May

65 Countries in One Day

by Joyce McGreevy on May 2, 2017

Traditional dancers outside the Embassy of Peru in Washington, DC show why crossing cultures draws so many visitors to Passport DC. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Elegantly dressed young dancers perform outside the Embassy of Peru in Washington, DC.
© Joyce McGreevy

Crossing Cultures at Passport DC

Crossing cultures, collecting passport stamps—the appetite for travel is insatiable. When I heard about an opportunity to visit more than 65 countries I was intrigued. Imagine, the sheer feast of cultural heritage and traditions!

But a multi-country tour? It recalled the 1969 movie, If It’s Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium. In that screwball comedy, a busload of tourists barrel through Europe so fast they don’t know where they’ve been until they get their photos developed.

So I settled for nine countries—on a Saturday. Welcome to the Around the World Embassy Tour, an annual day of “Oh, I see” moments in Washington, DC.

A banner for the Around the World Embassy Tour, part of Passport DC, celebrates the wisdom of crossing cultures. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Every year, over a quarter of million people from around the world attend Passport DC.
© Joyce McGreevy

Crossing Cultures by Crossing the Street

Every year, thousands of visitors take a global journey without ever leaving the city. It’s all part of Passport DC, a month-long “journey” during which embassies open their doors to the public. More than just a rare look inside the buildings, it’s a unique opportunity to experience each country’s cultural heritage and traditions.

Participants can travel the world as they experience the food, art, dance, fashion, and music of different countries. In the past, visitors have been treated to dance performances, storytelling, sari wrapping lessons, and henna demonstrations.

Students and a dance instructor at the Embassy of Ethiopia, Washington, DC, reflect the enthusiasm for crossing cultures at Passport DC. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

At the Embassy of Ethiopia in DC, a dance lesson draws young enthusiasts.
© Joyce McGreevy

“Wow” in Many World Languages

You can even get a souvenir passport to collect stamps at every embassy. This proves especially popular with kids. Broadening the horizons of young explorers is at the heart of Passport DC.

At the Embassy of Ghana, one little boy was so amazed to learn he was officially setting foot in another country that he set an unofficial world record for Most Repetitions of the Word “Wow!”

Then he asked, “How do you say ‘wow’ in Gha—in Gha—?”

“Ghanaian?” a volunteer filled in helpfully.

Turns out there are many ways to say “wow” in Ghana, from Aboko to Heezeh to Tekyoo, each word calibrated to a particular level of wonder.

Kente cloth patterns draw visitors to the Embassy of Ghana in Washington, DC, as part of Passport DC, a celebration of crossing cultures. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

At the Embassy of Ghana, a volunteer explains that every pattern and symbol
of Kente cloth has a special meaning.
© Joyce McGreevy

Among the most popular events are the embassy open houses. Start early enough and you could trek from A to Z—Afghanistan to Zimbabwe—in a single day. There’s no ticket required. Passport DC is free.

Omani coffee and dates draw visitors to the Sultan Qaboos Cultural Center, Washington, DC during Passport DC, an annual celebration of crossing cultures. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

The sweetness of dates balances the assertiveness of qahwa, Omani coffee.
(At the Sultan Qaboos Cultural Center, Washington, DC.)
© Joyce McGreevy

Culinary Cultures

Food is a big draw and lines form early. This year, Hungary’s embassy is welcoming visitors with goulash and wines. Belgium will break out its renowned chocolates and beers. Nordic and Mediterranean cuisines are trending. And so it goes, from Nepalese nibbles to South African snacks.

A volunteer at the Embassy of Bangladesh in Washington, DC presents traditional cuisine as part of Passport DC, a celebration of crossing cultures. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

After lunch at the Embassy of Bangladesh, explore the film, literature, music, history,
and art of this South Asian nation.
© Joyce McGreevy

Global “Show ‘n Tell”

But food is, so to speak, just the appetizer. To mark its tenth anniversary, Passport DC 2017 is presenting its most ambitious cultural program yet. More than 100 international events are on offer at embassies, cultural centers, museums, and local landmarks, including the Smithsonian and the Library of Congress.

