Brown’s annual International Festival celebrates culture, connection and a taste of home

On the Sayles stage, a range of student performers entertained the crowd, including East Asian dance performed by members of Brown's Molì Dance Company, and Middle Eastern Levantine folk dance by the Dabke Club.

"Having the chance to express our traditions and express what we do back home is really helpful and helps us feel supported," said sophomore Luciana Chiu Vera from Lima, Peru, who served arroz con leche, a fruity dessert made with purple corn called mazamorra morada, and a chicken stew called ají de gallina.

For Ukrainian undergraduates Olha Burdeina and Sofiia Kozynets, who donned traditional embroidered shirts called vyshyvanka, the festival offered both an opportunity to share some traditional foods and customs, and a chance to experience the rich array of cultures represented across the student body.

"I like the multicultural perspective and the ability to represent my country and to showcase that Ukraine is much more than just the war-torn country that is fighting for freedom and democracy - it's also about these cultural traditions that we want to share with other people and connect with other students," said Burdeina, a junior.

The lure of the free, homemade food and entertainment drew hundreds of students to the event, some of whom queued outside the doors ahead of the start of the festival on Saturday morning, noted Syrina Robinson, program coordinator for Global Brown, who checked Brown IDs and handed out meal tickets as students arrived.