Market day at UH

Dozens of tents lined the walkway in Butler Plaza Friday, and each one boasted colorful signs and tables full of food and wares from other countries and cultures including Indian samosas and Chinese dumplings.

On a campus known for its diversity, it can hardly be a surprise that events such as the International Marketplace — hosted by the Council of Ethnic Organizations — are not only filled with a variety of student groups, but are also well attended and enjoyed.

Biology senior Naseem Nikooei attended the event to represent the Persian Society.

“The Persian Society aims to promote our culture through Iranian community as well as spreading out to inform and involve other cultures,” she said.

The Persian Society was led to participate in the event through a reference from a previous officer.

“We’ve participated in this event before,” said Nikooei, “So of course we signed up to participate again.”

Business freshman Tuyet Nguyen found the market particularly enjoyable.

“I love the booths, especially the Korean ones,” he said. “I’m getting a chance to see some things that I missed out on at the Korean festival this year.”

Students also commented on the variety and affordability of the marketplace — there was no entrance or participation fee, and diverse foods were affordable. There were many smaller items priced at less than a dollar, which allowed students to try items from several different stations.

CEO is an umbrella organization that heads clubs such as the Lebanese Student Organization and the Hindu Students Association.

Its goal is to “create extravagant events so that the University of Houston’s students can get a true cultural experience,” according to its website.

Some of CEO’s other programs include cooking lessons with international recipes, talent showcases and guest lecturers who discuss diversity and the struggles that accompany it.

Jimmy Mai, CEO’s cultural programming chair, was the main organizer for the International Marketplace.

“My job is to come up with programs year round such as the Marketplace, which is mostly geared toward food from other cultures,” Mai said.

“We’ve been working on organizing this since the summer, from contacting our member organizations to actually getting them signed up and ready to go. The only problem we encountered this year was just the time crunch as the date of the Marketplace approached, but we pulled it off without a hitch.”

A few organizations that are not culture specific were also present, including the Partnership for the Advancement and Immersion of Refugees and Study Abroad. CEO also gave away free T-shirts at the event.

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