874. Affordable events May 28-June 4+ in Multicultural Toronto – 2019.

What cultural group is Peranakan? We have at least one representative that I know of in Toronto. A First Nations pow wow is coming up in Scarborough.  You might enjoy a concert at one of our spectacular Hindu temples, or hear from some important scientists of Hispanic origin. There’s lots to experience in our culturally-varied city.

Want to learn the secrets of Indian cooking or contribute to flood victims in Iran amid the excitement of an art auction? How about joining one or two events celebrating Italian Heritage Day? Or going to the launch of Filipino Heritage Month? In this blog you can also find out how our Muslim friends celebrate the end of their month-long fast. I enjoy going to their celebrations because they bring back happy memories of my own visits to the Middle East.

Among these free or nearly-free events, we can also learn what the world is contributing to dance in Toronto. And in response to many queries, included here is a poster in Hungarian about an event. I hope it answers questions from the many people who are interested in Hungarian events and find us on Google. I hope you can understand the language.  I don’t.  

We include some of the more expensive events to broaden our coverage of the world. See Guyana and Serbia. And Toronto has many, many more such events like these to tantalize you; you just have to look for them.

First Nations. Honouring Our Community Pow Wow. June 1. Grand Entry noon and 5pm. Free. Lester B. Pearson C.I., 150 Tapscott Rd, Scarborough.

Competition, vendors, drumming. https://calendar.powwows.com/events/taibu-chc-1st-annual-honouring-our-community-pow-wow-2019/

Other pow wows coming up later this summer. Stay tuned.

Guyana. Guyana Independence Anniversary Dinner and Dance. June 1. 6pm. $60. Rembrandt Banquet Hall, 930 Progress Avenue. There’s a free Guyanese event coming up June 15. More about that later.

https://www.facebook.com/GuyanaIndependenceFestival/photos/pb.260424217435602.-2207520000.1558694756./1613370322140978/?type=3&theater

Hispanic. Hispano Forum. Tuesday, May 28. 6pm. $30-$35. YMCA, 20 Grosvenor Street, Auditorium – 2nd floor.

Dr. Andres Lozano: World’s leading expert on deep brain stimulation, U of T...; Cesar Jaramillo: Nuclear disarment expert. Former Colombian refugee, Cesar is an expert on nuclear disarment, outer space security and conventional weapons control… Mary Margaret McMahon: Director, Policy and Communications, Google’s Sidewalk Toronto…”  http://hispanicbusiness.ca/main/UpcomingEvents.aspx.

Image of Dr. Lozano from UHN Krembil Neuroscience Centre website.

Hungary. National Day of Togetherness. June 2. Hungarian Cultural Centre, 840 St. Clair Avenue West. Tel. 416-654-4926. https://www.hccc.org/events.

If you can read this, you will be welcomed, I’m sure.

India. The Incredible Indian Kitchen. June 5. 7- 8pm, reception to follow. $20. Royal Ontario Museum, Samuel Hall Currelly Gallery, Level 1, Michael Lee Chin Bloor Street Entrance. Tel. 416-586-5797

Madhur Jaffrey and Vikas Khanna in conversation with moderator award winning journalist Jacob Richler, explore the deep history of Indian regional flavours in both traditional cuisines, and how it has influenced the personal gastronomies of two of the industry’s most influential personalities…” https://bit.ly/2Qnf0rK

Image Credit: Vikas Khanna Hospitality Group from ROM website.

 India. 2019 VOV Sangeet Academy & Geetanjali Music School Spring Concert! June 1. 5:30pm. $10. Vishnu Mandir, 8640 Yonge Street.

Entertainment (including appetizers and a light dinner).

Please contact organizers at 905-915-6200 “to secure your tickets.  Limited quantities will be available at the door on the evening of the event.” https://vishnumandir.com/category/event

Iran. Flood Relief Fundraiser for Iran by Queen Gallery. June 1. 3:30-7:30pm. $0-$5. Queen Gallery, 382 Queen Street East.

Bidding: Online and in Person. “Only a few days after the start of the Persian new year, Iran was hit with widespread floods that affected 13 provinces, killed 70 people, and forced thousands of people out of their homes.

…. Artworks from numerous artists will be on display for this cause on June 1st. You will be able to bid on any of the artworks exhibited. Online bidding will be available on Queen Gallery’s Facebook page.” https://www.eventbrite.com/e/flood-relief-fundraiser-for-iran-tickets-61128919243?aff=erelexpmlt

Information about the flood from The Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/apr/04/iran-floods-death-toll-reaches-62

poster from Eventbrite website.

 Italy. Italian Heritage Month June. With almost half a million people of Italian descent in the GTA, you can expect a lot of lively parties and cultural events. These web-sites list many events that are free.

