Embarrassing to admit, we got a bit lost looking for Great Denmark Street in Dublin. By the time we found the O'Reilly Hall at Belvedere College we were half an hour late.
On the way we looked for directions from a Chinese man, a German man and an African woman. The latter patiently explained the most efficient way to get there while her husband and two children looked on. I wonder if they were thinking what I was thinking. That the scenario kind of summed up where we are now. A so-called foreigner with 100 tiny plaits in her hair telling a so-called Dubliner where to go.
Geography was never was my strongest point. And while I'm on the subject I'd like to point out that the writer of the play Doubt, John Patrick Shanley, is not from Brooklyn, as I incorrectly wrote last week, but from the Bronx. Brooklyn was Arthur Miller's neck of the woods; the Bronx can claim Shanley and J-Lo. Thanks to Ivan for the e-mail tip-off on that one.
Anyway, we eventually made it to the O'Reilly Hall, rushed in and bought tickets for the Most Beautiful African Girl in Ireland contest. We needn't have bothered rushing. Turns out Africans are even worse timekeepers than the Irish, and just as we got settled in our seats an apologetic voice over the Tannoy requested that we leave the auditorium and come back later.
In the meantime we had a chat with our new friend John Jamal, who works for City Channel, presenting African Eye, a programme that goes out five times a week. He introduced us to a couple of his friends. I just got a regular handshake, but my boyfriend was given a full-on soul-brother shake, which, not having been exposed to such a thing in the part of the Portadown hood where he grew up, he fluffed. I know it's not exactly loyal, but I have to admit this cultural exchange was hilarious to watch.
A patient John Jamal took him through it later, though, and now, thank goodness, he's totally up to speed, right down to the little chest-patting move at the end. A soul brother in the shaking.
A couple of hours after the advertised time, the contest kicked off. We might have been on Great Denmark Street, but with all that colour and warmth it felt like deepest Africa. It's only when you attend an event like this that you realise how shy we Irish are about moving our bodies away from the strict confines of the dance floor. It's that fear of making a show of ourselves. The audience of African men, women and children were out of their seats at the first blast of music, making a complete and highly entertaining show of themselves.
As a rule, the front row of a beauty pageant would not be my ideal place to spend a Saturday night. In future I intend to make an exception for African beauty pageants. When the contestants appeared, barefoot and wearing traditional dress, they strutted around the stage as if they owned it. And there was no I-think-we-all-deserve-the- crown Miss World or Rose of Tralee-style nonsense. Instead Tina Akinola, the event's organiser and commentator, explained that someone called, say, Princess "believes in her heart she will win tonight". And she wasn't the only one.
These women - curvy, skinny, tall, short - oozed confidence and self-love and said things like "As you can see, I keep very fit going to the gym" during the highly enjoyable sportswear section, which was sexier than any swimwear display - especially when contestants mimed shooting hoops or cheerleading or acing their first serve.
The contest was also a chance for young African rappers, singers and dancers to perform on stage for the first time. It made you imagine a day, probably not too far away, when a made-in-Ireland Jay-Z or Kanye West will make it on the international stage.
During a break in the show, John Jamal told me about a weekly TV programme he is trying to set up. He has an idea for an intercultural chat show that he hopes will be a platform for the diverse range of voices now heard here, as well as being a showcase for upcoming talent from these growing communities. He's having trouble finding support for the idea, so I said I'd mention it.
As for the Most Beautiful African Girl In Ireland contest, I'm sure some huge sponsor will get on board and the show will become slicker than a soul-brother shake. For now, though, it's a deliciously haphazard romp through the best of African Ireland.
The eventual winner was a towering 19-year-old singer and sometime model from Nigeria called Nofe Liberty. Her name says it all.
For more information e-mail events@city.ie