I love Art Festivals!  There is just never enough time for me to hit them all.  I'm so glad I finally made it to Waterloo.  It's a smaller festival but dense in flavor.

My original reason for going was to see Troupe Shabaana - a caberet style bellydance troupe.  These ladies never fail to impress.  In spite of the windy weather, their performance was fantastic and drew a very large crowd.    http://www.troupeshabaana.com/classes.html


There was a nice mix of entertainment including an American- Irish punk band Craic.  Don't let the punk in the description scare you away - they were very fun.   http://www.reverbnation.com/craicpunks  They will be performing at the Beachland Ballroom on July 9th.

Some of our city's much loved food trucks were on the scene.  I had a hard time deciding what to eat but finally chose JiBaro.  I ordered their Caribbean rice with pork and a stir fry of snow peas, okra, plantain, and garbanzo beans.  Both were fresh and flavorful!  Friend them on Facebook or Twitter to find out their menu and schedule.



I also came across a tasty treat for dessert, Cakelet Candies.  These are very similar to cake pops - little round balls of cake coated in either white or milk chocolate.  Many flavors are available including almond, sugar cookie, chocolate mint, and red velvet.  I had the chocolate peanut butter and could have eaten many many more!  They are about two bites and very additive.  They are also on Facebook or you can contact them via email at: cakeletcandies@gmail.com




Finally, you can't talk about an ART fest without talking about the art, right? I found the quality of the items to be excellent with very affordable pricing. A very talented henna artist was there, Kristina of Henna Me. While normally painting on skin, she did have a handful of art  pieces for sale. I was very fortunate to be one of the lucky ones to take one home! It's my favorite find of the fest.  http://henname.net/index.html



I also purchased too much jewelry as usual as well as a handmade purse. It was my first visit but it won't be my last. The Waterloo Arts Festival is the last Saturday in June. Mark your calendars now for next year!  It's a Must Do.