"We Welcome All the Flags!" ... to Tula State University

01.12.2022

"We Welcome All the Flags!" ... to Tula State University

On December 1, Tula State University hosted the XVII Interregional Festival of Foreign and Russian Students We Welcome All the Flags!". This year the event is held in honor of the sixtieth anniversary of the start of foreign students training at university.

Festival We Welcome All the Flags!" is an event where students can learn the traditions and customs of different nationalities of the world. You can feel the culture through folk songs, dances, poems, costumes, and national cuisine.

The event traditionally began with the greeting from representatives of different countries participating in the festival. The delegates of Azerbaijan, Haiti, Egypt, India, China, Lebanon, Morocco, Nigeria, Palestine, Syria, Tunisia, Ecuador and many others brought their flags to the stage. More than 70 countries of the world took part and presented their cultures at the festival.

Tula State University vice-rector Mikhail S. Vorotilin opened the holiday with solemn words: “Today we will see bright performances that will warm us for many months and which we would only remember with joy. Our doors are always open for you, and we are waiting for all the flags to visit us!

The participants of the festival were also addressed by Mr. Shallan Farreed, Minister Plenipotentiary of the Embassy of the State of Palestine in the Russian Federation, Mr. Nanang Fadillah, Coordinator of the Information and Social and Cultural Affairs Department of the Indonesian Embassy in the Russian Federation, Ms. Mavis Mulega, First Secretary for Education of the Republic of Zambia.

Universities of the Central part of Russia took part in the festival: Belgorod State National Research University, Tambov State University named after G.R. Derzhavin, National Research University Higher School of Economics, Tula State Pedagogical University named after L.N. Tolstoy, and, of course, Tula State University.

Before the opening of the festival, an exhibition of cultural items from around the world and a culinary presentation "Kaleidoscope of Tastes" were held. The participants of the festival spoke at their stands about folk exhibits and shared their impressions.

“Here there is an opportunity for everyone to represent their country. We show the culture, the beauty of our homeland. I am from Uzbekistan. This country is famous for its history, folk dances, songs, clothes. We treated the participants of the festival with manti, pilaf, lagman, samsa, dolma. We hope they liked it,” said Gulasal Numanova.

“I am from Syria. We represent Arabic culture. Our food is very tasty. For example, kabsa is a rice and meat dish. We treated everyone with harisa, an oriental sweet. Our country is very ancient. Many biblical events took place on its territory. It is famous for its plains, ancient castles, Arab fortresses, religious shrines of different nations. We have something to see, ”Mheimid Hashem shared interesting facts about his country.

“My homeland is Mexico. Now I am actively studying Russian, because I am going to enter Russia at the university next year. I specially came to this festival. This exhibition is very interesting. Here you can meet and get acquainted with guys from different countries. We brought sweets, but they are all spicy. It's not as spicy as in Asia, so you have to try it," said Jorge Carlos Hernandez Gonzalez.

The festival is over, but all the flags remain at our university!

Veronika Kaplina

Photo by Daniil Rybak