Rosh Hashanah: The Jewish New Year By Alexandra Rosh Hashanah is Hebrew and means beginning of the year. At sunset, families and friends gather to pray and then eat the traditional honey and apples, which symbolize the hope for a sweet new year. Rosh Hashanah not only marks the New Year it also honors the …
Category: Embracing Cultural Diversity
We’re celebrating our diverse backgrounds (over 30 nationalities!) and multiple cultural identities, posting members’ stories of favorite holiday and seasonal traditions, beloved dishes and recipes, and unique crafts and costumes—all that connects us to our cultural roots. From the Hindu celebration of Diwali to memories of a daughter’s quinceañera to a family recipe for barbeque that’s been passed down the generations, our contributors share the cultural touchstones that they and their families celebrate.
Embracing Cultural Diversity #6
Finding My Vietnam in Berlin by My-Linh Kunst The first time I met a Vietnamese here in Berlin, my hair actually stood on end. He was the waiter at our local sushi restaurant. His jarring northern accent was reminiscent to that of the communist soldiers I met in the North on my first trip back …
Embracing Cultural Diversity #5
Ramadan: From April 12/13 to May 12/13 by Robina Lillecrapp As I sit down to write this, I suddenly feel overwhelmed with sadness. Ramadan, the holy month of fasting, will once again be observed in lockdown. How many more events synonymous with family and friends will we have to endure alone? Lockdown disrupts the very …
Embracing Cultural Diversity #4
Color Me Happy by Shweta Gupta My memories of early childhood in India are pretty faint, but I have been told I was not a fan of the annual Holi celebration. I only vaguely recall what I’ve been told—I would hide in a room just to avoid getting covered head to toe in gulal (colored …
Embracing Cultural Diversity #3
Red Envelopes for Chinese New Year by Daphne Chiang-Ratke While I was dusting my bookshelves the other morning, I came across a red envelope that I received from a girlfriend several years ago at a Chinese New Year’s celebration in Berlin. The envelope—with the character 馬 (pronounced Ma, meaning horse) printed on it—is special because …
Embracing Cultural Diversity #2
Chinese New Year with My Family by June Lee The Tale of the Monster Nian A long, long time ago, in a small village in rural China, people were living happily and peacefully. They had very few worries except one: One day each year, a monster named Nian would come out of his nest after …
Embracing Cultural Diversity #1
El Día de la Candelaria by Silvia Malo Forty days after Jesus was born, he was presented to the temple on what is today known as Día de la Candelaria (in English, Candlemas). And to celebrate such an event, we Mexicans eat tamales. What else is there to do on the second day of February? …