It’s not often that you can learn the best way to kill a quail, ride a camel or chase a sheep in one evening.
Northwestern students who have either studied or lived abroad were encouraged to share stories of their living experiences Saturday night at a dinner hosted by the International Community Celebration.
Shruti Ganguly, a Communication junior from Oman, told the crowd about her experience racing a camel in the desert with friends.
Her camel wasn’t moving as quickly as the others, so she kicked it, and it darted into a stranger’s farm.
“All my friends were going the opposite direction,” Ganguly said as the crowd laughed. “Let’s just say that was my last camel race.”
Other students shared stories of navigating through the slums of Calcutta, visiting tourist attractions in Switzerland and spending five days alone in the jungle as part of training for the Singapore army training.
“You don’t know what’s going on,” said Tsun En Tan, a McCormick sophomore, of his survival training in Singapore. “I learned if you want to kill a quail, it’s easiest to rip its head off. If you want to know how to survive in the jungle, ask me.”
Weinberg senior Joseph Bubman, a former Daily columnist said he tries to include as many students as possible in the event.
Bubman and Weinberg senior Paul Barry started the group last spring with the goal of bringing international and American students together in a casual setting, said Bubman, who hosted the dinner at his apartment.
He said he was inspired to host the dinners last spring, after returning from his study abroad experience in Scotland.
“I came back more interested in meeting people from different backgrounds,” Bubman said.
Bubman said he also was strongly influenced by an American man living in Paris who has held weekly dinners for international visitors for more than 25 years, attracting about 100,000 guests.
Barry said his groups attracts students only through word-of-mouth and e-mails sent by students who had previously attended. He said this informal idea attracted many students, including three from Africa who attended a party last spring.
“The African kids said it was really nice because they had been invited to someone’s home,” Bubman said.
Saturday night’s dinner attracted students from Singapore, Germany, Oman, China and Taiwan.
Participants said they enjoyed the group’s diversity and the initiatives the co-founders took in starting the organization.
“I’m really impressed with the idea,” said Tamara Kagel, ASG academic vice president and a Communication junior. “They’re the type of people who go out and do what everyone talks about doing.”
Elizabeth Liu, a Weinberg sophomore, attended the event as a member of the Multicultural Center Advisory Board. Because ICC is applying for seed status within the Multicultural Center, Liu came to see how the group operated. Seed status would grant ICC privileges within the Multicultural Center.
“I’m actually really impressed, because it is just by word-of-mouth,” Liu said. “This is so diverse.”
