Tag Archives: culture

Smithsonian Folk Life Festival on the National Mall in DC

festival04The Folklife Festival will take place June 30-July 4 and July 7-11.

The Annual Smithsonian Folklife Festival is an international exhibition of living cultural heritage.  Attracting more than one million visitors yearly, the two-week long celebration is the largest annual cultural event in the United States.

This year’s festival will celebrate Rhythm & Blues Music in the U.S., the 50th Anniversary of the Peace Corps and the traditions of Colombia.

The Festival is held outdoors on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., between the Smithsonian museums. There is no admission charge. Visitors should dress for hot and humid weather. Parking around the Mall is extremely limited, so visitors are advised to use Metrorail. The Smithsonian station (Mall exit) is at the Festival site. Federal Triangle and National Archives stations are close by. For general Smithsonian visitor information, call 202.633.1000.

Festival hours are 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., with special events taking place most evenings.

I highly recommend that you visit their website to plan your visit http://www.festival.si.edu/

Au Pair in America 25th Anniversary Cultural Fair is Today!

Click here to view full information about this spectacular event.In celebration of the 25th Anniversary of Au Pair in America and the beginning of legal au pair programs in America, we will be hosting a Regional Cultural Fair. 

When: April 9th, 2011, 1:00 to 3:00 pm

Where: Spanish Ballroom at Glen Echo Park 
               7300 MacArthur Boulevard, Glen Echo, MD 

Who’s Invited: This is a free family event and open to the public.

All of the clusters in the DC/MD/VA area will be participating. We expect to have au pairs representing over 35 different countries. Anyone interested in learning about other cultures and the Au Pair in America program are invited. For more information, email me at cicaupair @ aol.com

5 Ways to Improve Your English and Enrich Your Cultural Experience

college-friends-on-campus

  1. Make friends with au pairs from other countries. You will be forced to speak English together and you will have the side benefit of learning about their cultures. We even have a few native  English-speaking au pairs in our cluster. In addition to being really cool ladies, speaking with them would be a great way to improve your English!
  2. Check out the  International Club of DC  for great activities and opportunities to interact.
  3. Check out Meet Up  to find activity groups for any interest.  There are groups getting together for sports, book clubs and even ones to improve their English.
  4. Look for activities and classes through the local Parks & Recreation Departments. These will not count toward your education requirement, but they are a great way to try something new and meet people.   
  5. Look for clubs and activities through your community college.

Global Awareness Contest Winner in our Cluster!

American Institute For Foreign Study has a great educational program called Global Awareness. Global Awareness is designed to promote multi-cultural understanding and appreciation in elementary and middle school classrooms.  Au pairs volunteer in classrooms and other community settings, sharing their culture and language.

There was recently a Global Awareness competition where au pairs were encouraged to share ideas for games and activities from their homeland. Prizes were awarded for the best submissions. 

We have a winner in our cluster…

Flor from Guatemala!

Flor

Anyone who know Flor will probably not be surprised to hear that she won. She is a wonderful cultural embassador and a lot of fun to be around.   Congratulations, Flor!

Chinese New Year

yr2011

February 3, 2011 marks the beginning of the Chinese New Year.  Also known as the Lunar New Year or Spring Festival is the most important traditional Chinese holiday.   2011 is the Year of the Rabbit in the Chinese Zodiac.

 

Here are some links to learn more and find some related activities for kids:

Chinese New Year Info and Activities

Chinese New Year Crafts

Chinese New Year Printables

International Festival Was Wonderful!

We had a wonderful time at the 2009 City of Bowie International Festival.  We were in our usual location right on the water and despite the forecast calling for rain, it turned out to be a perfect day for an outdoor festival.   This is our 4th year signing on to provide free children’s activities.  The initial estimates were that we had 800-900 children participating this year!

I think the festival gets better and better every year.  We were fortunate to be near enough to the stage to see and hear some of the performances.   They were amazing.

This year we had au pairs participating representing, Costa Rica, China, Germany, South Africa and Thailand.

Here are some photos…

Kattia from Costa Rica & Lizzie from Germany taking a break to pose for a photo

Kattia from Costa Rica & Lizzie from Germany taking a break to pose for a photo

Little from Thailand showing the children how to write their name in Thai.

Little from Thailand showing the children how to write their name in Thai.

Ayanda from South Africa playing a map and geography game with a child.

Ayanda from South Africa playing a map and geography game with a child.

Kattia from Costa Rica helping the children color some mariposas (butterflies)

Kattia from Costa Rica helping the children color some mariposas (butterflies)

Kattia & Lizzie having fun with with the children.

Kattia & Lizzie having fun with with the children.

Lily from China and Laya from Thailand

Lily from China and Laya from Thailand

Lebo from South Africa helping the children color butterflies & Lizzie from Germany playing a map and flag game.

Lebo from South Africa helping the children color butterflies & Lizzie from Germany playing a map and flag game.

Here are all of my International Festival Super Stars who gave their time on a Saturday afternoon to share their culture with children and help us fulfill our motto, “We Bring the World Together.”

Ayanda from South Africa

Ayanda from South Africa

Little from Thailand

Little from Thailand

Kattia from Costa Rica

Kattia from Costa Rica

Lily from China

Lily from China

Lizzie from Germany

Lizzie from Germany

Laya & Kate from Thailand

Laya & Kate from Thailand

Lebo from South Africa

Lebo from South Africa

Michaela from Germany

Michaela from Germany

Verona from South Africa

Verona from South Africa

Here is one more photo of Little in her beautiful traditional Thai dress.

Little in her Thai dress

Little in her Thai dress

Au Pair in America featured in Wall Street Journal Article

In today’s Wall Street Journal there is a great article about Au Pair in America.  It discusses the increase in Western European au pairs in the past year.

Origins of Au Pairs Becomes Barometer in Labor Market

“As job opportunities shrink in Europe, the minimum $132.64 per week, plus room, board and tuition reimbursement that the au pair program guarantees looks increasingly appealing. A desire for adventure and what some call the “Obama factor” also is a lure for young Europeans, says Ms. Ferry. In March, nearly half of all of Au Pair in America’s applications came from Western Europe, compared with about a third in the same period last year.”

The British au pair and her host family featured in the article are in a nearby cluster in Northern VA.