CISA Cultural Fair will give you a taste of the world
by Michelle Gamage
The only thing better than stuffing yourself with delicious food from all corners of the globe is stuffing yourself with free delicious food from all corners of the globe.
The Concordia International Students Association (CISA) is back to host the CISA Cultural Fair on Tuesday, Nov. 25, where the students make, bake, and shake the best food and drink their countries and cultures have to offer.
The goal? Make the best food, have the best presentation, and snag the title of best dressed (in traditional garb).
This is not a competition you want to miss out on.
Students pair up and form teams with other Concordians from their homelands and work with an $80 budget to get as creative as they can to bring you the most delicious fare their culture has to offer. The whole event is one giant celebration of food, drink, and all the different cultures that create our student body.
Last year the CISA Cultural Fair was hosted on the seventh floor of the Hall building. Students were packed in amongst proudly hung flags, musical beats and melodies from around the world, and intoxicating sweet and savory smells from endless dishes. Everyone loaded up their plates, tried some new foods and learned about new cultures from their fellow students.
This year will be much the same, with 12 teams: Spain, France, Ukraine, Israel, Colombia, Brazil, China, Morocco, Iraq, Hong Kong, Pakistan, and Greece all cooking up something of their own.
“It’’s a fun activity for students to share a bit of their unique cultures and traditions,” said CISA Co-president Katerina Monda. “It’s all about encouraging student involvement, getting people to learn and eat and have fun all around.”
So put down the books for a couple of hours, wear some loose-fitting pants, and come and load up your plate.
Stuff your face at the CISA Culture Fair today, Tuesday, Nov. 25 from 12 to 3 p.m. on the seventh floor of the Hall building.
Absolutely Free Market—Clothing Swap proves that sharing (and shopping!) is caring
by Sara Baron-Goodman
If you haven’t had your fill of free things yet (and let’s face it, can you ever have too much free stuff?), head over to the seventh floor of the Hall building on Thursday for a shopping trip which won’t leave you with crippling credit card debt, and will help raise your karma score!
The Absolutely Free Market will be hosted by the Concordia Greenhouse, CJLO and the Concordia Student Union, in conjunction with Fripe-Prix Renaissance as part of their Anti-Consumerism Week this week.
Students are encouraged to weed through their wardrobes and donate anything they don’t want anymore by dropping it off at one of the swap donation bins until Wednesday. Then, on Thursday, all donated items will be quite literally up for grabs.
Bins are located downtown at the Hive, the CSU office (H-711) and at the Loyola Hive location. CJLO is adding a musical element to the exchange by asking that students bring in old vinyl records to exchange.
All unclaimed items will be donated to Fripe-Prix Renaissance, so rest assured nothing will go to waste.
“We have various goals for this event,” said Sheena Swirlz, Greenhouse Services Coordinator and head of the Montreal Swap Club, a group which puts on similar swap events every month throughout the city. “We want to promote community and the act of gathering to both socialize and reduce shopping, encourage recycling, taking unwanted things and saving them from going to the dumpster, and challenging the hyper-consumerism of today’s society.”
So, take a few minutes to purge your closet of those slightly-too-small jeans you were hoping to squeeze back into, that tacky wool sweater your grandmother gave you for Christmas three years ago, or your ex’s T-shirt you never quite gave back. Your trash could very well be another Concordian’s treasure—and vice versa!
The Absolutely Free Market will be held Thursday from 1 to 4 p.m on the seventh floor of the Hall building.
