Stuck Inside of Knoxville w/ the Urban Blues Ag'n: Hola Festival 2011, Parade of Nations, Part 1

Dora the Expolorer, Parade of Nations, Hola Festival, Knoxville

Parade of Nations, Hola Festival 2011, Knoxville,

The centerpiece of the Hola Festival is the Parade of Nations. Many nations are represented and present something of the varieties of dress from their homeland. It is a proud and sometimes emotional moment for the families of the representatives and for the people whose origins lie within the respective country. In some cases the costumes represent traditional attire and in others it seems to be more a representation of current culture.

Parade of Nations, Hola Festival 2011, Knoxville

Lovely Lady, Parade of Nations, Hola Festival 2011, Knoxville

Manly boy, Hola Festival 2011, Knoxville

Flags fly, the country's name is announced and the crowd cheers. Dresses are flailed about. Children or adults, chin up, smiling, face the crowd triumphally. It is very moving and uplifting to see so many people so proud of their roots.

Hola Festival 2011, Knoxville

Children in the Parade of Nations, Hola Festival 2011, Knoxville

Shy boy, pretty girls, Hola Festival 2011, Knoxville

It is also very colorful. I took nearly two hundred pictures at the festival. Of course, I often could not seem my display to determine what, precisely, I was shooting, and many of the photographs didn't make the cut. Still, there are enough that I'll overload two blog posts and leave the talking mostly to the photographs.

Hola Festival 2011, Regas Square, Knoxville

One thing I did a poor job of this year was keeping up with the various countries and connecting them to the photographs I took. Maybe readers can help identify which country is represented in which photograph. I hope you enjoy them. If you do, come back, tomorrow will be another round of the same delightful color splashes and photogenic smiles.

Hola Festival 2011, Knoxville