Urban seating design in Helsinki, Finland exemplifies the creativity on display during Passport DC, a celebration of crossing cultures. (Image © Riitta Supperi/Keksi/Team Finland)

Visit the Embassy of Finland in DC to learn how this Nordic nation edged past
Denmark for 1st place in the European Happiness Equality Index.
© Riitta Supperi/Keksi/Team Finland

Spain is showcasing its architecture. Ireland, Sweden, Finland will each celebrate traditional heritage and innovative design. Malta, which currently holds the Presidency of the European Union, will reveal a wealth of reasons to visit this tiny but magnificent republic.

(Take a mini-vacation in Malta here.)

All This and Greenland, Too

And then there’s Denmark. In addition to getting your “hygge” on, tasting butter cookies, and winning prizes, you can also glean ideas from Smart Cities, Denmark’s initiative for creating sustainable urban communities.

Denmark’s Embassy in DC is also where you’ll learn about Greenland, the world’s largest island with the world’s lowest population density. As a country where 80% of the landmass is covered by an ice sheet holding 10% of the world’s total reserves of fresh water, it’s a place that affects everyone, everywhere.

(Meet Greenland’s “Pioneering People” here.)

Ilulissat Icefiord, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and other aspects of Greenland are featured in Passport DC, a celebration of crossing cultures. (Image © Uri Golman/ Visit Greenland)

A UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Ilulissat Icefiord of Greenland is
the biggest glacier outside of Antarctica.
© Uri Golman/ Visit Greenland

Beyond Treats and Tourism

Along with food and tourism, the international programming will explore complex issues. The Mexican Cultural Institute is featuring “Bordes/Borders,” nine short films sharing one theme. The Goethe Institute presents several events about the human impact of war. Past events have taken on human trafficking, environmental issues, and the status of women around the world.

At outdoor events, viewing, not queuing, is the order of the day. The Washington DC Dragon Boat Festival is now in its 16th year. On May 20-21, the Potomac River becomes the site of spectacular races between these ornate and colorful boats.

The event is sponsored by the Taiwan-U.S. Cultural Association. Discover the poignant history behind dragon boat racing here.

Members of the Saltanah Ensemble perform Arabic Music at Passport DC, an annual celebration of crossing cultures. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

The U.S-based Saltanah Ensemble perform Arabic music of many countries on featuring oud, ney, qanun,
violin, riqq and Egyptian tabla. Listen.
© Joyce McGreevy

Can’t make it to Washington, DC this year? Plan on Passport DC 2018. Meanwhile, you can keep crossing cultures via links on embassy Web sites. They offer a trove of resources on travel, cultural heritage, and traditions.

These are among the best:

The Embassy of Japan in the U.S.
This Is Finland
Chile Travel
ArabAmerica

Find out more about Passport DC here. Catch last year’s highlights here.

Comment on this post below, or inspire insight with your own OIC Moment here.

Joyce McGreevy Comments

Crossing Cultures/Cultural Heritage & Traditions/Discoveries/Worldwide Sites

Apr

When Worlds Converse

by Joyce McGreevy on April 24, 2017

A handwritten word list in Greece exemplifies how global citizens can help each other become multilingual. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

A handwritten word list in Greek is a global citizen’s treasured gift.
© Joyce McGreevy

Language Lessons for Global Citizens

When you travel, what languages do you speak? After all, every day you navigate a rich linguistic landscape—and that’s before you leave North America. As a global citizen, you’re more predisposed to becoming multilingual than you may realize.

For example, did you ever

attend kindergarten, use a thesaurus, or study algebra?
wear corduroy or khaki, moccasins or a parka?
observe graffiti or a replica?
blitz through work like a ninja, or do yoga on a patio?

