By: Katherine Waters, Staff Writer
When classes start back up after Thanksgiving, the atmosphere on campus changes as students prepare for the semester to end and the Holiday season to begin. But for International students at Wofford, Christmas in America looks a little different from the holidays they celebrate at home.
“Two Christmases ago was the first one I spent in the country,” says Fredy Madrid ’20, from Honduras. “I left my family, friends and girlfriend behind when I came to this country. So for Christmas, I got to visit my girlfriend- she came to visit her grandparents in New Orleans- and I got to spend it with her. And my parents came for New Years, so that Christmas was a really great one.”
For Chinese International students, the most important holiday comes after school starts back for second semester. In 2017, Chinese New Year falls on Jan. 28, bringing 15 days of celebrations and plenty of its own traditions.
I haven’t celebrated Chinese New Year with my family for the past three years,” says Lu Zhang ’17. “But I do have a good memory: I went to a flower market with my family and friends. It’s a lot of fun, you get really delicious food there and you kind of immerse yourself in that atmosphere. Everyone’s really happy and you’re celebrating a new year surrounded by your family and friends.”
One of the most exciting traditions for any culture is gathering with family. Even relatives that don’t see each other for the rest of the year can get together for Christmas. Daniela Samaniego-Gonzalez ’20, from Ecuador, says that seeing all of her family together is one of her favorite parts of the holidays.
“The night before Christmas, my family has a small dinner just among us. It’s nice because we all get together, even my dogs that are not normally allowed inside. At Christmas, everyone can be in the living room and we can share a nice meal. I really like that.”
Madrid also says that being together with family is an essential part of Christmas.
“In my country, any celebration we have is with fireworks. Fireworks are big during Christmas Eve and Christmas night. We get together for Christmas Eve and we have supper that night, and again on Christmas day, we have a big supper with all of my family.”
Celebrating Christmas in the states isn’t too difficult because Americans also celebrate the holiday. Chinese New Year, on the other hand, is a little more complicated. Zhang explains that while bigger international cities may celebrate the New Year, the festivities are hard to come by in South Carolina.
“There’s not really a big celebration here in Spartanburg or in South Carolina, but in my junior year, I was in London. The city of London has a fabulous, really big Chinese New Year celebration in downtown London. There were live performances and different kinds of games set up. But it really depends on where you are.”
No matter the cultural differences, all Wofford students can be excited to celebrate the upcoming holidays.
