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11th December 2003 Latin American Fiesta I would not normally describe Kensington Town Hall as a place pulsating with salsa rhythms. But on a bleak Saturday when the driving rain told us all too clearly that this was England, inside our civic headquarters, the Latins had taken over. This was the annual fiesta of the Anglo Latin American Foundation, and a huge crowd had battled through the greyness and the wet to discover a world of colour and warmth inside. The vestibule to the Great Hall had been converted into a Latin American street corner, where vendors sat or stood behind bubbling pots offering delicious hot foods from across the region. Were you after a thick and filling paste made of beans, in the style of the old miners of Brazil, or was a fish marinated in limejuice, a Peruvian cebiche, more to your liking? Downstairs was an impressive exhibition by Latin American artists living in Britain, whose pictures carried to London images from life in the Andes or the beaches of Guatemala. The Great Hall itself had turned into a market. Each stall offered the produce of one country, and was decorated with its national colours. Here was Patagonian cheese, and brightly coloured cloths from Paraguay, silver from Bolivia and coffee from Brazil. On the stage was a group of singers and musicians who seemed to represent almost every country from Central and South America, making excellent music that had the shoppers swaying rhythmically between the stands. At least I think it was the music that did that. The alternative explanation was the cocktails offered by each country. After I had accepted a mojito from Cuba, a pisco sour from Peru and a caiparinha from Brazil I was swaying a little myself. In that condition, I fancied myself in a Panama hat and couldn’t resist buying one. It’s not from Panama but from Ecuador, which claims to be the hat’s inventor. I am told I can roll it up into a tube and pack it in my suitcase, then simply unfurl it in pristine condition when I reach my sunny destination. I hope that works! The fiesta raised money for children’s charities in Latin America where there is indeed much poverty and need. As I went around I slowly realised that serving customers at each of the country stalls was the ambassador from that country, leading the team of volunteers. The ambassadors were there in their jeans with rolled up sleeves showing a tremendous commitment to the fundraising efforts of the day. As the son of a Spaniard who speaks the language
reasonably well, I have been surprised how useful my Spanish has been
to me as MP for Kensington and Chelsea. There is a large population in
our area from Spanish- speaking countries. The fiesta demonstrated not
only what a marvellous gift for enjoyment that community has, but also
how effectively their efforts can raise money for an excellent cause.
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