Expect a more compact program, but with 20 new entries at the Island Farms Victoria Day Parade on Monday.
The parade, which celebrates its 119th birthday this year, has been a Victoria Day long-weekend staple for generations of families and visitors. Organizers expect more than 100,000 people to line Douglas Street to watch the 105听entries and 3,000 participants perform. The largest and longest parade in Victoria, it鈥檚 presented by the Greater Victoria Festival Society.
Kelly Kurta, executive director of the society, said the number of entries has been pared down and the length of the parade shortened. 鈥淲hile we have a way to go, our goal is to eventually get it down to two hours.鈥�
People had pointed out that the parade, which stretched to more than three hours last year, was too long for some family members鈥� attention spans.
While it may have fewer entries, the program has more elements, such as the introduction of a 250-member band (a record) and two Island Farms entries 鈥� one at the front and another at the end of the parade.
鈥淲e have substantially built up the back end [of the parade],鈥� said Kurta, who also organizes Wicked Victoria and the Santa Light Parade.
Anther family-friendly addition this year includes Celebration Square, located in Centennial Square, where families will find inflatable amusements, children鈥檚 entertainment and food trucks. It will be open from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Bands from Oregon, Washington state and the mainland will join local bands from Reynolds, Spectrum and Lambrick Park high schools to entertain the crowd.
There are 20 new entries this year, including Hudson鈥檚 Bay, the City of Kelowna, which will be sending a float, and the Alberta Firefighters鈥� Pipe Band.
Country Grocer has also joined the parade as a sponsor.
The Canadian Armed Forces will once again lead from the air听as well as on the ground, with a fly-past of a naval Sikorsky CH-124 Sea King helicopter minutes before the start of the parade.
The town crier and Lt. Gov. Judith Guichon (another first) will then lead the military contingent ahead of floats, decorated vehicles and walking groups.
Many of the groups represent the multicultural mosaic of the community, including lion dancers from Victoria鈥檚 Chinatown and other ethnic clubs and organizations.
The parade starts at 9 a.m. Monday from Mayfair Mall, Douglas and Finlayson Streets. It runs along Douglas Street to the corner of Humboldt Street, with the last entry leaving at 11:20 a.m.
Douglas Street will be closed to听traffic from Cloverdale Avenue to Belleville Street from 7 a.m. to听1 p.m. The block of Finlayson Street between Blanshard and Douglas streets will also be closed. Douglas Street will reopen in sections as the parade moves toward downtown.
For more information, go to gvfs.ca/island-farms-victoria-day-parade.
鈥� The Parade of Bands and Drum Battle takes place on Sunday. Some of the top bands will play against each other in a friendly competition from 2 to 5 p.m. on听the legislature lawn, 501听Belleville St.
鈥� After the parade, head to the Victoria Day Block Party, co-hosted by the Maritime Museum of sa国际传媒 and the Union Club of sa国际传媒听to celebrate sa国际传媒鈥檚 150th and the Union Club鈥檚 National Historic Site designation.
The event features several food vendors, musical performances and family-friendly activities.
The event is free, with admission to the museum, at 634 Humboldt St., by donation. It runs from 1 to 5 p.m. on Humboldt Street, between Government and Douglas streets. Proceeds will support outreach programs for schools and community groups at the museum.
Details at mmbc.bc.ca.
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Visit the past at Luxton fair
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See heritage displays, antique farm equipment and blacksmithing demonstrations 鈥� or just ride midway carnival rides at the Luxton Spring Fair, Saturday to Monday at the Luxton Fairgrounds.
Calf-roping and bull-riding at the Luxton Pro Rodeo has given way to midway rides at the spring fair, a staple of the Victoria Day long weekend for almost 40 years
Individual rides take between three to seven coupons at
$1.25 or all-day wristbands for between $35 and $40. The midway is open 3 p.m. to 11 p.m. on Friday, 1 p.m. to 11 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday and
1 to 6 p.m. on Monday.
Admission to the grounds is free to see the displays from noon to 6 p.m. Saturday to Monday at the Luxton Fairgrounds, 1040 Marwood Ave., Langford. Parking is by donation at the corner of Sooke and Luxton roads. For information, go to luxtonspringfair.ca.
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Choirs flock to Chorfest at UVic
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More than 400 singers, representing more than 100 choirs, will be united in song as the British Columbia Choral Federation presents the Chorfest 2017 Gala Concert at the University Centre Farquhar Auditorium on Sunday.
鈥淏ritish Columbia has a rich choral tradition and Victoria boasts the largest number of choirs per capita in the province,鈥� Yaro Woloshyn, president of the federation, said in a statement. 鈥淲e are proud to host Chorfest this year in celebration of choral singing and sa国际传媒鈥檚 Sesquicentennial.鈥�
Chorfest is open to all ages and ability levels, attracting singers who range in age from eight to their 80s.
The singers are paired with four world-class conductors over a three-day period.
The culmination of the gathering is the Chorfest Gala Concert. This musical extravaganza features performances by the Chorfest Children鈥檚 Choir, Young Adult Choir, sa国际传媒 Youth Choir and Adult Choir with the Victoria Symphony, all joining together with the Victoria Symphony.
