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Many Tastes of Concordia 

Held Sept. 14 at SGW and Sept. 15 at Loyola, the CSU's Many Tastes of Concordia Festival was a chance for over 30 student groups representing different countries to share bites of traditional dishes, as well as bites of information about their organization.

"Concordia is such a diverse university, and this is a way for students to see that and also taste it, too. Through eating different foods from different cultures, they get to appreciate other cultures. Food is a great way to connect," says CSU VP Clubs and Promotions Stephanie Siriwardhana.

While the exact number of students who visited the international smorgasbord is tough to measure, Siriwardhana estimates around 1 000 passed through the SGW event alone.

The event is held twice a year, early in the fall and winter terms.

Yves Nimbona of the African Students Association of Concordia (ASAC) hold up a container of bouy, a Senegalese juice made from the fruit of the baobab tree. Along with the bouy, ASAC also served hircha, a Moroccan corncake made with honey.

"ASAC doesn't exclusively focus only on African diaspora. We really try to be as inclusive as we can." Nimbona says. ASAC, with an executive of seven and a membership of around 100, holds events including debates, poetry nights and parties at clubs. asac.concordia.ca

Members of the Armenian Students Association (ASA) gather around their table at the festival. The ASA was sharing Armenian flatbreads topped with spinach and cheese, ground beef or peppers and cheese. While the dish does have traditional roots in Armenian culture, "…we served the flatbreads because it's practical. People could easily grab one and eat them," ASA President Daniel Dermardiros said.

Tamara McKenzie (right) of the Concordia Caribbean Student Union (CCSU) hands out a plate of corn pie, a cucumber tomato chow, and a rice and chicken pelau. McKenzie says that while their version of the pelau is native to Trinidad, many Caribbean countries have their own recipe. "Guyanese call it 'mix up' and Jamaicans call it 'cook up,'" says McKenzie.

She says the CCSU has somewhere between 500 to 900 members, made up of students as well as people from the larger Montreal community.

Fifth-year Poli-Sci/Philosophy student Kenroy Broderick (left) gets ready to grab some dumplings and sushi from Sam Chung (right) of the Concordia Canadian Asian Society (CCAS). The CCAS, which has 10 executives and over 300 members, won a CSU award for the school's most active club in 2008-09. The CCAS holds one event a month; anything from dinners to paintball to whitewater rafting. clubccas.concordia.ca

(All photos by Creative Media Services)