In June 2019, Temple University’s Center for Language and Culture welcomed high school students from across the world to participate in EducationUSA Academy, a State Department program to help international students learn about American culture and how to apply for American universities. During their stay, Freely Magazine held an essay contest asking students to reflect […]
In June 2019, Temple University’s Center for Language and Culture welcomed high school students from across the world to participate in EducationUSA Academy, a State Department program to help international students learn about American culture and how to apply for American universities. During their stay, Freely Magazine held an essay contest asking students to reflect […]
The second of a three part series about food as both an international cultural experience and nutrition education. What memories about food do you take away from your childhood? What kinds of foods are your comfort foods? What does this say about your culture and how you were socialized into thinking about food? Does this […]
Photo Credit: Masala.com In Let her fly, Ziauddin Yousafzai, the father of Malala Yousafzai, the prominent Pakistani activist, takes us behind the curtain of her rise to fame, back to a time before UN recognition and Nobel Prizes. The story, narrated by Ziauddin, takes us through his journey from growing up in a very conservative […]
Photo Credit: All photos property of the Office of International Affairs On Wednesday April 2, the Office of International Office hosted another of lecture series, called “U.S. World Policy – America First vs. Global Diplomacy,” in the Science and Research Center of Temple University. The speakers Trudy Rubin, Foreign Affairs Columnist, Editorial Board Member and […]
While I consider myself a Mexican since I was born and spent my childhood in that country, in reality I became who I am in a midwest town in Indiana called Terre Haute. I spent all my teenage years there, enjoying and learning from the people who gave me and my family a warm welcome […]
Imagine this: Your friend is showing you a new pair of shoes she just got. You are not very fond of the color but out of politeness, you feel obliged to compliment, “These look great!” Despite trying really hard to not upset your friend, you find your eyebrows curl up in a frown because you […]
I have been dancing since I was six years old. Throughout my years of dancing, I have taught myself with the help of TV, movies, and Youtube, learning many different dance styles such as salsa, Bhangra (traditional Indian dance, mostly done in Punjab), hip hop, and classical Indian dance. Even though I learned how to […]
Photo Credit: UTV On Thursday, March 14th, hundreds of people marched to the city centre of Derry, Northern Ireland, carrying a banner that read “Toward Justice”, and pictures of loved ones. The crowd paused to sing the civil rights anthem, “We Shall Overcome,” before making their way to the Museum of Free Derry. The marchers […]
Image: BBC.com On April 10, 2019, the EU and the UK government both agreed on impending the deadline of Brexit, and they are going to make the final decision on October 31, 2019. The tension of Brexit started in June 2016. A referendum about whether the UK should leave the EU or not got 51.9% […]
Painting “The Arrival of Cortes at Veracruz and the Reception by Moctezuma’s Ambassadors”, Library of Congress. 2019 marks the 500-year anniversary of the arrival of the Spaniards to modern Mexican territory, and the observance of the so-called “conquest Mexico” has triggered a debate in the county of whether the people of Mexico should commemorate the […]
When I was in Tokyo my freshman year, March arrived with hanami. My friends and I packed some chilled drinks and mochi, got on our bikes, and rode through the streets. We rounded a corner on Yasukuni Doori and I was hit with a ripple of pink flowers in the air that I had never […]
Illustration credit: Peter Naktin As international students and world travelers, how can people work to maintain friendships when everyone lives far away? It begins with a missed video message. My friend and I had wanted to video chat and got around the differing schedules and the whopping 14-hour difference between Tokyo and Philadelphia. I realized […]
Photo: David Maialetti / Philadelphia Inquirer As a fresh-off-the-boat South Asian, I used to feel a surge of pride whenever I saw American people struggling with spicy food. Bolstered by the ill-founded confidence a new, westernized palate (mostly french fries and mac and cheese) gave me, I was a self-proclaimed “spice-queen” of sorts in my […]
Illustration credit: Peter Naktin Ukraine By Alice Hakvaag Volodymyr Zelensky, most well known for being a Ukrainian comedian who portrayed incumbent president Petro Poroshenko, has just won Ukraine’s presidential election. Zelensky won 73% of the vote as of Sunday evening. The result is mainly viewed as an embarrassment to the current establishment, since Zelensky has […]
We are not born with culture, but we are born into it. As we grow from babies into children into teenagers and finally adults, we collect memories, languages, behaviors, and customs. In this Freely Free Write, we asked writers to tell us a story from childhood in 10 minutes. Here are the responses… Chick By […]
Photo: BBC The politics of climate change are often portrayed as a clash between the hopelessly idealistic and the depressingly cynical. Activists and scientists alike push strongly for change which is needed for modern civilization to continue, while the hard-nosed reality of legislative business permanently halts every measure in its tracks. But now a new […]
Illustration: Sana Kewalramani In history books, Rome is a static place. The Colosseum, the Roman Forum, every piece of art and history is preserved on the page in two dimensions. But even the most ubiquitous historical emblems never remain the same for long. In real life, Rome is a dynamic city, one confronting the challenges […]
Illustration credit: Peter Naktin Italy By Hal Conte Julius Caesar Mussolini, great-grandson of the infamous Italian dictator and founder of fascism Benito Mussolini, is running for election to the European Parliament. He’s running as a deputy for the Brothers of Italy party, at a time when the country’s political scene is dominated by anti-establishment and […]
Photo: Chronicle/Darryl Bush “People without a sense of humor are not very smart,” author Marjane Satrapi said during a candid, heart-to-heart conversation at the Annenberg Center of Communication, the University of Pennsylvania on Thursday. An audience of over 300 students, academics and fans broke into applause. Satrapi is a widely loved French Iranian author who […]