Thousands of Hispanic Gainesville residents and fans of Latin culture ate empanadas, danced to salsa music and learned more about each other’s cultures Saturday afternoon on Bo Diddley Community Plaza.
Noel Montano takes the stage on Bo Diddley Community Plaza. The 46-year-old has been making music for 19 years.
Every country south of the U.S. border was represented at the 15th annual Downtown Latin Festival, said Olga Garcia, 44, a Hispanic Chamber of Commerce board member. About 3,000 attendees enjoyed food from about 47 different vendors, representing Cuba, Puerto Rico, Colombia and others, and listened to live music from artists like El Puma Junior, Noel Montano and José Novoa.
Children from the Capoeira Academy of Gainesville, which is dedicated to teaching the Afro-Brazilian martial art, carried the flags of each country represented to the tune of their national anthem in front of the stage to commemorate the individuality of the Hispanic culture. People cheered with national pride. To unify the nations, a horse rider carried the American flag in front of the stage. Then, the children circled the horse to the U.S. national anthem.
Andrea Orozco from Colombia rides a mechanical bull at the festival. The 29-year-old is studying at the English Language Institute at UF.
“We’re Hispanic, but we’re not all the same,” Garcia said. “It’s possible to be a part of a different culture, but still a part of the culture that we’re living in.”
Gainesville Mayor Lauren Poe gave greetings and officially opened the festival at 4 p.m.
“You are what (makes) Gainesville so amazing,” Poe said. “You make us one Gainesville.”
Garcia said the festival offers Hispanics a chance to connect with each other.
“You miss what you left at home, so that space where you can eat the food, talk to people in your own language and feel like ‘I have a little piece of my culture,’” she said. “It’s like a little oasis.”
There were also various activities for children like bounce houses and a mechanical bull.
A festival attendee approaches the Mi Apa Latin Cafe booth at the Latin Festival to ask about what they were serving. Mi Apa served Hispanic foods like empanadas, a fried meat-filled pastry.
UF organizations like the American Institute of Chemical Engineers, the Society of Women Engineers and the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics presented children with an opportunity to learn more about science, technology, engineering and math fields with small experiments as part of a Latin STEM Fair, said Samuel Carbunaru, the president of the Latin STEM Fair.
“A lot of the kids come from immigrant families, so they grow up in an environment where they don’t really know about the science field, so through this initiative, we try to get kids to sort of develop that interest and passion and realize that science is something that’s cool,” the 22-year-old UF biochemistry and molecular biology senior said.
Attendees dance on Bo Diddley Community Plaza during Noel Montano’s performance. The festival expected about 3,000 attendees.
Although Nigel Vanegas has lived in Newberry for the past two years, as a Miami native, the 34-year-old said he loves attending the festival because it reminds him of home.
“Being from Miami is like God-given and being in a place full of my people, I love it,” Vanegas said. “I was born with a mixture of Hispanics, so it’s nothing different. I just love the atmosphere.”
Vanegas snacked on beef empanadas, fried plantains and yucca. As the son of Nicaraguan immigrants, Vanegas said the only thing that’s missing is his native food.
“I love my food,” Vanegas said. “They don’t have it here but hopefully soon they will.”
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Children line up in front of the stage on Bo Diddley Community Plaza to welcome all Hispanic nations to the 15th annual Latin Festival on Saturday. To unite all of the nations, a horse rider rode out with an American flag.
