International Dinner Review: One World, One Community

Diverse culture, beautiful fashion, delicious food, engaging entertainment and wonderful people.

The 30th Annual International Dinner was the place to be Saturday night. A mirage of culture and colors mixed with the intoxicating aroma of curry-based foods makes for a great night, in my opinion at least!

I want to give a shout out to WSU’s International Services and the International Club for putting on a spectacular event and outdoing themselves year after year. The International Dinner is by far my favorite on-campus event throughout the whole year. I just love the welcoming environment filled with fashion, entertainment, food, and a diverse group of wonderful people. I love that a group of people with many diverse backgrounds and cultures can come together to enjoy an evening of celebrating our differences that bring so much beauty to this campus and community.

Have you ever attended the WSU International Dinner? If not, here is a little run down of what happened at the dinner this year!

Once everyone was ushered in and seated at a table, the night began with a fashion show. International students wore garbs from their home country representing the cultures they come from. Many different countries were represented in the fashion show. I loved this part of the evening because I am amazed by all of the beautiful colors and intricate designs worked into each piece of clothing.

The fashion show was followed by a few performances by international students who presented their artistic work through song, dance, poem, etc. The skills and talents of the students who performed were nothing short of impressive. I found the dancing to be particularly beautiful because I was a dancer for 10 years, so I really enjoyed watching the different styles of dance presented throughout the night.

Halfway through the line of performances, dinner was served! Students in the international club prepare all of the food for the evening. On the menu was a variety of cuisine from many different nations. To list a few, there were curry-based foods such as chole (chickpea curry) and a chicken and olive curry stew. In addition, there was rice (of course), borek (from the country of Turkey), a quinoa salad, iced lemon tea and flan for dessert. The food was absolutely delicious, to say the least. I was particularly proud of myself for eating all of the curry this year! I LOVE curry but I am such a baby when it comes to spicy food. Fortunately for me, I am becoming more tolerant of the spice.

After dinner, there were a few more performances to finish out the night. I loved all of the performances this year, but if I had to pick, I would say that my absolute favorite one was a poem/song performed by a student from South Africa. His voice was remarkable! The poem/song was about his love for his country, Africa, and it was done beautifully. His performance truly represented his heart for his country and the pride he takes in his nation.

All in all, this is by far my favorite event of the year. I have a feeling that many others feel the same way as the event was completely sold out this year! With close to 400 people in attendance, East Hall was vibrant and lively. If you were unable to attend this year’s International Dinner, I would highly recommend that you buy a ticket next year.

I feel that it is important to attend this event as well as other on-campus events put on by WSU International Services and the International Club because they provide great opportunities for you to educate and immerse yourself in other cultures. Although it is awesome to travel all the way across the globe to experience different cultures, I think we are very lucky as WSU students to be able to experience a slice of many different cultures, at one time, in one place! After all, the theme of the International Dinner this year was “One World, One Community.” Join us, as we continue to come together as one world and one community right here on the campus of WSU!