Posted on Apr 07, 2011
Whether you want to explore Italy, dance as if you are in the Dominican Republic, or take a twenty minute crash course in Swahili, GlobalFest is the place to go. Once a year, high schools from across Illinois gather together to create and discover an explosion of culture. Lasting from a Friday night through the Saturday late afternoon, GlobalFest requires an abundance of energy and a willingness to go out on a limb for new experiences.
The Friday night is filled with activities brought from different schools. International exchange students give presentations about their daily lives in their home countries. Over a dozen languages are taught by native speakers from around the globe. There is cooking and crafts from more countries than you can count, as well as lessons in things like singing and dancing. The High School of Saint Thomas More participated by hosting “Krazy Olympiks” that separated students into different country-based teams and emphasized teamwork and intercountry cooperation with everything from a country quiz, to games like Hop the World and The Human Knot.
On Saturday, the opening ceremony started with a parade of students carrying flags and banners, as well as many people in costumes representing various cultures. The audience was welcomed in several different languages including Spanish, Mandarin Chinese, and Esperanto. A Slavic band provided the music, inviting everyone down onto the floor to polka. After this, students sped off for more activities. Taylor Casino, a junior at STM, taught the Spanish lyrics and dance to Shakira’s song “Waka Waka” from the 2010 World Cup.