International Fair

Yesterday we were informed by leadership that in the evening, there was a special event happening at Colby-Sawyer College (New London and surrounding areas' largest college). Every year Colby-Sawyer hosts an international fair where students of various ethnicities set up displays to share more about their countries and cultures. I jumped at the idea of going, as I love learning more about other cultures, and even more than that I love the chance to learn words, even if they're in other languages!

We got there at about quarter to 7 PM. Unfortunately, the displays were only set up for 5 PM - 7 PM, so I didn't have much time to learn about many of the countries. The first table I stopped by was the Iranian table. I spent about 5 minutes talking to the woman there about various Iranian anecdota, which included everything from Iranian caviar to learning about Iranian currency. She showed me several different rials, Iran's national currency, and even let me keep two! Before she left, she taught me how to say God Bless You in Farsi, Iran's national language. It is written like this in Farsi: خدا بركت دهد )م.ل.( It is pronounced Hoe-dah Haw-fez, and the H sound that we have in English for the first word is slightly changed - the easiest way to describe it is that you pronounce the H throatily.

My next stop was at the Turkish table. It was almost 7, so I didn't spend as much time at this booth. I did get a brief primer on Turkish culture from the woman there, and she was so honored that I expressed genuine interest that she allowed me to keep several Turkish Lira, Turkey's national currency. I then briefly went over to the French table, but the woman had already put almost everything away. I had a quick conversation with her in French (she was surprised at how well I did, as short as it was) and then moved over to the Peruvian table. The dude there was really cool; he let me look for a few minutes at his booth before taking it down, even though it was already past 7. I learned about surfing in Peru; he mentioned the difference in water temperature depending on the region in Peru. Their national currency (Nuevo Sol), translates in English to New Sun. I briefly conversed with him in Spanish, and then went on my way.

I briefly spoke with several women from different African countries, but their booths had already been taken down, so it was more small talk. The gal at the Rwandan table in particular was very kind, and shared a little even though she had nothing really to show anymore. The last table I went to that still had something on it was the Polish table; I made some more small talk and general questions, and then asked for clarification on their national currency. I know from Scrabble that it is zloty (pl. zlotych), but I had no idea how to pronounce it when I asked. I was embarrassed when she corrected me, but she was surprised I even knew what the currency was! Her table had postcards on it, and I happen to collect postcards, so I asked if I could choose one and she said yes. When I asked about zlotych, she told me that I could email her and she would actually give me some zlotych for my collection. Pretty cool!

Samputu and his friends performing

Although we all but missed seeing the displays, we got there just in time for the 2nd half of the fair; one person from each booth from each country said hello with a brief message in both their native language, and then in English. After that, we were in for a special treat. Several people from Rwanda were set to perform for us through singing and dancing their cultural songs. Samputu was the name of the guy who did most of the talking between songs and all of the singing; he clearly had an incredible musical gifting. His voice was so pure and resonating - it took me right into his culture, as he sang in both Kinyarwanda (Rwanda's national language) and English. He told the crowd that for all of their songs, they try to sing in multiple languages, but Kinyarwanda and English were the two he interchanged the most. During one song he called up the Rwandan woman who I had spoken to earlier; he asked her to dance while he sang. The way she moved was hypnotic; one couldn't help but follow her every step and swing. Halfway through the song, another Rwandan man joined her in her dance, and he was just as good!

One of Samputu's last songs was called "Children Are the Future"; he said that it is requested of him to sing it, more than any other song. As soon as he released the first note from his mouth, my heart melted; the power and passion from the song was immediately present. Interestingly, the Kinyarwandan portions of the song felt more powerful to me than the English parts. I'm believing more and more than when someone prays or sings in their native language, God's power is even more present.

For the song following "Children are the Future", Samputu excitedly proclaimed that it was now his turn to dance! He had another Rwandan man come up to sing while he danced. Samputu was also fairly good at dancing - that really didn't surprise me though, as he was so clearly gifted. He then told us that it was OUR turn to dance! Abby Webb (Michigan) was one of the first to get up after he said that - it was obvious she was really enjoying the whole experience. After taking a few pictures, I joined in with the dancers. Samputu sang the whole song in Kinyarwanda. When the song was done, Samputu told us that the Kinyarwandan song title means "Time to Dance" in English. How appropriate!

I was definitely disappointed at first that we missed the displays for the most part, but the Rwandans definitely made up for that disappointment with the show that they put on. My desire to eventually internationally travel has been renewed!

Various flags of countries at the fair