The first Friday of the Festival marked some extra special events. We welcomed Perú: Pachamama’s first four-legged participants: five alpacas from Maryland

The 2015 Smithsonian Folklife Festival opened today with the flare of woolen skirts and the roar of a hundred hand drums. Our Opening Ceremony for the Perú: Pachamama program took place in the National Museum of the American Indian’s Rasmuson Theater

Crowd favorites Ih Tsetsn often got audiences at Moonrise Pavilion hopping, stomping, and spinning with this upbeat love song, "The Handsome Horse."

In a workshop about traditional percussion instruments of Kenya, performers representing the neighboring Luo and Luhya people compared their ohangla and isikuti drums, respectively.

Early visitors to the Folklife Festival Thursday morning were greeted with a “Karibuni!” at the Karibuni Workshop Stage.

Have you noticed the resource recovery stations at the Folklife Festival, with bins for compost, recycling, and landfill waste?

Starting today, many of our Kenyan participants from the Swahili coast and other predominantly Islamic areas are observing Ramadan.

Bringing the kids to the Smithsonian Folklife Festival this weekend? We have compiled a guide of suggested activities, performances, and foods to try, a youth-oriented introduction to the traditional cultures of Kenya and China!

Every year the Folklife Festival Marketplace features handmade crafts and traditional artwork by participants from the featured programs.

When brainstorming ideas for China program activities at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival, I think we all had the same idea: bike ride!