Cost is $3. The 21脷2-hour concert starts at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday at the University Centre Farquhar Auditorium, B115 Ring Rd., University of Victoria. Details at bcchoralfed.com.
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They鈥檒l be tossing the caber and hurling the haggis at Topaz Park
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Clans and fans gather for the Victoria Highland Games and Celtic Festival, the longest-
running cultural festival in sa国际传媒, from Saturday to Monday at Topaz Park.
There will be colourful kilts and the sound of bagpipes aplenty as the festival celebrates Scottish and Celtic heritage with music, dance, sports, culture and entertainment. The event, which marks its 154th anniversary this year, boasts the only three-day Highland Games in Western sa国际传媒.
During the event, the air will be filled with the sounds of piping and drumming, along with heels kicking up in demonstrations of Highland and Irish dance.
Well-muscled athletes will show their strength and skills in so-called heavy events competitions: putting the stone, sheaf toss, throwing the hammer and tossing the caber. Competitors will also attempt to throw weights for distance and height.
The top 10 throwers from across sa国际传媒 will compete in eight events for the Canadian Scottish Athletic Federation鈥檚 Canadian Men鈥檚 Championships.
The International Heavy Events Challenge runs both Saturday and Sunday, with amateur divisions competing between 8 a.m. and noon, and professionals taking to the field from noon to the end of the day.
The Victoria Strength Challenge (Strongman) takes place on Monday.
While athletes make tossing the caber appear easy, mere mortals will be better off trying their hands at haggis hurling, running in a kilt or joining
a tug-of-war competition.
Although the actual games are this weekend, events have been taking place over the past week to add up to a 10-day celebration of Scottish and Celtic arts, music and sport 鈥� including last weekend鈥檚 Tartan Parade through downtown Victoria and Wednesday鈥檚 Tilted Kilt pub crawl.
A Torchlight Clan ceremony, to acknowledge clans taking part in the festivities, will start at 8 p.m. Saturday on the steps of the legislature. The clans will collectively form a Scottish Saltire (which represents the flag of Scotland), with a duty pipe band delivering a short performance at the conclusion.
Nobody wants to be late for class at the single malt whisky school, with classes held throughout the festival. Participants can take classes focused on a specific distillery, sample a range of malts or experience whisky and food pairings. Advance registration is required, with tickets ($35 to $45) going fast. For tickets, go to http://bit.ly/2qp8Lbn.
Some of the 20,000 people expected to attend the games can search for their roots in the old country at Scottish clan and genealogy booths, check out historic military demonstrations or tuck into Scottish and Celtic food.
Activities in the children鈥檚 entertainment area include mini-heavy events, sack races and a 100-yard dash.
Single-day admission is $15 for adults, $12 for seniors and youth (13 to 18) and free for children under 12. Three-day passes are also available. No pets are allowed. Gates are open from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday at Topaz Park, at the corner of Topaz and Blanshard Streets. Limited parking is available at S.J. Willis School, Topaz Park and on the street. Disabled parking is at a lot outside the Finlayson Street entrance.
For information, go to victoriahighlandgames.com.
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Caribbean, African fun in Esquimalt
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Celebrate Caribbean and African culture and cuisine at African Cultural Week and Africa Fest from Saturday to May 29.
Organized by the Victoria African and Caribbean Cultural Society, the week kicks off with the African Village Experience, five hours of storytelling, singing, dancing and eating.
Entertainers include Jacky Essomb茅, Yoro Noukoussi, Merlin Nyankan, Amara Kant茅 and others.
Admission to the afternoon鈥檚 activities is $15 in advance, $25 at the door. Evening entertainment costs $25 in advance, $35 at the door. The event runs from 4 to 9:30 p.m. Saturday at the Archie Browning Centre, 1151 Esquimalt Rd.
Other activities include workshops on African poly-rhythms drumming and African dance bootcamp throughout the week. The celebrations culminate at Africa Fest on May 27. The day-long festival includes speakers, food and drink vendors as well as cultural exhibitors. It is free to attend. It runs from noon to 9 p.m. at the Archie Browning Centre, 1151 Esquimalt Rd.
For information, go to africafest.ca.
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Eat cheese and meat like a boss
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Savour, smell, taste and experience the texture of cheese and charcuterie with pairings of wine, cider, beer and mixed drinks at the Cheese and Meat Festival, Saturday at the Crystal Garden.
Visitors will be able to sample up to 1,000 pieces of cheese, 980 bites of meat, 543 different beer and wine tasters or 1,500 tastes of coffee and tea.
The festival consists of two tasting sessions 鈥� an afternoon session from 3 to 5 p.m. and an evening session from 7 to 9 p.m.
Two seminars are scheduled between each tasting, featuring cheese and meat, pairings and unique offerings. Seminar tickets are $35 (which does not include a tasting session). Seminar times are 1:30 and 5:30 p.m.
An on-site store allows attendees to purchase and take home products.
Tasting tickets are $55, before tax and service fees. The event runs 3 to 5 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m. Saturday at the Crystal Garden, 713 Douglas St. This event is suitable for people 19 and older. For information, go to cheeseandmeatfestival.com.