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Holi” which in the Hindi language means “the Festival of Colors”, was celebrated March 16th at Excelsior High School Stadium.

People came to enjoy the ceremony this Saturday as it took place between Alonda and Pioneer Boulevard in Norwalk. Holi is a festival that marks the arrival of spring and the passing of winter and is celebrated by Hindus around the world, especially in the north of India. It’s distinguished largely in Indian culture by a relative relaxing strata, where people of different casts, ages, genders and classes can all celebrate together.

 “I found the event online. It seemed interesting, so I came here to have fun,” said Long Beach resident Sophie Martin.

                Every two hours, participants threw brightly colored powder on each other and soon they were covered with colors of violet, green, yellow, pin and orange. Live music was provided around the clock from great bands, and there were also exhibitions of yoga, mantras and dance. There were several musicians, and Larisa Stowand Shakti Tribe, an American pop-rock band from Long Beach, performed the opening act.

                Larisa Stow, a former Cal State Long Beach students, was excited to performance her music on the main stage. “I really loved the event. I like to see energetic people and their connection,” Stow said. The whole band was overwhelmed with the love, peace and juicy vibes of the event.

                As Holi is known for being a celebration of happiness, music and laughter, everybody met strangers with a hug, asked to color them and enjoyed the music at the event. 

People threw the colored powder on each other
Photo by Chie Uraki

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With the number of international students growing year by year, the recent economic downturn hurt many international students at Cal State Long Beach.  

“I think the university takes too much money from international students,” said Ahn Songyi, an exchange student from Korea who currently has a hard time meeting the rigorous demands under a tight budget.

International students attend school under conditions which are different from domestic students. According to the U.S. Department of State, international students cannot get a security number which is a basic requirement to makes a contract such as housing. The only way they can take action without a social security is if they can get a campus job, so everything costs higher than students who are residents.

Moreover, the international students must take 12 units of classes to meet the requirements for their visa status and stay in the United States, but the colleges often cut class sizes due to the bad conditions of the economy, making it difficult for the students to enroll in enough courses to prevent deportation.

“I want to finish my degree as soon as possible so that I don’t have to waste my money anymore,” said senior theater art major Miho Nakamura from Japan.

Students must rely on their parents for support, but are made to feel guilty because they are far away from home and their parents are still working.

International students meets on campus at Cal State Long Beach
Photo by Nabih Faour

Post #2

Do you want to learn about different cultures and languages?

The International Students Association (ISA) is a place where students from diverse cultures and ethnicities come together and learn about each other and broaden their horizons.

Since Cal State Long Beach has many international students, not only international students but also domestic students have opportunities to meet people from around the world. ISA helps to organize the events and activities for international students and domestic students, mix different cultures and promote them. This semester, ISA had had events such as bon fire and beach volleyball so far.

The chair of ISA, Umi Nakaya, showed her passion for the association. "I want to help international students to make new friends and become part of the ISA global family through our activities," Nakaya said. “Even though you are not an international student, you are welcomed to come to the meeting if you are interested in learning about other countries and cultures.”

The ISA has meeting on Tuesday at 3:15 p.m. at the University Student Union, Room 303. Upcoming events will be announced on its Facebook page. There are more than 800 friends on its Facebook and students can get contact each other there. 

Photo from the website of ISA
International students play beach volleyball at the beach party which is held on March 2.