Bowling Green resident Kelly Malhall said she has been coming to the Bowling Green International Festival for the past three years and it still hasn’t gotten boring for her.

“There is always so many booths, so many interesting performances, something to buy,” she said. “I just enjoy the atmosphere.”

 The festival was yesterday afternoon at Circus Square Park.           

 As visitors entered the gates and made their way through the maze of booths and stages that took over the downtown park for the day, their senses were met with sights, sounds and smells that they may only have discovered if they had traveled abroad.

 “You wouldn’t think that many countries are here [in Bowling Green], but they are,” said Ashley Smith, a Bowling Green resident. “I learn something new every year.”

 Crowds gathered to watch students in the Aru-Mara Martial Arts Center display their newly acquired skills while lines accumulated to purchase a Greek dish.

 “The food is great,” said Laura Smith, a resident Glasgow, Ky. “There is so much variety.”

Visitors had the option to visit booths and learn about numerous countries from around the world, watch artistic performances and sample an array of international dishes.

“I like seeing the art and the culture,” said Barlow Harlin, a resident of Bowling Green.

“[The festival] brings out a small minority in Bowling Green you don’t see every day.”