Almond Blossom Festival
Encyclopedia
The Willunga Almond Blossom Festival is an annual arts, social, and entertainment festival
held every year for a week beginning on the last weekend in July in Willunga, South Australia
, Australia
.
cultivation was the community's main source of revenue
, and the spectacle
of over 1300 acres of pink and white almond blossoms attracted increasing numbers of visitors throughout the month of July. Capitalizing on the tourism
, the people of the Willunga District began the festival in 1969 to raise money to replace the old Willunga Town Hall and other facilities. Over several weeks, dozens of buses toured the district's hundreds of acres of blossom.
Initially, Devonshire teas, consisting of homemade scones and jam, were provided by the Willunga High School. Within a few years, the Festival week became so popular that over 500 barbecue
lunches a day were being cooked by the local Lions Club along with a similar number of Devonshire teas. Locals baked cakes and made sandwiches
, and volunteers participated in the cleanup effort. Homemade almond soup
became the trademark Willunga Festival delicacy
.
of the festival was the Festival Ball
and the crowning of the Almond Blossom Queen. The first Almond Blossom Festival Balls were held in the Old Town Hall, which quickly became inadequate for the 600 or more attendees at the Ball. Participants raised money though dinners, fashion
parades, street vendor stalls and raffles. Later, Miss Almond Blossom and Miss Charity were chosen at a cocktail party
prior to the Ball with the help of VIP
judge
s.
The South Australian Tourist Bureau eventually established the last week of July as the official time for the annual festival. The festival's parade
has become one of the largest street parades in South Australia.
Festival
A festival or gala is an event, usually and ordinarily staged by a local community, which centers on and celebrates some unique aspect of that community and the Festival....
held every year for a week beginning on the last weekend in July in Willunga, South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
History
In the mid 1960s, almondAlmond
The almond , is a species of tree native to the Middle East and South Asia. Almond is also the name of the edible and widely cultivated seed of this tree...
cultivation was the community's main source of revenue
Revenue
In business, revenue is income that a company receives from its normal business activities, usually from the sale of goods and services to customers. In many countries, such as the United Kingdom, revenue is referred to as turnover....
, and the spectacle
Spectacle
In general, spectacle refers to an event that is memorable for the appearance it creates. Derived in Middle English from c. 1340 as "specially prepared or arranged display" it was borrowed from Old French spectacle, itself a reflection of the Latin spectaculum "a show" from spectare "to view,...
of over 1300 acres of pink and white almond blossoms attracted increasing numbers of visitors throughout the month of July. Capitalizing on the tourism
Tourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
, the people of the Willunga District began the festival in 1969 to raise money to replace the old Willunga Town Hall and other facilities. Over several weeks, dozens of buses toured the district's hundreds of acres of blossom.
Initially, Devonshire teas, consisting of homemade scones and jam, were provided by the Willunga High School. Within a few years, the Festival week became so popular that over 500 barbecue
Barbecue
Barbecue or barbeque , used chiefly in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, New Zealand and Australia is a method and apparatus for cooking meat, poultry and occasionally fish with the heat and hot smoke of a fire, smoking wood, or hot coals of...
lunches a day were being cooked by the local Lions Club along with a similar number of Devonshire teas. Locals baked cakes and made sandwiches
Sandwiches
"Sandwiches" is a song by American electronic band Detroit Grand Pubahs. It reached number 29 in the Hot Dance Club Songs chart.- Track listing :...
, and volunteers participated in the cleanup effort. Homemade almond soup
Soup
Soup is a generally warm food that is made by combining ingredients such as meat and vegetables with stock, juice, water, or another liquid. Hot soups are additionally characterized by boiling solid ingredients in liquids in a pot until the flavors are extracted, forming a broth.Traditionally,...
became the trademark Willunga Festival delicacy
Delicacy
A delicacy is a food item that is considered highly desirable in certain cultures. Often this is because of unusual flavors or characteristics or because it is rare....
.
Festival Ball
The highlightHighlight
Highlight may refer to:* In photography, any of the brightest parts of a subject, in contraposition to "shadow"* An especially significant or interesting detail or phenomenon.Highlight is also used in the following expressions:...
of the festival was the Festival Ball
Ball
A ball is a round, usually spherical but sometimes ovoid, object with various uses. It is used in ball games, where the play of the game follows the state of the ball as it is hit, kicked or thrown by players. Balls can also be used for simpler activities, such as catch, marbles and juggling...
and the crowning of the Almond Blossom Queen. The first Almond Blossom Festival Balls were held in the Old Town Hall, which quickly became inadequate for the 600 or more attendees at the Ball. Participants raised money though dinners, fashion
Fashion
Fashion, a general term for a currently popular style or practice, especially in clothing, foot wear, or accessories. Fashion references to anything that is the current trend in look and dress up of a person...
parades, street vendor stalls and raffles. Later, Miss Almond Blossom and Miss Charity were chosen at a cocktail party
Cocktail party
A cocktail party is a party where cocktails are served. Women may choose to wear what has become known as a cocktail dress.Although many believe the inventor of the cocktail party to be Alec Waugh of London, who in 1924 found a need for this pleasant interlude before a dinner party, an article in...
prior to the Ball with the help of VIP
VIP
VIP and V.I.P. is a three-letter acronym that may refer to:-In general:* Vacuum insulated panel* Values, Influence, and Peers, an anti-crime campaign in Ontario elementary schools* Variable Information Printing, a form of on-demand printing...
judge
Judge
A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as part of a panel of judges. The powers, functions, method of appointment, discipline, and training of judges vary widely across different jurisdictions. The judge is supposed to conduct the trial impartially and in an open...
s.
The South Australian Tourist Bureau eventually established the last week of July as the official time for the annual festival. The festival's parade
Parade
A parade is a procession of people, usually organized along a street, often in costume, and often accompanied by marching bands, floats or sometimes large balloons. Parades are held for a wide range of reasons, but are usually celebrations of some kind...
has become one of the largest street parades in South Australia.