26th March 2008 - It was truly a fiesta of colours as students of SEGi College’s American Degree Program donned various brightly hued traditional costumes for their Intercultural Communications class project, themed ‘Colours of the World’. The event, held on the 26th of March, 2008, was organized by students of this class to promote cultural knowledge of countries around the world, as well as to present the message of peace and understanding among different nations.

This event was divided into two parts. From 9am to 5pm, a cultural exhibition was held, with booths displaying information, traditional objects and art from 13 different countries, such as Japan, Jamaica, Mexico, Myanmar, Thailand, Brazil and Korea.  Most of these displays were borrowed from embassies, whereas some were handmade or flown in by foreign students from their native countries.

The students wore the traditional costumes of the countries they were representing, which were also loaned by embassies, and presented on the displays to curious students and lecturers visiting the exhibition. Among the displays were hieroglyphs of Egypt, Shanghainese traditional cosmetics and porcelain tableware, an authentic Mexican sombrero hat as well as jewellery and tie-dye crafts from Jamaica.

An interesting feature of the exhibition was the various delicacies of some of the countries, like the many side dishes favoured by Koreans,  famous Shanghainese paus, Thailand mango rice,  Japanese green tea and Arabian coffee. Visitors got to sample some of these delicacies as well as try their hand at making tie-dye creations at the Jamaican booth.
           
At 5pm, the fun was not over yet. The students packed up their displays and got ready for the highlight of the event- the cultural performance. The air was filled with energy and excitement as students showcased their talents in a delightful lineup of traditional dances, skits and singing. The group of Thailand presented a Siamese dance, which they learnt from a Siamese temple in Kuala Lumpur. Besides that, groups representing Hawaii, Japan, Mexico, Korea also put up a fine show of traditional dances. The Arabian group entranced the crowd with their bellydancing, whereas the Mexican group gave an interesting Flamenco performance. With a stunning display of graceful high jumps and flips, the audience were kept on the edge of their seats as some students presented the Brazilian martial art of Capoeira. The Colours of the World event ended on a high note with the Jamaican group’s rendition of reggae hits by the legendary Bob Marley as students, as well as some lecturers, came on stage to dance to the songs.

All in all, not only was this an educational experience, but more importantly, the students had a great time preparing for and carrying out this cultural event. Learning is not only confined to classrooms and textbooks, but can be practical and good fun as well.
             
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