It truly blows my mind how many people I encounter that have lived in either the city of Brantford itself or Brant County for years that are not familiar with the Brantford International Villages festival. It’s been around for a while (since 1974, to be exact), and the Villages are something that is rather near and dear to my and my family’s hearts.
My family and I have been involved with the Brantford District Hungarian Canadian Club and its Hungarian dance group for years. My dad danced at this hall from when he was a child through to his young adult years and was in the original Czárdás dance group, as well as his brother and sister; his sister served as an annual ambassador of the hall; me and my cousins and sister have danced collectively throughout the years; my sister also served as an annual ambassador.
The hall we are affiliated with is one of many that participates in the Brantford International Villages festival. “Each Festival Hall is where the various Cultural communities of Brantford are ready to entertain you. Your $10.00 Festival Passport gives you access to all villages and enables you to sample and explore the diversified cultures of our community. You will enjoy continuous cultural entertainment including music, dancing, unique cuisine and beverages plus cultural displays of costumes and history,” explains brantfordvillages.ca. This year, the participating Villages include Chinese, Hungarian, Indian, Italian, Muslim, New York, Philippine, Polish Polonaise, Polish Warszawa, and Ukrainian.
I’m naturally a little bit biased toward the Hungarian village and consider it to be one of the best ones to visit, though all are worth visiting and offer their own unique cultural traditions. You can’t help but feel at home at the Villages, and even more so when you’re in the midst of the Hungarian one.
ontheedgeofeverything 