Just by reading that list, you utilized German, Greek, Arabic, French, Urdu, Algonquian, Russian, Italian, Yiddish, Japanese, Sanskrit, Spanish, and more. Our everyday English speech is a mosaic of world languages.

A poem painted onto a utility box in Sofia, Bulgaria exemplifies the linguistic landscape global citizens inhabit. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

In Bulgaria, poetry on a utility box (above) and remnants of posters (below) exemplify the linguistic landscape that global citizens inhabit.
© Joyce McGreevy

Remnants of posters on a wall in Sofia, Bulgaria exemplify the linguistic landscape global citizens inhabit. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Multilingual, moi?

According to the Center for Language and Brain at New York’s Colgate University, an estimated 85 percent of the world’s population will be multilingual—fluent to varying degrees in several languages—by 2050. Currently, 7,000 living languages are spoken across 195 countries.

While some view this as a challenge, I see it as an opportunity. When I travel, I love experiencing the food, history, arts, and natural wonders of a culture. But to visit a country without also exploring its language would feel like standing on shores, but never touching the water.

A woman on a boat in Türkbükü, Turkey symbolizes how global citizens navigate culture and language. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Learning languages can take us from skimming the surface
of a culture to diving in. (Türkbükü, Turkey)
© Joyce McGreevy

Today it’s easier than ever to explore multiple languages. These easy language lessons will get you started.

Don’t buy into age barriers.

As an Italian artist wrote, Ancora imparo: “I am still learning.” At 87, Michelangelo inscribed those words onto plans for a sculpture. We, too, are sculptors, thanks to the neuroplasticity of our brains, which literally change shape and size as we learn a language.

Research from the Universitat Pompeu Fabra in Barcelona shows that acquiring vocabulary in other languages actually becomes easier as we get older, since our pre-existing vocabulary acts as a kind of “welcoming committee” for new words.

Another surprising advantage of age? According to a study published by Oxford University Press, even though people use the same brain regions for two languages if learned in childhood, they engage different regions of the brain if they learn new languages as adults. The latter improves executive function, or higher-order cognitive skills.

People of all ages gathered on Denmark's Tisvilde Beach exemplify global citizens' shared experiences. (Image © Christian Alsing and Visit Copenhagen)

The sun never sets on the human need to share experiences. (Tisvilde, Denmark)
© Christian Alsing/ Visit Copenhagen

Use your menu.

Many culinary terms that once were unknown outside of their countries of origin are now commonplace on menus around the world. I’ve had friends tell me they’re lousy at learning languages—and then place a word-perfect order for pappardelle con funghi porcini or umi masu sashimi.

“I’d be totally lost,” they say, even as they look up unfamiliar food terms on their smartphones or simply ask the waiter. But those same practices—familiarization, sounding out syllables, using an app, and asking a local expert for help—would also be effective for learning languages as they travel.

Ice cream, called sladoled in Zagreb, Croatia, exemplifies how global citizens use different words but have favorite things in common. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

“I scream! You scream! We all scream
for sladoled!” (Zagreb, Croatia)
© Joyce McGreevy

Why not just ask for an English menu? Many such menus omit local dishes in favor of plainer fare, based on outdated assumptions about tourists’ palates. This can make all the difference between enjoying a savory bowl of cataplana and confronting a pitiful plate of fish and chips.

By learning a few more words and phrases at every meal, you’ll learn a lot more about the unique role of food in creating cultures.

A restaurant sign in Malmö, Sweden exemplifies the linguistic landscape that global citizens inhabit. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

What you already know of one language
can help you read another. (Malmö, Sweden)
© Joyce McGreevy

Focus on friendliness.

When my siblings and I traveled as kids, our parents had a rule: Say please, thank you, hello, and goodbye in the local vernacular. One word led to another, and soon we’d be eavesdropping on conversations, spending our holiday coins on local comic books, deciphering cereal boxes, and brainstorming translations of billboards.

