by members of the Chinatown BIA

The Chinatown BIA has been busy. This summer sees the streets of Chinatown become the site of yet another local—not to mention tourist—attraction.

In the vein of Chinatown Remixed (an arts and culture festival which brings visual artists, performers and businesses together) FestivAsia welcomes musicians, dancers, visual artists and other creative types from the Ottawa-area scene to strut their stuff.

Each Saturday afternoon for 10 weeks, FestivAsia will turn Somerset Street West, a multicultural village with an Asian flavour, into one long chock-a-block street festival.

Look for exhilarating performances, inventive kid-friendly workshops and other intriguing activities. Best of all, these events are free!

Compelling acts perform at various spots throughout Chinatown. Bliss out, for instance, with the mellifluous jazz songs of softie (and to-die-for) Peter Liu from Bamboo Groove. Or re-acquaint yourself with a flurry of activities for which—until now—you’ve never had time. Under the guidance of Chinatown’s star China Doll, for example, make your own fortune cookies with kooky sayings. Enter the magical puppet world of Grant Harding, known for his quietly humourous puppetry film Face. Or master the art of decorative Chinese knots, threading together a gorgeous butterfly or chrysanthemum with Hang Hu of the Art Flow Gallery.

Tired now? Then stop in at Raw Sugar Café for a fabulicious lemonade. Sip a sweet, milky horchata at Little Latin America. For a real taste treat, why not try Kowloon’s delectable sponge cake? Or, go all out with a mini-acupressure treatment from Yuquin Guo.

This year FestivAsia embraces friendship and harmony to bring a larger community, a mosaic of cultures, together.

Visitors from all over will attend, from our own close neighbours to international tourists, from young to old, from Asian to Caucasian to everyone in between.

The events are all free: a complete schedule can be found on the Chinatown BIA’s website at www.ottawachinatown.ca.