National Appropriation Festival, perhaps?

With so many Aum signs everywhere, it was hard to believe that I wasn’t back home in my grandmother’s prayer room, waiting for her to light the lamp. But then the high pitched shrieks of teenage girls in flower crowns and teensy crop tops passed by and reminded me that this wasn’t my amma’s house in Phoenix, Durban. If she was anywhere near, even a sari that didn’t properly cover your belly would be deemed inappropriate.

This was the National Arts Festival, revered as 11 days of amazing by some and slammed by others for being a space of incredible privilege, only accessible to mostly rich white people. And yet the products been sold at the Village Green, the main trading hub of the Festival, could have easily been mistaken for your local Gorimas or Memsaab store.

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Warming up to Winter with Glühwein

Warm wine for cold nights. Image from Pixabay.

‘It’s the most wonderful time of the year…”

No, it’s not Christmas, but it is the National Arts Festival in the middle of Winter in Grahamstown, and this is the most festive time for us. Along with overindulging in rich food and spending too much money on things we don’t need (so, basically Christmas), we also have pop-up restaurants offering Glühwein as the day draws to a close and the nights get colder. During the rest of the year, it’s pretty much impossible to get your hands on mulled wine, so I’ve decided to share some recipes for you to make your own. 

Fantastic Fest Finds – Day 7

These ceramic plates are so beautiful to look at. They’re part of the exhibition, Vague Narrative by Theo Kleynhans at the National Arts Festival.

And some of my favourites…

Fantastic Festival Finds – Day 4

On perhaps the hottest day of the hottest Fest yet, I found the solution to all my problems. And yes, I know, the solution is often in the form of alcohol but this time I just could not resist! There was a tent at the Village Green selling vodka slushies!

Qualito is a South African distillery that makes flavour infused vodkas as well as whiskey. You can buy whole bottles of their vodka online, or get a taste at NAF with a slushie containing either watermelon, cranberry, litchi or coffee flavoured vodka. It tastes amazing and is decently priced at R30.