The ASEANA Foundation, a Shreveport-based not-for-profit organization, formed in 2006 with a distinct mission: to transform the Municipal Plaza Park into “an Asian-inspired oasis in the middle of downtown Shreveport.” The group has successfully completed that project, as is evidenced by the beautiful Asian gardens currently in bloom at the corner of Texas Avenue and Common Street. Each Spring, ASEANA invites the public to the park for a celebration of Asian culture called the ASEANA Spring Festival. The fifth annual festival will take place 11 a.m.-5 p.m., Saturday, April 14.
Featuring the theme of “Korean Arirang,” this year’s festival will highlight Korean culture through traditional Korean singing and dancing, Tae Kwon Do demonstrations, a Kimchi cooking demonstration, traditional percussion music and much more. Admission is free. While the festival starts at 11 a.m., the program of live entertainment will take place 12:30 p.m.-5 p.m.
As a food lover who has attended three out of four of these wonderful festivals (each of which has highlighted a different Asian culture), I am compelled to add that the food at this festival is always a delight. Last year’s celebration of Filipino culture featured a Lechon, or a whole roasted pig cooked while buried in coals, as well as a gamut of Asian cuisine.
“I drive to Dallas just to eat Korean food – things like Bulgogi, Bibimbap, and of course the Korean barbecue,” said festival organizer and park matriarch Mary Grace de Joya-Vea. “We’ll have all of those things at the festival!”
Bring cash for the food vendors and a camera to capture all of the brilliant colors of this festival. For more information, contact Mary Grace de Joya-Vea at (318) 797-4258.
View a set of images from last year’s festival.
Read a post at Robert Trudeau’s Shreveportblog on this year’s festival.
