A group of boys rushed to the Ukraine table to examine a woodenmase while girls headed to the Thailand table to look at a silkshawl.
"Seeing this display of cultural items is exciting and new forthem," Chamnarn Tirapas, a graduate student from Thailand, said."They exclaim ... how the items are homemade as if they cannotbelieve it.
The elementary-school students were touring the annualInternational Festival, which displayed items, such as paintedfigurines from China and sombreros from Mexico, from 30 countriesthis weekend.
"We try to present objects that people may be somewhat familiarwith so that they they will recognize the objects and want to learnmore about them," Tirapas said. "We want them to ask questionsbecause questions bring answers and understanding."
Prasad Andhavarapu attended the festival to help studentsunderstand Indian culture through the display of silk sarees,engraved jewelery boxes, photos of the Taj Mahal and writings ofGandhi.
"There is so much to show about India," Andhavarapu said. "It issuch a rich culture, and I am here to give everyone a chance tolearn a little more about it."
Each booth offered language lessons and culinary items tosample, including seaweed crackers from Thailand, sweet bread fromHaiti, caviar from Sweden and coconut balls from Norway.
"There are so many different cultures here and in the world,"Xuesong Shen, an exchange student from China, said. "It would bedifficult for people to learn everything about them in such a shorttime, but this gives them a taste. It makes people more aware andmore willing to learn more."
The presenters stressed that the goal of the festival was topromote understanding and respect of other cultures.
"Everybody is looking for a peaceful world," Shen said. "If youdo not know other people's backgrounds then you cannot understandthem. The first step is communicating with people from othercultures. This is what we are doing here. We are trying to makepeople want to learn more so that they can understand more."
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