A Latin touch comes to gardens

HISPANIC food, culture, music, dance and more will be on offer when the Bendigo Latin Festival takes place again at the Garden for the Future in White Hills tomorrow.

Run annually since 2022 by the local Hispanos Unidos de Victoria (Hispanics United of Victoria) group, the event is designed to promote, foster and provide a better understanding of the cultures of Spanish-speaking countries and Brazil.

This year’s festival will take place from 11am to 6pm on the Bosquet and Raglan streets corner of the gardens, and admission will be free.

Food, live music, dance workshops, pinatas, face painting and other attractions will be offered, along with opportunities to buy products from Latin American countries.

Hispanos Unidos de Victoria shares information and celebrates the language, traditions and customs of people of Hispanic heritage and culture in a variety of ways, including monthly social gatherings, a slot on Phoenix FM’s twice-monthly Multicultural Show, and a stall at the Eaglehawk Dahlia and Arts Festival’s Sunday Family Day since 2019.

It also runs Conversational Spanish classes with Bendigo U3A, which are held twice a month during school terms and offers participants the opportunity to practice and improve their Spanish language skills.

Hispanic countries and cultures can be found in Africa, the Caribbean, Central America, Europe, North America and South America.