Today, I still begin with greetings. Yes, you can walk into many businesses around the world and be assisted by an English speaker. But just as a greeting expresses good will toward an individual, the greeting’s language expresses good will toward a culture.

A barista in Plovdiv, Bulgaria exemplifies how global citizens interact in linguistic landscapes. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Sharing even a few words in each other’s language can
help us connect as human beings. (Plovdiv, Bulgaria)
© Joyce McGreevy

Invite teachable moments.

New to the language? In the rare event you’re mistaken for a native speaker, transition politely to English. You might say, in the local language, that you’re a beginner at that language.

Because this wording signals interest in learning more, it usually leads to insightful conversation and invaluable advice. In bakeries and bookstores, on public transportation and at popular attractions, so many kind people have taken the time to teach me something of their language, and thus their culture.

Get out of your “komfortzone.”

Learning includes making mistakes. In one Breton village, an American wanted a five-kilogram roast for Easter, but ordered cinq kilomètres de jambon. That works out at 3.1 miles of ham laid end-to-end.

But humor can be bonding. Mark’s gaffe and his ability to laugh about it dissolved the usual social barriers and got people chatting. Voila! More practice for Mark.

Oh, I see: From boosting brainpower to broadening the global conversation, exploring multiple languages offers multiple benefits.

A theatre ticket in Zagreb, Croatia exemplifies ways that global citizens can explore linguistic landscapes. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

See a familiar play in an unfamiliar language. Even the ticket offers language lessons.
(Can you spot the Croatian for comedy and seat?)
© Joyce McGreevy

Meet your neighbors.

You don’t need a grammar book to find language lessons these days. Simply begin by exploring the linguistic landscape wherever you go. Now and then, hold a conversation in a language other than your first, even if it’s halting or brief. Because in this multilingual world, discovering what connects us may prove the most adventurous journey of all.

To see how a woman considered “bad at languages” became one of the world’s first simultaneous interpreters, fluent in 17 languages, read this.

University of Glasgow’s free online course in multilingual learning starts today. Learn more here.

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Becoming Bilingual/Crossing Cultures/Discoveries/Worldwide Sites

Apr

Kathputli: Traditions of Fire, Puppets, and Magic

by Meredith Mullins on April 17, 2017

A handmade puppet dances for her puppeteer inside a Kathputli Colony jhuggi.
© Meredith Mullins

Cultural Encounters in the Slums of India

The labyrinthine streets lead from one palette of wild color to another—from carnival reds and yellows to candy pinks and lavenders to soothing blue and green pastels.

The stripes and flowers and polka dots of the freshly washed clothes that hang in every possible open space make the colors of the buildings even more festive.

Colorful buildings and hanging wash in the Kathputli Colony of Delhi, showing cultural encounters in the slums of India. (Image © Meredith Mullins.)

The Kathputli Colony in living color
© Meredith Mullins

Smells of curry and turmeric drift in the dusty air. And sounds of daily life and laughter create an uninterrupted soundtrack.

Cultural encounters in the Kathputli Colony in the Shadipur Depot area of west Delhi are filled with “Oh, I see” moments.

Girls of the Kathputli Colony in Delhi, showing cultural encounters in the slums of India. (Image © Meredith Mullins.)

The Slum Truth

I thought I had a hint of what life is like in the slums of India—Delhi, Kolkata, and Mumbai. After all, I’ve seen films like Slumdog Millionaire and Lion and read books such as Behind the Beautiful Forevers and Midnight’s Children.

But, it was not until I had walked through the cramped alleys of Kathputli; shared tea in a puppeteer family’s one-room, dirt-and-concrete floor home; stepped gingerly over the rivulets of sewage and tangles of electrical wires; and played with the local children that I began to understand.

Colorful alley in the Kathputli Colony in Delhi, showing cultural encounters in the slums of India. (Image © Meredith Mullins.)

Oh I see. This is home . . . although it is not an easy existence. Electricity is sporadic, water must be carried from a distance, and the streets are littered with more trash than they should be.

