Belly dancers and baklava are just samples of what visitors can expect to see at the city's first-ever Building Bridges festival, scheduled on Oct. 26 at West Valley College.

"I'm too excited to be tired," said Fred Armstrong, founder of the idea.

Armstrong has been working for the past several months gathering volunteers for the event and sending out flyers to residents.

"America is a fusion of many cultures," he said. "With United Nations Day occurring in the same week, I figured this would be a good time to celebrate and promote diversity in our community."

Over the past eight months, teachers, youths and hundreds of members from community and religious organizations pulled together and joined heads to make this event possible. What started out as a group of 28 participating clubs and churches quickly grew into a project involving 48 organizations. According to Armstrong, a majority of the growth came from recruiting religious institutions.

"The level of involvement has been phenomenal," Armstrong said. "I did not expect to have such an enthusiastic response from the community."

The event will kick off at 11 a.m. with the Saratoga Sister City Japanese Taiko Drummers and a flag march by the Girl Scouts and the Boy Scouts. Following will be a variety of entertainment, including an Indian dance performance by a local group called the Divanis, a musical ensemble reflecting Chinese culture, a theatrical show by the Saratoga High School French Club, martial arts and belly dancing.

"We have the world coming to our campus," said Jeff Nerney, who is the chairman for the entertainment committee. "It's going to be quite a show."

While eyes and ears may be directed toward the stage, the aroma of ethnic dishes will satiate the palate. According to the chairwoman of the food committee, Maria Drake, there will be a wide variety of food and pastries from different cultures, courtesy of some local restaurants, including Gervais, Bella Saratoga, Willow Street, Andale Taqueria, Blue Rock Shoot, Coffee Lover's Express and International Food Bazaar.

"This is the perfect opportunity for people to try new things and to take advantage of the different cultures in Saratoga," Drake said. "It would even mean a lot to just spend a day together."

Armstrong said he expects the day to run smoothly. He said his only concern is the weather. If it rains, the event will be moved indoors.

The event will take place from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Campus Center on the West Valley College campus. For more information about Building Bridges or to view a map, check out http://www.saratogarotary.org.