Seeing people dragging their luggage out of dorms last Friday, I suddenly felt my “international-ness” of being in the U.S. However, thankfully, Amherst hosts several activities over the break that make me feel at home ~
ISA Cooking Night 🫕
The International Student Association (ISA) hosted a cooking night on Sunday the 24th. Several international students cooked dishes from their hometowns. One of my close friends started as early as 2:30 pm to prepare the ingredients. She cooked a soup with chicken, mushrooms, snow fungus, and many other ingredients I cannot name. (She’s a cooking genius.👩🍳) As someone who does not know much about cooking, I helped washing and cutting the vegetables, cleaning the utensils, and trying the taste (this is the best part 🤭).
It was a fun time helping the chefs to cook, but it was more enjoyable to eat the food! Rice with spicy chicken breast slices, a bowl of hot soup, and some flan at the end made it a perfect meal. Looking forward to more cooking nights in the future! (Hopefully, I can cook some dishes next time as well!)
Autumn in the Valley Dinner 🍁
The College invited all students, faculty, and staff to attend the “Autumn in the Valley” dinner at the Inn on Boltwood on Tuesday the 26th. We were asked to dress semi-formally, so I wore a traditional Chinese-styled top and used a hairpin to hold up my hair.
There was no assigned seating, so I sat at a random table. A deck of icebreaker cards was on the table to help us familiarize each other. I made some new friends, as well as reconnected with some I have not talked to often. The food was decent––beef, grilled salmon, mashed potatoes, cheesecake…
When we walked out of the building, heavy fog shrouded the streets. The shining lights from afar and the breath of laughter that condensed into the air gave me an illusion of Christmas time. Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way… (I guess it’s a bit early..? 😂)
On this day of Thanksgiving🦃, I hope to say a huge THANK YOU to my family who always love, understand, and support me; my friends who bring me so much laughter and comfort; and people I’ve met this semester who helped me transition into this new environment. Happy Thanksgiving! ❤️