International Extravaganza

The other night our local college hosted an International Education Week Celebration, we decided to check it out. We were quite impressed--there were rows of tables, each presenting a different country of the world. The tables were filled with maps, information, cultural crafts, and FOOD. (Trevor was on board as soon as I mentioned there would be food there!)

I had no idea there were so many international students participating in the college's programs. I was fascinated by the broad range of countries represented: Haiti, Germany, Egypt, El Salvador, Dominican Republic, Ethiopia...

I searched for Portugal with no luck, but finally found a table showcasing Brasil! I met a nice Senhora from Brasil as I was waiting for the students to return to their post, and it was wonderful to chat it up with my Portuguese accent (quite different than Brazilian portuguese). Once the students returned, they were pretty busy handing out risoes and bolos de queijo (yum.yum.yum.). I waited for awhile & then just decided to sneak in the back of the table & chat with one of presenters.

I learned that there are 4 Brazilian students attending the college here and they are really enjoying themselves. We laughed at the different words we used (portugal/brasil differences) and talked about the only Brazilian restaurant around here that we know about (Minneapolis has one called Fogo de Chao that is really expensive, haven't tried it yet). It was AWE.SOME.

My little Portuguese heart was so happy!

I also got a gorgeous henna design on my hand (just now fading away, a week later) by a very sweet Indian woman.

The festival also included performances by some of the international groups--it was fascinating! I can't get enough of the music, smells, tastes, and languages of this world--just beautiful.

Our last stop was a visit with this Hmong family:

The littlest girl & J were getting to know each other, while I peppered the older girls with questions about their elaborate costumes and their culture. One of the most interesting things about the Hmong people is that they "have no country" as she explained to us. They once lived in what is now known as China, until the Chinese kicked them out. Then they were in Thailand & Laos but they are not welcome in those countries either. There are many Hmong families (many came/are coming as refugees) in central Wisconsin, so I am learning a little bit about their story as we spend more time here.