All eyes will be looking upward on Saturday, March 9, when the Pakistan Information and Cultural Organization (PICO) sponsors its 17th annual Kite Flying Festival, “Basant Mela,” in Fountain Park.

Admission is free from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

“Basant Mela” is celebrated at the end of winter in Pakistan, India and China to welcome spring.

This gathering is the state’s largest kite festival. Visitors can enjoy authentic Pakistani food, music, children’s activities, arts and crafts, henna/mehndi applications, jewelry and apparel.

The true stars of the day are the kites, some imported from Pakistan. Kites can be purchased for $5 to $7. Participants also can bring their own kites.

If you don’t know how to fly a kite, experts will assist novices in getting their kite in the sky.

Expert kite flyers will demonstrate three-kite fights as featured in the Movie, Kite Runner, at noon, 2 and 4 p.m.

Kites are normally one foot by four feet in diameter. Many come in various shapes, such as butterflies, airplanes and birds.

An estimated 2,000 attended last year’s festival when the wind did not cooperate in lifting the kites.