Sunday, May 27). Additionally, there will be free parking at Wolfe Park, East High School, St. Charles High School, OSU Medical Center East, American Red Cross, Columbus State Community College and several parking lots on East Broad street will be used. (a free shuttle will take patrons to and from the Festival). For more information, visit www.asian-festival.org or call 614-402-3384
