Loodariak Festival

Deciding whether or not I'm capable of making chapati.

One of the women preparing chapati dough for frying.

Fried and delicious.

I decided to try it out. And failed miserably.

Loodariak women's group handcrafted beadwork, traditional lesso and RIEL tshirt.

Traditional dances at the festival.

Traditional Maasai dance and song by the Loodariak Boy's High School.

My lesso was skillfully used as a skirt for the day.

The Loodariak Annual Festival is an event held for the past couple of years by SupaMaasai Foundation. The focus of the festival is to highlight Maasai traditions, as well as engage the community in the four pillars of the foundation- health, education, social enterprise and culture. 

The day began very early, with food preparations by the women of the village. I was able to join the women, who were busy making hundreds of chapati for the guests, and attempt to make a few myself. Unfortunately, my skills were not the best and I think I gained a reputation for having the most awkwardly-shaped chapati. At least I tried! 

Once the festival began, the Loodariak Boys' High School, students from the Loodariak Primary School, as well as women from the area performed traditional Maasai dances and songs. This year, David Angell, the High Commissioner of Canada to Kenya was an honoured guest, as well as other members from the Canadian High Commission. It was a great opportunity to meet them and learn more about their positions and the important relation between Canada and Kenya. 

The festival was an amazing gathering to be a part of, and marked a special day for the entire community. This was a great way to experience the incredibly unique and colourful Maasai culture in a way that we had not yet seen through our day-to-day activities in the village.

Photos by Me.