Even with this backdrop of poverty, families are relatively happy here. There are plenty of smiles and laughter. There is artistry through almost every open door.

This is life. There is pride of place . . . and a spirit of family and community.

A home in the Kathputli Colony, with mother, son, and dog, showing cultural encounters in the slums of India. (Image © Meredith Mullins.)

A Community of Street Artists

Two things make the Kathputli Colony unique—the past and the future.

This particular neighborhood has a long tradition as a home for street performers. Started in the 1950s by puppeteers from Rajasthan, the colony now has more than 3,000 families of magicians, fire breathers, snake charmers, musicians, acrobats, singers, dancers, rope walkers, and jugglers.

Men play cards in the street of the Kathputli Colony, showing cultural encounters in the slums of India. (Image © Meredith Mullins.)

Outdoor life is common in India. At Kathputli, the residents work and play in the open courtyards and wider alleys, as well as and in their makeshift homes pieced together with wood, tin, tarp, mud, and brick.

They go out to perform, by day or by night, and return to the camaraderie of their families and friends and their colorful home life.

Fire breather in the Kathputli Colony, showing cultural encounters in the slums of India. (Image © Chester Ng.)

The community is friendly and welcoming. Even the children have a wonderful theatrical quality—in their poses, their colorful American brand-name hand-me-downs, their trendy hair styles, and their connection to visitors.

The time I spent wandering the Kathputli alleys was a traveler’s treasure (and a photographer’s dream).

Three children of the Kathputli Colony in the street, showing cultural encounters in the slums of India. (Image © Meredith Mullins.)

An Uncertain Future

This spirit of community made it even sadder to learn that the Kathputli families are being displaced from this colony.

As “progress” would have it, the land they have lived on for the past 60 years is now becoming prime real estate. At the same time, the government has pledged to eliminate slums.

A group of Kathputli Colony dwellers, showing cultural encounters in the slums of India. (Image © Meredith Mullins.)

The original residents built a community out of a jungle on the edge of the city. They started with a camp and slowly made improvements to produce the village of jhuggis (makeshift dwellings) today.

However, as Delhi expanded, Kathputli became more central and is now even on a major metro line.

The government has given a contract to developers to develop the land, including commercial buildings as well as new homes in apartment blocks for the colony families.

The families will be relocated—first to a transit camp while new homes are constructed in multi-story buildings and ultimately to these new living units.

Two rows of transit camp units for the Kathputli Colony, showing how cultural encounters in the slums of India have led to displacement. (Image © Sanjuko Basu.)

The colony is rightfully skeptical. Some have refused to leave their homes until they are promised the new homes via a court contract and are given some specific timelines for the new development.

Currently, it is unclear how long they must live in the transit camp, which seems more like a military camp than the colorful community of Kathputli.

The developers can’t begin the new construction until all the families have relocated to the transit camp. But those holding out have no faith that they will get a new house, and they want to be sure that the new housing works with their artistic lifestyle—with places to store their materials and performance areas to practice and share their arts.

Two girls hold hands at the Kathputli Colony in Delhi, showing cultural encounters in the slums of India. (Image © Meredith Mullins.)

A Nostalgia for Traditions

While the redevelopment plan may be a good start to solving the issue of slum dwelling, there will be a lingering nostalgia when the colorful alleys and cultural encounters of Kathputli have become a sea of high-rise apartment buildings, and when the puppeteers and fire breathers are no longer gathering spontaneously in the streets to share their proud history of artistry.

Sometimes the path to “progress” leaves much to be desired.

A boy poses amidst the rubble of the Kathputli Colony, showing cultural encounters in the slums of India. (Image © Meredith Mullins.)

For more information about the current Kathputli Colony relocation issues, read this article by independent journalist Sanjukta Basu in The First Post. OIC also thanks Ms. Basu for permission to use her photograph of the transit camp. Please also visit her website.

Comment on this post below, or inspire insight with your own OIC Moment here.

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