There was a fancy culture and arts festival at Botswanacraft today which I wanted to attend but the pricey tickets disappeared quickly. Besides, there was a sponsored walk to raise funds for Thornhill at school from 9-12 am and the kids definitely wanted to participate in that. (Kuno walked 20 km!) Instead, Sethunya and Moroka and Kuno and I went to another festival at Tsholofelo Park in Broadhurst this afternoon, the Maitirelo Cultural Festival. It was small but nice, featuring a few local artists as well as Wild Foods, based in nearby Gabane, which sells foods such as marula and mmilo sustainably harvested by rural communities. The marula juice was delicious; other treats included dried cucumber slices and dried melon slices. There was a program as well which included several informative lectures. But what drew the most attention and applause was the dance troupes. It was interesting that as soon as the dancing began the tent filled to capacity with people keen to watch. The biggest attraction was Ditholwana Cultural Ensemble which performed a selection of dances from different parts of the country. This group was the pioneer in the early 1990s in promoting ‘traditional’ dancing; since their early heyday many other such ensembles have emerged and thrive.
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