Last week we headed to the University of North Carolina Greensboro (UNCG) campus to check out a special event, and while we were there, we stumbled upon another – a very fun one:
iFest, an international festival set up outdoors and hosted by internationals from all over the world.
There were dozens of booths, some manned by organizations, others manned by students from a single country or by a few from neighboring countries. My Big Helper loved exploring this South Korean booth because the hosts had games, crafts and food for her to try.
The Israeli booth was another fun one. With a two-part trivia game designed to test your knowledge, the students gave candy away as prizes and were liberal with their hints so that everyone would win – both the sweet treats and some new information about their home.
The people at the Polish/Ukraine table were answering questions about their countries and had a variety of fun foods to try – the pierogis and some sort of poppyseed swirl bread being my favorites. One girl would ask your name and then draw it in Cyrillic. I say ‘draw’ because her movements looked much more like drawing than writing to me, and the finished product is absolutely beautiful. When finished, she rolled it up and tied a ribbon around it, sending each person home with their own unique scroll.
iFest is a wonderful event. We didn’t have enough time to visit every booth, and the day’s extreme wind made some visits difficult – but the Middle Eastern clothing was beautiful, delicious food aromas were coming from every angle, and the square was filled with the sounds of exotic music, to which people were dancing on a distant stage. This is a great way for natives to teach about their home countries and for us all to learn a little bit about other cultures – because in the end, everyone was proud of their home and happy to share pieces of it.
Want to learn about other cultures but don’t have an iFest near you? Check out these great resources!
