Auckland International Cultural Festival

If you like coffee, you have to come here and sample the traditionally brewed Ethiopian coffee. I’m pretty sure it’s the best coffee in the world. The process of making the coffee is interesting to watch in itself, but the taste is heavenly. A tiny cup of incredibly thick, strong, aromatic coffee with teaspoon after teaspoon of sugar stirred in. I don’t even like sugar in my coffee usually, but Ethiopian coffee is a revelation.
There’s other stuff at the festival too! I’ve been a number of times and always had a great time. With it’s focus on the art and food traditions of refugee communities, it’s an opportunity to share in some culture that you might not be so familiar with.
Ever-​popular are the drumming demonstrations and the dancing on the main stage, but there are also heaps of stalls to browse, food to taste, and the Annual Cultural Football Tournament.
If you’ve been before, note the change of venue; the festival won’t be held at Potter’s Park this year (2013), but at the War Memorial Park instead, on Sunday the 7^th of April.