Students of the Department of Polish Language for Foreigners wished each other Merry Christmas, sang Christmas carols and tasted Christmas dishes. The Wrocław University of Technology Student Government also organized a Christmas Eve meeting.
International students met on Wednesday at the Wrocław University of Technology Employee Club. In accordance with the Polish tradition, they shared the opłatek (Christmas wafer). “I wish you a happy Christmas time, a lot of health, and that you could study in peace. Learn our customs and enjoy them.” – said Joanna Kozieja-Ruat, Head of the Department of Polish Language for Foreigners.
The greetings were followed by presentations of dances from Congo and Angola, Chinese songs, Russian love songs, and Ukrainian Christmas carols. The students tasted pierogi (a kind of dumplings), borsch, fish, and sweets. They talked about the way they celebrate Christmas in their cultures. “In my country we don’t have the tradition of sharing the Christmas wafer. On Christmas Eve we eat turkey, pork, and lots of fruit. We don’t cook sweet cakes, like here in Poland. But we do garnish the Christmas tree (unfortunately an artificial one), we sing Christmas carols and dance a lot. The villages visit one another and in the city one may go to the church.” – tells Victoria Pereira from Angola, today a student of Wrocław University of Economics. Her mate, Wiktoria Woronowicz from Belarus found many similarities between the celebrations in Poland and in her own country. “We first celebrate the Roman Catholic Christmas Eve, and then the Orthodox one. There are many mixed families, that’s why we celebrate Christmas twice. We go to the Catholic and Orthodox church. We cook pierogi, prepare kutia, and sing many Christmas carols: both Polish and Belorussian.”
Wang Xin has been learning Polish since October. “We don’t have such customs in China” – she says – “In large cities, especially in shopping malls, there are garnished Christmas trees. One can also find figures of Santa Claus. But otherwise it is a day like any other. I have been in Poland since 7 months and this will be my first Christmas here.”
At Wrocław University of Technology, international students learn Polish during the entire academic year so that they can study at Polish universities. “We have students from Ukraine, Belarus, China, Kazakhstan, Russia, Turkey, Vietnam, Syria, Congo, Angola, and Afghanistan. Altogether 69 persons. Today, we want them to feel as if they were with their own families.” – assured Urszula Kozacka from the Department of Polish Language for Foreigners.
On Saturday evening also the Student Government organized a Christmas Eve meeting, which took place for the first time in the Students Culture Zone. It was an opportunity to summarize the passing year. “We’ve had a lot of work which means that it’s been a successful year. The students have shown what they can. In the coming year we wish that the Student Culture Zone was completed and that we had a support from the university authorities like we have had this year.” – said Zuzanna Hazubska, President of the Student Government.
Małgorzata Jurkiewicz
Translation: Dariusz Więcławski
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