A newbie checks out Regina’s colourful, dance-packed and food-fuelled multicultural festival
That title is a good summary of my June highlight — I experienced my first mosaic pavilion. Followed quickly by my second and third.
If you are unfamiliar with Mosaic, here’s a summary. Often described as Regina’s longest-running multicultural festival, Mosaic is Regina’s annual showcase of world cultures. The three-day event, which ran June 4–6, featured 19 different pavilions and drew an estimated 40,000 visitors.
The Carillon staff took their job helping me properly experience my first Mosaic quite seriously. Over the course of Thursday evening, they marched me through three pavilions: Bangladeshi, Indian, and Italian.
Everybody wants the sauce and the spaghetti – J. Sisco
Bangladesh: Colour Me Surprised
It turns out this was the perfect opportunity for me to experience the Bangladeshi pavilion since it was the communities’ first Mosaic appearance in 12 years!
As soon as I walked in, I was greeted with warm smiles and the Bangladeshi anthem. I noticed the colourful banners hanging overhead, and the stage filled with green, yellow and red.
As I made myself at home, me and the team stumbled upon one of the pavilion’s ambassadors — Fairooz Joyee — who was draped in a beautiful bright coral sari accented with deep maroon detailing (so much colour here!).
Fairooz explained why Mosaic representation matters:
“A lot of people don’t know Bangladeshi culture and often we get grouped together with India,” she said. “But we have a very specific culture and we would love to showcase that for you.”
Then we were off to our next stop and we didn’t have to travel far: it was a mere 10 steps to our destination.
India: An Elegant Dance
We saw a performance that made the night even more memorable: dancers elegantly dancing in a genre called Bharatnatyam. Bharatnatyam is a classical dance from Tamil Nadu, an Indian state famed for magnificent Hindu temples.
I was mesmerized by the moves and depth of the dance.
We met Nishi Parsad, one of the pavilion’s ambassadors. He emphasized the India Pavilion was a “family pavilion.” Meeting all these important people made me feel very special.
And then, it was on to my last pavilion of the night.
Submitted by: Anya Peppler
Italy: Love & Buffets
I thought people were exaggerating when they talked about huge crowds showing up for the food. Nope! And oh boy, that buffet was packed!
I felt like I was in Italy, perhaps because the pavilion was in the Italian club. Everything seemed authentic, from the background music (“Mambo Italiano”) to the conversations. I think I fell in love.
Since we were trying to be the most extroverted versions of ourselves, we introduced ourselves to Jordan Sisco and asked about his experience as the pavilion’s ambassador.
He summed it up by saying Italian culture likes to “force feed people.”
I felt like I was back at my grandma’s place. She had a similar philosophy.
See You In ‘27
Honestly, I can’t believe I’ve missed out on Mosaic all these years. I’m glad I had this chance to learn about the cultures from the organizers, enjoy the food and make memories.
If you’ve never experienced Mosaic, take it from a now-former newbie and consider going in 2027. Personally, I can’t wait until next year to experience my second festival and many more pavilions and cultures. Maybe I’ll see you there!
