Damn, I took a long time to write this. I apologize for my numerous fans who make their only purpose in life to constantly check whether I have already made my annual Ifair review.
I guess there were just too many things to talk about.
The theme for I-Fair this year was “Around the World in 7 Days”, and it happened on Saturday, February 1st.
I’ll start with the flag parade. This year, we had even more diversity than the previous year. I’ll owe that to the extra effort the school made to bring in more international students.
The drill was the same as the previous year: the person holding the flag walks in, parades to the sound of Wavin’ Flag, and then proceeds to get on stage with the slide featuring information from their country projected above their head. Not a particularly revolutionary process, but one that makes you reflect, especially once the stage grows crowded with people from all over the world.
For some inexplicable reason, I always get struck by a strange sense of coincidence when I take in the scene. It sounds absurd that all these people, coming from all parts of the world, were all destined to be there at that moment, smiling after parading across Kresge. I could go on and on about how each person holding a flag represents a community, culture, or a small reflection of the place they are from—but I’m not really trying to trap anyone in my deep shower-philosophy spiral. At least not today. Maybe next year.
After the flag parade, the Cultural Showcase began.
Unable to find a decent notebook in time, I had to resort to one of my recent reads: Little Virtues by Natalia Ginzburg. For some reason, the author left a bunch of blank pages at the end of her book. Maybe she had in mind people like me, who need to take some emergency notes but are too much of a cheapskate to buy a real notebook.
Anyway, my point is that I was scribbling notes throughout all the performances, and I will be sharing them with you. While all performances had great moments, I will be mentioning the ones I have a lot of notes to work with.
The show began with junior Nicole Ruby‘s solo to Easy, by LESSERAFIM. The first of my notes says: “This girl got moves, ngl”. Props to my past self for that profound, enlightening quote. Nicole does have moves, and a presence too. On the stage, she is the personification of confidence. I loved it.
Following Nicole, we had the dance group Hududa, featuring traditions from India and Uzbekistan, along the rhythms of Italy. From the beginning of the performance, the audience was already taken away by a dance consisting of people getting in a straight line and stretching their arms in multiple different directions. Looking from the front gives the impression that the first person in line has multiple arms.
The synchrony in the group’s movements was nothing short of impressive. When they broke the line formation, the dance had a mixture of calm and active elements, which brought dynamicity to the performance. The swirls paired with the skirts the girls were wearing were hypnotizing. I would also like to share that I wrote, at the foot of the page: “Ulpanay looks like she is having a blast.” Her energy sure was contagious!
Sophomore Zoë Grigoroff was the next to perform. Zoë gave us the pleasure of listening to her original song about life in Singapore. The performance was full of charisma, and the lyrics were very good-humored. The biggest challenge Zoë appeared to be facing was to synchronize her song with the slides featuring the lyrics. She, however, overcame that challenge in a very enjoyable way: “Oops, I think I went too fast.” Simply hilarious!
Next up, we had the group The Afro Crew, which featured a fusion of Afrobeat songs celebrating African heritages, followed by a floor dance. They had a lot of energy in their moves, the kind which makes you want to join them on stage (I would certainly fall in my face if I did so). Sophomore Loic Ntwali‘s solo was a really cool surprise. I will say that the music was cut off a little abruptly in the end, and it kind of looked like the dancers themselves were a bit surprised by it. Other than that, however, the performance was flawless.
The trio of Nicole Ruby, and juniors Tisya Goel and Rosa Escobar was next, dancing to Igloo, by Kiss of Life. I’ll tell you: These girls have a presence! Here my scribbles became even more illegible as I attempted to write things down without taking my eyes off the stage. Everything was simply brilliant. Song choice, choreography, energy, dance skill, they got it all. Absolute ten out of ten.
Is there something that junior Selene Chew can’t do? I was already a devoted fan last year when she sang a Chinese retro throwback, but this year she somehow outdid her previous free sample of heaven. She started hypnotizing everybody with her dance to the theme song of the animated movie Big Fish and Begonia. Selene was holding a dancing fan that had fabric attached to it. The fabric moved flowingly and gracefully as Selene performed her smooth movements. And then she sang. I can’t reinforce enough how much talent that girl has. How is it possible that she moves so much, and does not let out a single voice crack? Not even the slightest hint of being out of breath? Is she a machine? A celestial being? I need answers, now.
Next up was the “Desi boys” group. Probably the group that the audience applauded the most at their announcement. The dance was dynamic, fast-paced, and pretty fun. The last part, involving one of the boys wearing a veil and the other crushing on him, was simply hilarious. The audience also seemed to think so.
After a short intermission, we had the so-expected annual Sophomore Vansh Chugh’s performance. To those who are not yet familiar with Vansh’s exceptional skills, what he does is build a love story using excerpts from India/Bollywood/South Asia popular songs. This year appears to have been a prequel to last year’s. Not going to lie, the story is a bit too sappy for me—but that’s probably just because I’m a single, loveless green goblin, about as romantic as the furball your cat coughed up on the doormat.
