A Cultural Melting-Pot: Taste of Europe Language Fair

Last week in The City, the institutional representatives of four prominent cultural powers of Europe came together to organize a one-of-a-kind event:  “European Language Fair: A Taste of Europe.”

 

Thanks to the partnership of The Alliance Francaise, the Goethe Institut, The Italian Cultural Institute and the Center for Modern Greek Studies at San Francisco State University, the essence of Italy, France, Germany and Greece were at the center of public interest on Friday, April 19, on the occasion of a Morsel of Languages, Language Fair 2013.

 

For one day, Europe came to meet San Franciscans in the heart of downtown, walking distance from the hectic Financial District and the Chinatown’s gate, where attendees were inspired by the atmosphere, the colors and traditions exhibited by the partner institutions.

 

Everyone was welcomed at the cozy location of the Goethe Institut in San Francisco for a  cultural tour of four European countries, all in one evening, while enjoying a sample of language classes (with special discount if you signed up for a language course on this day), the projection of short films, live music, useful travel information and of course a delicious food tastings.

 

What is the most interesting, and less complicated, language to learn among German, French, Italian or Greek? How to make people more involved with the culture of a European country?  That was the purpose of the teachers at the Fair 2013, who offered their knowledge in a series of thirty-minute sample classes, where people of different ethnicities and ages could experience conversation and interaction, experimenting with new languages.

 

Surprisingly, many of those in attendance realized how German is not so hard because of its similarity to English; French—besides being romantic—is also very complex; Italian is not just funny, but used all over the world; and Greek is probably the most fascinating of all Mediterranean languages.

In representation of Italy, the Italian Cultural Institute of San Francisco and the Istituto Italiano Scuola displayed a presentation of the upcoming events in celebration of “2013: Year of the Italian Culture in United States.”

 

Among the special activities of the Italian Language School, attendees showed particular interest for the upcoming workshops (http://sfiis.org/workshop/ ).

The artistic “Viaggio in Sicilia” (Saturday, May 18, 2013), is dedicated to those who are attracted by the historical beauties of Sicily, with its Greek temples, Roman villas, Norman cathedrals and Baroque churches.

 

“Italian for Travelers” (Saturday, April 27, 2013), is an highly entertaining workshop that will help participants to prepare for a trip to Italy. “You will be exposed to situations that you are likely to encounter when traveling–meeting people, ordering in a restaurant, making a reservation, shopping–learning essential Italian words and key phrases so you can get more from your vacation. The class is intended for students with little or no previous exposure to Italian”.

 

“The event was a success,” says Diletta Torlasco, Director of the Istituto Italiano Scuola. “A great opportunity to work together with Germany, France and Greece towards a common goal: opening the doors of Europe to San Francisco—not only with language, but with food, culture and community. Numerous participants took advantage of our sample classes and we are looking forward to welcome them at our school in the near future.

 

 

Among the most interesting events showcased by the others countries, Alliance Francaise presented A la decouverte des vins, a six-session program in May to discovers all the different aspects of the wine world, from the vocabulary of tasting, to different process of  wine making and pairings.

 

The Center for Modern Greek Studies at San Francisco State University sponsored the 10th Annual Greek Film Festival, running next May 13th through 19th, showcases 25  full-length films and shorts selected from the best mainstream and underground film-making from Greece , all movies with English subtitles. Attendees will vote for their favorite film in both short and feature film categories and people’s choice awards will be announced on the final night.  For more information, visit http://grfilm.com/GRFilm/Home.html.

 

While the host of this special night, the Goethe Institut showcased “Movement Frozen in Time” (running through May 10), an exhibition of dance images, which is dedicated to the modern trends towards the visualization of dance and movement.

Along with culture and language, guests were encouraged to taste every country’s traditional food and drink. Fine wines from Italy, France and Greece, were the perfect pairings with fresh delicacies that make these countries’ traditional food unique in the world.

 

The fun night, beside offering a taste of different cultures, was dedicated to a European-minded city like San Francisco, where either business professionals wanting to learn a new language for work, students interested in going abroad, or seniors wanting to travel during retirement, were the perfect audience for a special glimpse of the Old Country.