Celebration of cultures find GCSU
The twenty-third annual International Dinner was held on March 8, and was a sold-out event. The event was put on by GCSU’s International Club. The hungry crowd more than filled Magnolia Ballroom, with over 300 people in attendance. The attendees ranged from students, faculty members and other residents of Milledgeville, who all wanted a taste of international dishes they might never taste again.
The ballroom was adorned with the flags of the home countries of each participant, filling the room with a variety of colors. They also prepared a slide show that cycled through fun facts and trivia about the world.
The people there had a chance to partake in over 35 different dishes from 40 countries. There were foods such as Kukhuru ko Masu, a chicken stew from Nepal, and chole, an Indian dish with chickpeas, curry and other herbs and spices. Some other countries represented were Spain, Jamaica, Argentina and Kyrgyzstan.
The food was not the only draw for the event. The dinner guests were entertained by dances from around the world. The show opened with a traditional Romanian dance performed by Adela Valcea. Six members of the Salsa Club performed a dance to a Marc Anthony song, “Valio la Pena.” Another dance was performed by freshman Andrea Valera, who did an Arabic belly dance.
In addition, there were also some African dances, including Coupe Decale, an energetic dance from the Ivory Coast. Another dance was from South Africa, called the African Tale Dance, which was used to tell a story.
Another group performed a storytelling piece, “Spring in my Heart.” Elena Andreyeva danced as Ekaterina Zaynullina sang. The song told a story of a girl with a broken heart and her emotional experience.
Other students played musical pieces. One such piece was performed by two students who played Paul McCartney’s “Imagine,” one playing a traditional Chinese instrument, the erhu, which she has played since the age of 11 and the other accompanying on clarinet.
The International Club members also put on a fashion show of traditional dress. Several students from India and Bangladesh wore saris, while some African students showed their dresses for special occasions. Some other outfits shown were Japanese kimonos for both men and women, and other formal outfits from Colombia, South Korea and Belize.
The International Club members had been working very hard before the event, cooking, setting up and rehearsing.
“It’s always interesting and fun because you’re working with people from other cultures,” said International Club advisor Libby Davis.
The kitchen of Northside Baptist Church was filled with the makings for a delicious dinner. The aroma of spices, not found in Milledgeville, wafted through the air as they prepared food. Ingredients ranged from the Wal-Mart staples of oats, tomato sauce and sugar, to the more exotic items of masala, an Indian spice blend, and ghee, a clarified butter that is also an Indian ingredient.
“Last Saturday, we took a day to shop in Atlanta,” said senior biology major Rishwa Patel. They went to DeKalb Farmer’s Market and some international stores in the Atlanta area.
Outside the kitchen, some students were busy preparing a Japanese dish called ginger pork sauté, which consists of the title ingredients of ginger and pork, and some onions, soy sauce and sake. Others were in the kitchen cooking samaki, an entrée consisting of stewed tilapia and mandazi, an eastern African bread dish.
Although cooking everything might seem complicated, most of the dishes are not hard to make.
“It’s not difficult, I do it all the time for myself,” said Lillian Awiti, a junior nursing major from Kenya.
After all the hard work of the club’s members, the dinner was a great success. The proceeds from ticket sales will go toward the Global Scholars’ Fund, which helps pay for students who study abroad.
Posted by Colonnade Archives
on Mar 14 2008. Filed under Features.
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