Tag Archives: Around the World in 80 Days

Around the World in 80 Days – Chinese Coke Chicken

Chinese Coke Chicken Recipe 

Ingredients:  

  • 6 chicken wings 
  • 1 can of Coke 
  • 1 cup of soy sauce 
  • 1 cup of oil 
  • (Optional) Green onion for garnish 

Instructions: 

  1. Rinse and clean the chicken wings.
  2. Put chicken wings onto a large plate.
  3. Open coke and add half onto the plate. Let it soak with chicken wings for 40 minutes.
  4. Pour 1 cup of oil into pan. Wait until oil is heated.
  5. Add wings into pan.
  6. Fry wings on high heat until both sides are golden brown..
  7. Add the remaining half can of Coke and 1 cup of soy sauce into the pan and bring to a boil with wings. 
  8. Cook another 20 minutes over medium heat until sauce thickens. 
  9. Add green onion before serving for flavor and presentation.

Photo by: Stu_Spivack {flickr}

Around the World in 80 Days – Romania

Nadia Comaneci, was born in Romania in 1961.  She is a five-time Olympic gold medalist, all in individual events. In 1976 at the age of 14, Comăneci was the first gymnast to be awarded a perfect score of 10.0 at the Olympic Games.

You can watch her perfect 10 play out here!

Romania is a southeastern European country known for the forested region of Transylvania, ringed by the Carpathian Mountains. Its preserved medieval towns include Sighişoara, and there are many fortified churches and castles, notably clifftop Bran Castle, long associated with the Dracula legend.

Photo by Dave Gilbert {Flickr}

Around the World in 80 Days – China

CHINA

East Asia
Capital: Beijing
Languages: Chinese (written), Mandarin (spoken)
Predominant Religion(s): Buddhism

COMMON CHARACTERISTICS: 

  • Diligent, hardworking and modest: these words are often used to describe Chinese people.
  • Collectivism is a norm in China. Chinese love group activities. Winning honour for the group is something to be proud of.
  • Chinese tend to be reserved when it comes to showing affection in public.

FUN FACTS:

  • Despite its size, China only has one time zone!
  • While the dragon is typically seen as an evil creature in Western culture, it holds first place among the four greatest creatures in Chinese mythology, along with the phoenix, tiger, and tortoise. It is typically associated with the emperor.
  • Once known as the “Kingdom of Bicycles,” now China owns the most number of electric bikes. There are over 200 million e-bikes in China!

USEFUL PHRASES:

  • How are you?             Nǐ hăo ma?
  • Fine, thanks.               Wŏ hĕn hăo, xiè xiè.
  • My name is…:             Wŏ de míng zì shì…
  • Nice to meet you.      Hĕn gāo xìng yù jiàn nĭ.
  • Thank you:                  Xiè xiè.

Family

  • Usually grandparents live with their children and grandchildren, so there are three generations in one house. Grandparents will also share the responsibility of bringing up the children. The Chinese value peace and wholeness of a family. As an old Chinese saying goes: “A harmonious family can lead to the success of everything.”
  • Chinese families attach a lot of importance to the traditional holidays, and parents like to arrange large family meals with their children.
  • Children are encouraged to develop and learn new talents such as music, calligraphy, dancing and so on from an early age.

Photos by: Stephanie Kroos {flickr}; UI International Programs {flickr}

Around the World in Days – Austria

AUSTRIA

Western Europe
Capital: Vienna
Languages: German
Predominant Religion(s): Christianity

COMMON CHARACTERISTICS:

  • Austrians are open-minded, independent and polite.
  • They are motivated and hard-working.
  • Austrians are cheerful.

FUN FACTS:

  • “The Sound of Music” is a lot more popular around the world than in Austria!
  • Austria only has about 8 million inhabitants – that’s roughly the same population as Virginia!
  • German is the official language in Austria but there are a lot of different dialects in Austria’s different regions.

USEFUL PHRASES:

  • How are you?      Wie geht es dir?
  • Fine, thanks.       Gut, danke.
  • My name is…       Mein Name ist…
  • Nice to meet you.     Freut mich dich kennenzulernen.
  • Thank you.           Danke.

For more info on Austria, check out the APIA Culture Quest site!

