焦点节将文化带入生活

Emilie Jenson, Public Information Office
4/10/2024

Anyone stepping into the Triton Café on Wednesday had the opportunity to experience fun facts and flavors from around the world without leaving the Iowa Central Campus during the 35^th Annual Focus International Festival of Nations.

Displays from more than 25 countries were set up around the café and conference room for viewing featuring landmarks, facts, food, and other tidbits of information about each presenter’s country of choice.

Sophomore Ash Wacholtz’s country of choice for the day was Poland. 她穿着姐姐亲手制作的波兰传统民俗服装，分享了她最喜欢的波兰方面，从波兰饺子pierogis到华沙美人鱼（Syrenka Warszawska）。

“I had the opportunity to spend about a month in Poland while my sister lived there,” said Wacholtz. 这件衣服上的四条缎带代表她在那里度过的四年。

Wacholz说她也很喜欢美人鱼的传说，以及这个神秘的海洋生物如何成为这个国家希望和自由的象征。

爱荷华中央烹饪学院的学生有机会运用他们的技能，准备了代表德国的腌鲱鱼沙拉样品； 橙汁金枪鱼，代表墨西哥； 还有代表法国的小牛肉配米饭。

烹饪专业的学生考伊·休贝克说，他和同学们从他们为柳树岭的每周国际菜单之夜准备的一些菜肴中获得了灵感。

“We’ve had herring and veal on our menus before, so these are smaller versions of that,” said Hugeback. “It’s been fun to create and taste foods from different countries.”

Ke’Waun Stone was inspired by a love of anime, which led him to create a poster on Japan and the various forms of the art, as well as Japanese food, language and culture.

“I’ve always been a huge Anime fan,” he said. “I know a lot of students here with the same interest, so I knew they’d appreciate it. I’ve learned a lot more about the Japanese culture and food, too.”

来自墨西哥的国际学生Paulina Can介绍了她的祖国，并展示了墨西哥流行的饮料和糖果。

“I wanted to share my home country,” said Can. “I like teaching others the culture and who Mexico is as a country.”

除了海报和演讲外，大西餐厅还为所有学生，员工和客人提供了国际主题午餐，其中包括墨西哥，印度，英国和肯尼亚的特色菜肴。

出席焦点节的国家包括索马里、墨西哥、巴哈马、津巴布韦、斐济、英国、南非、巴西、中国、法国、波兰、贝宁、印度、沙特阿拉伯、加拿大、阿根廷、越南、匈牙利、日本、科特迪瓦、挪威、哥斯达黎加、哥伦比亚和乌拉圭。

“We’re very happy with the turnout today,” said Jessica Butterfield Bailey, festival coordinator. “It’s a great way to celebrate cultures and countries from around the world and especially highlight our international students and their countries and traditions.”