Traveling the World in One Day: International Childrens' Festival
By: Carmen Chau
Updated: October 6, 2012
At the Winchester International Childrens' Festival, many grabbed their passports, eager to visit and learn about every country.
This gave locals a chance to celebrate the area's diverse population as well as educate themselves about each country's heritage.
"The kids' faces. When they go and they learn something new and they get their passport stamped and they think that's the coolest thing in the world and they really feel like they went there," says Marketing Coordinator, Amy Simmons.
They were able to travel to Colombia, India, Scotland, China and many more. Exhibitors featured their countries' souvenirs through show and tell.
"The children, they come and they want to participate and they want to learn and they ask you questions about the country they're visiting," says Viviana Dotson, an exhibitor representing Colombia.
The festival featured cultural entertainers, an international food court, handmade jewelry, karate lessons, and the challenging obstacle course.
Children were thrilled to have their passports stamped, as they were ready to tour the world and take home some goodies.
"Everybody's like doing stuff from that country like this thing right here is from like India over there and you can try on like the stuff over there," says Alexis Carroll, who is visiting the festival.
"Different cultures really, like how they lived and agriculture," says Eric Dotson, the son of Viviana Dotson who is helping out with the Colombia exhibit.
This interactive festival welcomes thousands of families annually to give people a chance to experience the world around them.
A portion of the proceeds will be donated to the Winchester Parks Foundation for the Park Scholarship Fund.