Italian Cultural Centre, 496 Huron Street. Tel. 416-921-3802: https://iictoronto.esteri.it/iic_toronto/en

Villa Charities,  Columbus Centre, 901 Lawrence Ave. West. Tel.  416-789-7011. https://www.villacharities.com/italian-heritage-month/

Muslim. Eid ul Fitr this year is June 5. It marks the end of the month-long fast of Ramadan. Muslims celebrate with prayers, cultural performances, shopping and eating. Expect rides and games for children in most of these places. Unless you want to join them, just don’t disturb the prayers which will be in a separate area.

Among the Eid ul Fitr happenings are:

Eid ul-Fitr Prayers & Celebration. Tuesday June 4. 9:30am. Suggested $10 will be directed towards local food banks and community support services. Noor Cuiltural Centre, 123 Wynford Drive. www.noorculturalcentre.ca

Chand Raat Grand Eid Bazaar 2019. May 31 (2pm) -June 3 (2am). Free parking. Entrance 3. International Convention Centre, 6900 Airport Road. https://www.facebook.com/events/the-international-centre/chand-raat-grand-eid-bazaar-2019/300669797247976/

Eid Bazaar. June 2, 3 & 4. 2pm-2am. Free entry and parking. Swagat Banquet Hall, 6991 Millcreek Drive, Mississauga, “clothes, jewellery, beauty products, communication packages, home phone & internet services, insurance packages and other business services in the Eid Bazaar… henna…kids face paint…biryani & talented singers…”

This event is a community event to celebrate Eid and people from all origins are invited to attend and enjoy the event.” For more information: Samina Jabeen 416-786-9809, Tanuj Sharma 647-707-4381, and promotional partner Kishwar Baig 905-973-7432

https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/eid-bazaar-june-2019-tickets-60766589505.

Eid Market. May 24 to June 2. Free. To celebrate, “Scarborough Town Centre is transforming into a bustling marketplace full of Moroccan-inspired tents, thanks to a brand new event called Eid MRKT.” https://scarboroughtowncentre.com/event/stc-eid-mrkt/

For more information about eid-al-fitr: https://www.timeanddate.com/holidays/canada/eid-al-fitr

Philippines. Filipino Heritage Month Kickoff. June 1. 9am-12pm. Free. Albert Campbell Square, 150 Borough Drive, Scarborough.

Live performances, cultural shows, food, games, a marketplace and a kids zone.

For this and other Filipino events in Toronto: https://www.filipinosmakingwaves.com/index.html

Poland. Polonia Night. June 6. 6:30-11:30pm. $150. Mississauga Grand Banquet & Event Centre, 35 Brunel Road, Mississauga.

The annual fundraising event for the Canadian Polish Congress.The keynote speaker this year will be Fr. Raymound J. de Souza. All proceeds from the event will go directly to the programs and projects of the Canadian Polish Congress.

If this is too expensive for you, free Polish events are coming up in Mississauga June 9 and on Roncesvalles in September. Stay tuned. https://www.eventbrite.com/e/polonia-night-canadian-polish-congress-fundraising-dinner-tickets-61434931534

Serbia. Kir Stefan the Serb Choir. June 1. 8pm. $30-$40. Trinity-St. Paul Centre, 427 Bloor Street West.

Singapore. Peranakan. Discover Dance with Yvonne Ng. Tuesday, May 28. 12 pm. Free. The Gallery, Toronto Centre for the Arts, 5040 Yonge Street.

…Through demonstrations, performance, and conversation, we will discover how dance forms from near and far are being woven into Toronto’s cultural scene. You will have the opportunity to share your thoughts, ask questions, and maybe even help an artist name their next work! Join us on a fascinating exploration of this rich and incredibly diverse art form.” http://www.tocentre.com/events/discover-dance-w-yvonne-ng

Also Wed. May 29. 12pm-1pm. Sony Centre for the Performing Arts, Lower Lobby, 1 Front Street East. Main Doors Open at 11:30am. http://www.sonycentre.ca/education-and-engagement/discover-dance

By the way, according to Wikipedia,  Peranakans are an ethnic group descended from Chinese settlers from the southern provinces who came to the Malay archipelago including British Malaya (now Malaysia and Singapore)… and Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia).

Image © photo Cylla von Tiedemann from Sony Centre website.

Ruth’s Note: TorontoMulticulturalCalendar.com chooses to promote events that encourage a feeling of community in our culturally-diverse city. Mention doesn’t mean endorsement as we try to include events we think readers will find stimulating in the cultures of other groups. If you go to any of our mentioned events, please send us corrections or an account of your impressions so we will know whether or not to mention these events in future.

Let us know the kind of events that interest you. Please continue to send us posters. We don’t charge to include them and we don’t accept paid advertising. Please post comments on “Leave a Reply” below. Email us at: ruthlormalloy@gmail.com. Please subscribe to our Newsletter above.

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