Activities to mark the second week of Culture and Tourism Month is expected to be filled with excitement as BVI LIT Fest fires up with discussions and schools across the Territory celebrate their traditional culture week.

Minister for Education, Culture, Youth Affairs, Fisheries and Agriculture, Dr. the Honourable Natalio D. Wheatley expressed his excitement for the week by acknowledging the accomplishments and talent of the panel participants and the expected fruitful discussions.

He stated that the week is filled with panel discussions geared towards fiction, essay writing, poetry and non-fiction. These panels are titled:

•           The Virgin Islands Magic Fiction

•           The First Tongues Poetry

•           Enter/Delete: Craft and Technique Essay

•           The Unseen: Race and Gender in VI Societies Nonfiction Talk

Culture and Tourism Month began with an opening ceremony featuring Virgin Islands Poet Laureate, Dr. Richard Georges who gave his annual address. Dancers of Nouveau also performed an ensemble which was the re-introduction of a traditional dance called the “Comfoo”.

BVI Lit Fest features renowned regional and international literary artists and the continuation of panel discussions. The week will culminate with cultural food fairs around the Territory on Friday, November 10. The fair on Virgin Gorda will be held at the Bregado Flax Educational Centre School Grounds from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. The event on Jost Van Dyke will be held at the Albert H. Chinnery Administration Building from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. while on Tortola, the venue will be the Cyril B. Romney Tortola Pier Park from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Persons can contact the Department of Culture at 468-4379 or 468-9912 for more information on the remaining activities for the month.

The second annual Culture and Tourism Month in November is being observed under the theme, “Our Heritage, our People, our Cultural Arts! When Culture meets Tourism, we Capture all Hearts.”