Toronto's diverse Asian community was celebrated last weekend during the Taste of Asia culinary street festival.
Hosted on Kennedy Road just outside North America's largest Asian mall (appropriately named Pacific Mall) the street festival featured over 100 kiosks offering up great food, entertainment and good causes.
Keith Chow signs a World Society for the Protection of Animals petition under the guidance of Peter Chen, a community outreach director for the group. The booth raised awareness about the plight of bears confined on bear farms in Asia. The bears are kept in 1m x 2m cages so their bile can be extracted through painful methods for traditional medicines. "People should be concerned about this," said Chow.
The Toronto Police were also at the festival hoping to sign up new recruits.
"Once you get the feel of the job, it's great," said Const. James Wong who has been with the force for 10 years. He said he likes being a police officer because everyday is different and he likes helping people. "To be able to help someone, it's a great feeling," said Wong.
Among the booths was the Epoch Times kiosk, promoting its Chinese and English papers as well as the Divine Performing Arts Mid-Autumn Festival coming to Toronto this September. Promoters say the show will feature the dance company's acclaimed Traditional Chinese dance performances, and a live symphony orchestra.
Among the mix of multicultural meals were Ahmed Sohail's Kashmir chicken and lamb shish kabobs. Many kiosks featured similar barbequed treats.
Taste of Asia also hosted a three-on-three basketball tournament. Daniel Salamat of the Asian Invasion team takes a breather on the sideline before jumping back in the game.
Feeds