Are you a Filipino living miles away from the Philippines? Do you ever have days when your mouth just salivates and craves for certain Pinoy dishes and desserts? Do you ever miss that ‘fiesta’ vibe of pure singing, dancing and eating in one event?
This weekend, my cravings were definitely satisfied by the “Philippines Street Fiesta” in Melbourne, Australia. We celebrated the 120th Independence Day of the Philippines, “Fiesta ng Kalayaan”. The event was free and was held at one of the biggest markets in the city, Queen Victoria Market. It was an open space area, the weather was 11 degrees, and everyone was rugged up. Even the cold did not stop anyone from going to the event.
Queen Victoria Market was swarmed with different nationalities across the world and united to join the celebration of Philippines’ Independence Day. Everyone was keen for some Filipino dishes and fusion cuisine. Particularly, grand finalist of a famous Australian cooking show, “My Kitchen Rules”, Kim and her husband, Robert who recreated the most famous dish of the Philippines, Adobo with a Vietnamese twist. Pinoy-Viet fusion! Different nationalities are present and showed that Melbournians are keen for some FIESTA no matter what cultural background they have.
follow Ms Kim’s Restaurant and Bar’s IG page: @mskim.mkr
The event had a barbeque skewers competition, a Durian-eating competition, Filipinos VS the world, and a chess competition. It was a blast! All joiners definitely had it FULL ON! The prizes ranged from an iPad to a return ticket to the Philippines! Who wouldn’t wanna join? You get to eat delicious, mouthwatering dishes for free; and you might just win a prize, too!
Team World
Team Philippines
Team Philippines won!!
The performers united everyone and made the event place a huge live stage. Audience’s started dancing in front of the stage, crowds wooing and children jumping off their boots. Others, sitting down on the ground and were just mesmerized by their talents. The event had performers from Columbia, Philippines, Australia and even from the islands surrounding the country who sang, danced, played instruments which made everyone felt festive and created a sense of true celebration of an Independence day.
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