Opa!

One of my favourite events every year here in Winnipeg is Folklorama. The annual event, which is the largest and longest-running multicultural festival of its kind in the world, runs for two weeks every August here in Manitoba’s capital (this year it runs August 2-15, 2015). Now in its 46th year, the festival, which celebrates life and culture with world-class entertainment, is home to 43 pavilions, spread across the city of Winnipeg and ranges from French Canadian to German to Ethiopia, and so much more.

Each pavilion is held three times a night (shows are at 6:45 p.m., 8:15 p.m. and 9:45 p.m., with some pavilions offering additional or late-night showings) and celebrates the culture of each country.  There’s live entertainment, food and drink, and a cultural display so you can really immerse yourself in what each country has to offer (you can also pick up a few souvenirs along the way).

I’ve been to the event in the past, but this year I wanted to really get in the spirit, so I’ll be sharing some beauty posts inspired by some of the pavilions over the next week and a bit.  Since the festival is very much about the traditional costumes from each culture, I thought this would be a perfect fit on how to get inspired by the beauty of each pavilion (even if you can’t make the shows).

First on our list of countries to visit was the Greek pavilion, held at the St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church at 2255 Grant Avenue.  I’ve never been to Greece, but it’s definitely on my bucket list due to the beautiful Mediterranean coast, the gorgeous architecture, and let’s not forget the blue sea. Although I’m not one to usually tie my hair up, I had to go with the Grecian goddess updo, a braid with a ribbon woven through, pulled back into a chignon.  I let a tendril loose around my face to keep it more on the casual side and pulled at it a bit to loosen it up and create that messy effect.

For the makeup, I went with a matte foundation, bronzer to contour and a nude lip.  The real focus was on the eyes.  I was inspired by a Greek sunset (plus their affinity for gold) and chose to go with a yellow gold on the lids and a copper in the crease.  I finished up the top part with a bold black wing liner and lots of mascara for full lashes, and then on the bottom I grabbed Marc Jacobs Beauty Highlander Gel Crayon in Peridot, a seafoam green, to pay tribute to the beautiful Mediterranean sea along the lower lash line.

For my outfit, I kept it casual with white skinny jeans, strappy wedges (a more modern take on a gladiator sandal) and a flowy black tank with gold jewelry.

The show was a quick one, as it featured a number of male and female dancers, first in traditional clothes, and then in modern “what you think of when you picture Greece” clothes (aka white with gold details). They also called up a few members from the audience for their broom dance.

My favourite part was definitely the food.  We munched on gyros, spanakopita, tzatziki, and Greek salad and washed it all down with a cocktail made with ouzo.

After Greece, we headed east to Korea, located at J.B. Mitchell School (1720 John Brebeuf Pl.).  Korea wasn’t on my list of shows that were must-sees, but since they are in close proximity of one another, we figured that we may as well check it out.  I’m so glad we did because this show was probably one of the best performances I have been to at Folklorama (based on previous years).  We did get some food (kimchi, noodles and sushi), but the entertainment was awesome.  The best part was definitely the taekwondo performance, which made me nervous to watch, but was so different from anything I have been to during the festival.

There was a cultural display, but my favourite part were the Korean beauty products that were fun to look at. The great things about these pavilions is that they bring in items from each country that can only be found at the show.  If you are into Asian makeup, this one is a must.  Oh, and also if you like martial arts too ;).

The Greek and Korean pavilions both run until this Saturday, after which week two kicks off with new pavilions.  Check out folklorama.ca for showtimes and more information.

Have you been to Folklorama? What are some must-see pavilions?

Also, don’t forget to enter my Freshii and Menchie’s giveaways.