The International Club and RLA host the annual International Food Tasting

Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Ghana, Rwanda, Vietnam, Mexico and Honduras, these were only a few of the 20 plus countries represented in the Student Center Ballroom on Saturday night.
About 200 students, faculty, staff and community members attended Saturday night’s International Food Tasting Gala, to show their support for CSC’s international students and try foods from around the world.
The international club and RLA joined together to host a night of food and cultural celebration complete with dishes prepared by the international students, performances, a fashion show, and a bit of dancing.
Yen Nguyen, 20, sophomore of Hanoi, Vietnam, prepared a Vietnamese chicken salad, called nom ga, for the gala.
“It is an everyday dish in Vietnam that is very easy to prepare,” Nguyen said.
Sophia Gwanzura, 25, senior of Harare, Zimbabwe, and her cousin Zvikomborero Dolly Mombeyarara, 23, junior of Harare, represented their country by preparing a peanut butter rice dish called rice rine dovi, and a potato beef stew that are traditional dishes in Zimbabwe. The girls also participated in the fashion show modeling dresses from Zimbabwe called Ankara.
Eli Garza Jr., 23, junior of Scottsbluff, prepared papas asala, baked potatoes with heavy cream cheese sauce and chorizo, a spicy Spanish pork sausage.
“It’s Mexican soul food,” Garza said. “I think my dish was the favorite of the night, that’s why I made the most of it.”
Jeff Mugongo, freshman of Aurora, Colorado, performed a poem that he wrote and had published, titled “I come from a long way.” In the poem Mugongo talks about his life in Rwanda and the changes he experienced moving to the United States. His poem compares the differences that he experienced growing up in Rwanda as a child and the availability of resources, such as water and food here in the U.S.
“My favorite part of the night was the food. My second part of the night was probably [Jeff’s] poem,” Dixie Lees, community member of Whitney said.
Pine Ridge Job Corps’ Burmese and Thai refugee students preformed several songs and a dance during the event as well.
“The performances were a cool way of seeing other culture’s traditions,” Steven Crews, 21, of Denver said.
In addition to tasting foods from other countries, the event serves as a way for international students at high schools and colleges in the area to see what CSC has to offer.
Sebastian Escudero, of Argentina, traveled to CSC from Scottsbluff, where he is currently a student at WNCC, to attend the food tasting gala.
“I am planning to come to school here,” Escudero said. “Coming here tonight was a great way to get to know the campus and meet the other international students.”