Around the World in 80 Days: Kartoffelsalat German Potato Salad Recipe

Day Two of our Around the World in 80 Days series bring us to Germany to learn a recipe for German Potato Salad. There are several different versions of German Potato Salad, just like there are in America. This recipe calls for apples!

Potato Salad (‘Kartoffelsalat’)  

  • 800g (28 oz.) cooked potatoes
  • 2 onions
  • 100g (3.5 oz.) pickled cucumbers
  • 3 hard boiled eggs
  • 6 tbsp. mayonnaise
  • 3 tbsp. liquid of the pickled cucumbers
  • 1 tbsp. mustard
  • Salt, Pepper
  • Optional: 1 apple

Wash potatoes, peel and cook them for about 20-25 minutes until they are fully cooked. Drain them, let them cool and cut them into slices or cubes (whatever you prefer).

Then, peel the onions and also cut them into cubes. Cut the pickled cucumbers, the hard boiled eggs (and the apple) in slices.

Mix the mayonnaise, the liquid of the pickled cucumbers and the mustard and mix it carefully with all the other ingredients. Salt and pepper and wait for at least 30 minutes until you serve it.

Recipe provided by German au pairs in Southern Maryland

Around the World in 80 Days – Argentina

Around the World in 80 Days!!

Summer break has officially arrived in Southern Maryland. Over the next 80 days (ending just before Labor Day), we’ll discuss different cultural things each day! From general country info to cultural norms to recipes and more!!

Let’s focus on global awareness and share some cultural experiences! Most importantly, share your culture with your host family. Incorporate games, books, songs, language, foods, etc into your host family’s lives. Cooking a dish from your home country is a great way to share. Discuss similar traditions and ones unique to your family or culture.

First up, let’s learn about Argentina!

ARGENTINA

South America
Capital: Buenos Aires
Languages: Spanish
Predominant Religion(s): Christianity
(Roman Catholic)

COMMON CHARACTERISTICS:

  • Independent, mature, responsible, trustworthy.
  • Open to share their ideas or thoughts.
  • Open minded, flexible, ready to have a good experience abroad.

FUN FACTS:

  • Young people in Argentina love technology – they can’t understand how their grandparents survived without cell phones!
  • Argentine beef is famous around the world, so naturally Argentinean’s love bar-b-ques!
  • The Argentine city of Ushuaia is the southernmost city in the world!

USEFUL PHRASES:

  • How are you?      Como estas?
  • Fine, thanks.       Bien, gracias.
  • My name is…       Mi nombre es…
  • Nice to meet you.     Encantada de conocerte.
  • Thank you.           Gracias.

There are twenty languages spoken in Argentina, most of them by small groups of indigenous people. The primary language in the country is Spanish.

Try some Spanish language activities. This site includes an on-line English-Spanish picture dictionary and an on-line Spanish-English dictionary, as well as information, quizzes and pictures to color.

This website is available in both English and Spanish. There are activities to download, stories to listen to, and much more!

Do you know any words in English that came from Spanish words? You can find the answer to this question and many other facts about our world at Infoplease.

Recipe:

Argentine Mashed Potato Pie

Ingredients –

  • 6-8 potatoes
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1/4 cup butter
  • 1 onion
  • 1 red pepper
  • 2 tbsp oil
  • 1 pound lean ground beef
  • 2-3 eggs
  • 1/2 cup green pitted olives
  • shredded cheese
  • 1 can tomato sauce
  • paprika, salt and pepper

Instructions

  1. Peel and boil the potatoes until done.
  2. Boil eggs for 15 min.
  3. Halve, peel and chop onion and pepper.
  4. Sauté onion and pepper until tender.Add beef to onion and brown well.
  5. Add paprika, salt and pepper.
  6. Add tomato sauce to beef, stir, and remove from heat.
  7. Add eggs, olives to beef mixture.
  8. Mash potatoes, add butter, milk and salt.
  9. Use half mashed potatoes to line a lasagna pan or other large baking pan.
  10. Pour in beef mixture.
  11. Top with remaining mashed potatoes.
  12. Sprinkle with shredded cheese on top.
  13. Bake at 350°F for 30-40 minutes.

