Beginning with a parade of brightly colored flags from all over the globe, the rain-soaked International Street Fair ended International Week at Ohio University on Saturday.
Despite the many cultures present in Athens, the international scene at OU remains under the radar for some.
I still meet people who have no idea how many internationals there are in Athens
said Alan Boyd, the former director of International Student and Faculty Services at OU.
It [the street fair] provides a platform for everyone to experience new people and new cultures said Zhang Mengying, a sophomore studying international business and marketing.
Raising cultural awareness was the goal of the Chinese Student and Scholar Association, said Mengying, who is also the vice president of CSSA. The association sold traditional Chinese crafts.
Debbie Love represented the Native Peoples Awareness Coalition. During the street fair, the coalition booth was selling hand-made drums and books from speakers who had visited the group previously.
Love, an Athens community member, has been working with the coalition for many years. Although NPAC is a student organization at OU, it boasts many community members, like Love, among its ranks.
Historically, Ohio was a state with a lot of native tribes and people, Love said.
The Peace Corps made its annual appearance at the street fair and while its booth sold food, the main objective of the Peace Corps was to get information out. This is partly because next year there will be no recruiter on OU's campus, said Judy Gregg, a Peace Corps volunteer from Athens.
Leticia Laryea, a graduate student studying African studies, showed off beautiful beaded jewelry and batik and tie-dyed clothing to represent her home country, the Republic of Ghana.
Kente cloth, native to Ghana, also was on display. Kente cloth is a process of sewing small strips of woven fabric together, Laryea said. All of the jewelry for sale was hand-made by Laryea.
We were thrilled with the great turnout despite the rain wrote Gui Guenther, the International Student and Faculty
We really set out to provide a fun environment for OU and Athens community members to explore the world on their own doorstep. We wanted everyone to open their minds to the international presence here at OU and enjoy themselves.
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Culture
Elizabeth Lundblad
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Drummers lead the International Festival parade down Court Street to mark the beginning of Saturday