I can’t deny, however, that Vansh is extremely creative and very talented. That guy can reach notes high enough to permanently shatter all my vocal cords and for such a long time too! Vansh’s performance is most definitely worth a watch, even if you are an old, sad unromantic like me.
(The audience went insane, by the way. Seems like Vansh getting a standing ovation has become a tradition.)
The group JK vibe was up next. They danced to New Jeans’s Hype Boy, Illit’s Magnetic, and Twice’s TT. What a dance it was, exceptional in everything. Exceptionally rehearsed, exceptionally synchronized, exceptional song choices, exceptional dance skills. They looked like a real K-pop group. Seems unbelievable that I got to watch that for free.
I’d hate to point out any favorites, but if y’all insist…I’ll have to say A Yoruba Song Presentation, by senior Precious Odejimi, sophomore Keji Akinremi, and first-year Nifemi Onifade. The girls sang two songs in Yoruba, and ‘amazing’ would be an understatement to describe how they sounded together. Weeks after I-fair ended, I still found myself humming their song (tragically, far less skillfully than they did). Their voices complemented each other like instruments in a perfect orchestra. How I wish I could go back in time, just to relive the peace I felt during their performance one more time.
What a group was the girls dancing DDU DU DDU DU, by BLACKPINK. I would say that they have talent, but everyone already knows that. So, instead, I’ll emphasize the way their movements were strong, confident, and precise. The song was an excellent choice since it made their presence even more memorable. All I could write in my notes while my jaw hung open was “Really good.” Really good, indeed. Really, really, really, really, really good!
The closing performance by Aaina made me want to drop all my rational thoughts and join them on stage. The high-energy songs, combined with the active dance moves, made the whole picture very entertaining to watch. “1,2,3,4 Get on the dance floor!”.
Traumatized by last year’s party popper (or better, party pooper) failure, this year during the final vows the I-club execs choose to manually throw confetti into the air. I couldn’t help but LOL at that.
INTERNATIONAL FOOD FAIR
This time, the food fair was not right after the show. My theory as to why they did that is so that the sneaky ones who don’t go watch the Cultural Showcase don’t get first place in line to the caf. I foolishly got into Seymour at 5:10 p.m., twenty minutes before the caf opened. Apparently, people have been camping in the corridor since 3 p.m., since the line was going around Seymour Gallery, past campus life, and nearly exiting the building. I was given several pitiful looks as I did the walk of shame to the end of the line.
Anyways, when I was already in my thirties, married, with three children and an old chihuahua, I at last got to the front of the line. As always, the wait was worth it.
The Korean Club, represented by sophomore Andrew Lee, offered Janchi Guksu (Korean warm noodle soup) and Jumeokbap (tuna mayo rice balls). The Maltese cuisine was showcased by first-year Monique Micallef, who prepared Baked Rice. The German Club provided a Vegan Döner, accompanied by White Cabbage Salad, and Yoghurt Sauce.
Lo Nuestro, represented by junior Diana Tolentino, served drinks including Agua de Pepino, Agua de Jamaica, and Mangonada. The Vietnamese Club, led by junior Nhi Hoang, presented Bánh mì xá xíu (char siu bánh mì). The Japanese Club prepared Udon and Karaage (fried chicken). The Asian Student Association (ASA) offered us Mr. Lim’s Ice Cream.
Aaina served Sev Puri, Mango Lassi, and Rooh Afza Milkshake. The Pakistani Student Association (PSA) served traditional Kheer and Pulao.
Senior Ava Vaccarella introduced Sicilian cuisine with Macco di Fave (a fava bean puree). Harambee brought West African flavors with Gizzdodo, Meat Pies, and Zobo, a hibiscus drink. Representing Indonesia, Nicole Ruby prepared Nasgor Magelang (Magelang-style fried rice) with Bumbu Halus (additional sauce) and a sweet, fizzy treat called Soda Gembira (Happy Soda).
Phew. What do you think? A LOT, huh?
I am particularly fond of noodles, so I was obsessed with Janchi Guksu and the Udon. The Jumeokbap was also delicious. I liked Kheer a lot, too. It reminded me a bit of Brazil’s traditional dish, arroz doce. For dessert, the ice cream felt divine. My mouth waters just thinking about all of the good food I had that day. Can some of these students please cook a dish in the caf on a random Tuesday? I want to go rolling back home again!
Thank you again for all the blessed, dedicated souls who gave so much time and effort to make my favorite on-campus event happen. Unfortunately, as I said last year, these kids do not get monetary compensation for the work they put in, so let’s at least give them the recognition they deserve.
May each I-Fair continue to surprise and inspire me more than the last!
