Dance and sing your way through the night while visiting the South Sudanese culture this Folklorama.

Born in South Sudan, Margaret Yanga is the vice president of the Council of South Sudanese Community of Manitoba (CSSCM), which oversees much of the South Sudanese Pavilion. Yanga also acts as the pavilion's culinary chair.

Now, Yanga has lived in Canada for the past 19 years. She immigrated in the year 2000, saying she remembers her childhood in South Sudan fondly.

"It was really nice. We go [sic] to school [in] the city and most of our parents were farmers," she said. Farming and teaching were the main two jobs in her rural community, and Yanga explained that to pursue another form of work, you would have to travel to the city for higher education.

The rural community was Yanga's favourite place to be, however. "There are no boundaries. If you want to play, plenty of land."

A multicultural country, Yanga shared that you are surrounded by various cultures. "We have 64 tribes in South Sudan, and when you go to school, you meet them," she shared. This meant a constant presence of varying traditional clothing and traditions amongst households.

"But at the end of the day, it's the same South Sudan," Yanga says, noting that different cultures even within the country bear significant resemblance to each other.

Yanga grew up speaking two languages: Arabic and English. English, however, remains their primary language for day-to-day interactions, including school, which aided Yanga's eventual transition to Canada.

The circumstances under which Yanga immigrated to Canada, however, were difficult. A refugee, she first traveled to Egypt and then applied to the United Nations in hopes of being accepted into Canada or Australia.

"The only thing was the snow," Yanga said, smiling, upon their arrival in Canada. "The snow was new to us because we don't have snow, we have all summer."

The snow posed little problem compared to the welcome they received upon entering the country. "We love it ... as soon as we came, Canada embraced us with two hands," shared the former refugee.

Opportunities seemed to abound in Yanga's new country. She is grateful for the chance at good work, good quality of life, and access to education and health care.

"At home, my kids speak my language ... we tried to teach our children our language so when they go home they'll catch up with the grandparents," she shared when asked how she has kept her culture alive here in Canada. Traditions such as dancing are also incredibly important to South Sudanese culture.

Political divide leaves Yanga saddened that she cannot return home to visit her family, but the former refugee holds on to hope that one day, she will be able to return to visit where she grew up with her own children.

In the meantime, the CSSCM has offered a strong cultural community for Yanga and her family to take part in; a community exemplified and celebrated at Folklorama celebrations.

 Visit the South Sudanese Pavilion this week until Saturday, August 17 at the Sudanese Community Cultural & Resource Centre (129 Dagmar Street).