Submitted by Betiana Turteltaub, au pair in Villanova, Pennsylvania, 2004-2005

Photo: Jesus Dehesa {flickr}

Around the World – Spain

SPAIN

Southwest Europe
Capital: Madrid
Languages: Spanish (plus recognized regional languages)
Religion(s): Christianity
(predominantly Roman Catholic)

COMMON CHARACTERISTICS:

  • Spanish people love to talk and are usually considered to be friendly, happy and open.
  • Spanish people are generally willing to get involved and to try new things.
  • Most Spanish au pair applicants decide to travel abroad after finishing their degree, so they are in their twenties when they apply to the program. They are very attracted to the USA and its culture.

FUN FACTS:

  • The Twelve Grapes is a Spanish tradition which takes place at midnight on New Year’s Eve –  the tradition consists of eating a grape with each  bell strike and, according to the tradition, that leads to a year of prosperity!
  • Spain is well known for its Holy Week traditions, so the Easter Break (or Semana Santa) is an exciting, fun-filled time in Spain with processions and celebrations going on well into the early hours!
  • Spain is famous for its stunning islands, and millions of people worldwide travel to its islands each year – the Spanish themselves consider their islands “paradise.”

USEFUL PHRASES:

  • How are you?            ¿Cómo estás?
  • Fine, thanks.:              Bien, gracias.
  • My name is…:             Me llamo …
  • Nice to meet you.:        Encantado/a de conocerte.
  • Thank you.:              Gracias.

Photos by: Chris Oakley {flickr}; Tommie Hansen {flickr}

Around the World in 80 Days – South Korea

SOUTH KOREA  

Asia
Capital: Seoul
Languages: Korean, English

  • The idea of being an au pair is not common in South Korea.
  • Applicants from South Korea are motivated by the opportunity to experience American  culture and to improve their English.
  • Applicants do not have difficulty affording the program fees.
  • Young people in South Korea have the freedom of their family to socialize and date.
  • Curfews are very common.
  • South Koreans are generous, warm, kind, and extremely hardworking.
  • Most young people in South Korea eat meat.
  • Vegetarianism is not common.
  • A typical South Korean diet includes rice and kimchi (seasoned cabbage) and lots of vegetables as a traditional meal, but many people like western food such as bread, steaks, pasta and pizza.
  • English is compulsory in South Korea.
  • English is taught beginning in elementary school through university. English education in South Korea used to focus on written English but this is changing to focus more on spoken English.

    Photos by: Tomscoffin {flickr}

Around the World in 80 Days – Serbia

 

SERBIA

Central/Southern Europe
Capital: Belgrade
Languages: Serbian
Predominant Religion(s): Christian Orthodox

COMMON CHARACTERISTICS:

  • Serbians, especially those who are interested in the Au Pair in America program, are usually open minded, polite and really great with children.
  • Serbians are usually neat and well dressed and like to follow contemporary trends. They take pride in their appearance.
  • Serbians are considered as friendly and warm, and they like to talk.

FUN FACTS: 

  • Serbians generally enjoy life and love playing with children. They regard them as individuals that need special attention in order to become self confident, and they love having fun with them.
  • Serbia is at the top of the global export list for…raspberries!
  • The Serbian clock-making industry is even older  than the world-famous Swiss one. The Serbs had their own clock 600 years before the Swiss!

USEFUL PHRASES:

  • How are you?             Kako si?
  • Fine, thanks:               Dobro, hvala.
  • My name is…:             Moje ime je…
  • Nice to meet you.:        Drago mi je da smo se upoznali.
  • Thank you.:                  Hvala.

Photos by: Filip Maljkovic {flickr}; flowcomm {flickr}; Mirkoni M. {flickr}

Around the World in 80 Days – Russia

RUSSIA

Asia
Capital: Moscow
Languages: Russian, many minority languages

  • English is compulsory in Russia.
  • Classes begin at an early age.
  • The idea of being an au pair is common in Russia.
  • Applicants from Russia are motivated by opportunities to improve their English.
  • The job potential of an au pair improves upon her return to Russia.
  • Applicants sometimes have difficulty affording the program fees. Many applicants are teachers who are paid low wages.
  • Young people in Russia have the freedom of their family to socialize and date.
  • Curfews are not common.
  • Young women are accustomed to sharing in household chores.
  • Russians are cheerful, cordial, and have a great love for children. Russians are very open and honest and like to discuss problems and situations.

Photos by: Andrey Filippov {flickr}; flowcomm {flickr}