Cameroon proud to be newest addition to Heritage Festival

The temperature in Edmonton was expected to reach 27 C Saturday, which was exactly the same as the forecasted high in Cameroon’s capital city, Yaounde.

Moussa Diarra, who led Cameroon’s first standalone pavilion at the Servus Heritage Festival in Hawrelak Park, felt right at home.

Cameroon has previously shared a pavilion with other African countries but now boasts its own space with clothing, jewelry, wooden carvings, unique instruments and purses that Diarra makes himself and sells throughout Africa.

“I want to share my culture with all the Canadian people, no matter where you’re from,” Diarra said while crowds began to pour in around 1 p.m.

“Canadian people are very open people. They want to know anything about other countries.”

Diarra said Cameroon and nearby Mali are countries with rich and interesting history.

Diarra moved to Canada in 1987 after attending university in France.

“We would always see on TV that Canada is the best country,” he said.

“I liked Canadians, because I met them before I came here.”

Vehicles were lined up in all directions by 11:30 a.m. Saturday with families trying to take advantage of the sunshine at the Heritage Festival.

Representatives from dozens of cultures provided dancing and entertainment, and an array of foods was going for average prices of 6-7 tickets for a small plate, at $1 or less per ticket.

The festival runs through Monday.