This past Friday the SIS was pleased to host its first Cultural Hour. At approximately 2:00 p.m. students arrived and were eager to find out what Cultural Hour was all about. The Cultural Hour started off of by introducing the SIS officers, followed by introducing the 10 Belizean students present
Belizean students from Corozal, Orange Walk, Belize City and Belmopan!
After introductions, a video created by one of the Belizean students, Jason Castillo, was shown. The video was a compilation of people, culture, and music from Belize. It displayed traditional music, and featured popular tourist attractions such as Mayan sites and the great barrier reef. Dj Karlo, also from Belize, was entertaining guests with traditional music throughout the Cultural Hour. Next, students were given a description of the food provided. Garnaches was the main entree, which is made with a fried corn tortilla then topped with re-fried beans. Once the beans are pasted on the tortilla you can garnish it with onion or cabbage sauce, and lastly you add crumbled cheese. This food is typical to the Mestizo culture and is a popular street food sold all over Belize. Garnaches are eaten with the hands and usually eaten for dinner in most Belizean homes. The dessert provided were bread and rice pudding. Both desserts are some of the typical desserts eaten in Belize.
Students making Garnaches
After guests enjoyed the scrumptious treats they were asked to return to their seats so that they can ask about questions they were interested in knowing about the country. Students were eager to know about the different ethnic groups in Belize such as Mestizo, Creole, Garifuna, Chinese and East Indian. They were also interested in the different sports played, which include: soccer, baseball, basketball, volleyball and cricket. This portion of the Cultural Hour encouraged the sharing of experiences and participation among students.
Students from Korea, Belize and Honduras at Cultural Hour
All in all, the SIS is pleased to say that the first Cultural Hour was a success and we will be preparing for the second one in 2 weeks. We would like to thank everyone who attended, we encourage you to share your experience and let us know all about it. The SIS would like to thank everyone who helped with preparations, setup and clean up. We look forward to have very successful Cultural Hours throughout the semester.
