By Justin Flynn
If you are near Johnstone Park on Saturday and hear the sound of steel drums, it’s coming from the first ever Geelong Reggae Fest.
Organisers are expecting anywhere between 500 to 1000 people for the event with festivalgoers flying in from Sydney, Adelaide and Perth.
Husband and wife team Damian and Mary-Anne Rosevelt are responsible for bringing the festival to town after Damian arrived from Jamiaca 15 years ago and found there was little Caribbean flavour in the region.
“He was surprised that there was not much Caribbean culture over this part of the world as it is big in the USA, Canada and UK,” Mary-Anne said.
“After working very hard Damian was able to bring the food aspect to Geelong through Taste Jamaica, our restaurant on Pakington Street.
“ Damian then came up with the idea of bringing the food and music together in a festival setting.”
The festival obviously features Caribbean music and food and is a family friendly event.
“We hope that people who attend our event will get a snapshot of Caribbean culture and get a feel for how an event like this would be in that part of the world,” Mary-Anne said.
“Many of us can’t go to the Caribbean on a holiday so we thought why not bring a piece of the Caribbean to this beautiful city Geelong.”
Food options include the famous jerk chicken, jerk pork ribs, curry goat and Jamaican patties in both vegetarian and nonvegetarian options.
The Reggae Fest is on Saturday October 29 at Johnstone Park from noon to 8.30pm.
More information reggaefestau.com/
