Culture Kids International

Elissa and I (Kari) had the opportunity to interview our friend Raafe Khan who shared his expertise and knowledge of India. We met at a bubble tea shop, shared a mango ice cream dessert, and enjoyed our lively conversation with one another. The interview centers around food, traditions, and etiquette. Raafe even shared his cooking secrets with us, and his recipes were featured in our July Culture Kids Cafe. We hope you enjoy this first hand look into Indian culture from Raafe's perspective. Kari: In general, tell us your story about coming to the US and who you are. Raafe: My name is Raafe. I was born and brought up in India. Born in the northern belt in a small village which is in the foothills of the Himalayas. I was born there, and then my family moved to Mumbai, which is a pretty well known city on the western coast of India. I grew up there, spent my formative years in Mumbai. Went to high school there. I got my undergrad degree in India from Manipal Academy of Higher...

Last fall, Elissa had the opportunity to interview some Karen youth in St. Paul, MN. They met at a Karen grocery store, shared a meal together, and talked about various aspects of the Karen culture. We have divided this interview into a four part series: Culture, Immigration, Family and Faith, and Food and Holidays. For authenticity, we have transcribed the interview material as accurate as possible. The Karen People We encourage our readers to visit the Karen Organization of Minnesota  website  in order to learn more about the history and culture of the Karen people. Part 4: Food and Holidays Karen food Elissa: What is the most important meal of the day for Karen people Re: I would say that it is lunch, because when people would go out to the farm they would only eat lunch. Kyeh: Yeah, usually we don’t really even have breakfast. Like usually we would eat a meal around 10 or 11. Re: Basically, I would say for my own family when we lived back in the refugee cam...

Last fall, Elissa had the opportunity to interview some Karen youth in St. Paul, MN. They met at a Karen grocery store, shared a meal together, and talked about various aspects of the Karen culture. We have divided this interview into a four part series: Culture, Immigration, Family and Faith, and Food and Holidays. For authenticity, we have transcribed the interview material as accurate as possible. The Karen People We encourage our readers to visit the Karen Organization of Minnesota  website  in order to learn more about the history and culture of the Karen people. Part 3: Family and Faith Elissa: Are the roles of men and women in Karen culture clearly defined? Such as women do this, and men do this? Re: Yes, oh my gosh, yes. Kyeh: It was more common back in the day, because I know some older people where they believed that the girls weren't supposed to go to school because they were just girls. They would think that men were smarter and all of that. In my family ...

Last fall, Elissa had the opportunity to interview some Karen youth in St. Paul, MN. They met at a Karen grocery store, shared a meal together, and talked about various aspects of the Karen culture. We have divided this interview into a four part series: Culture, Immigration, Family and Faith, and Food and Holidays. For authenticity, we have transcribed the interview material as accurate as possible. The Karen People We encourage our readers to visit the Karen Organization of Minnesota website in order to learn more about the history and culture of the Karen people. Part 2: Immigration Elissa: What is the best thing about living in the USA? Re: Getting a good education, like even seeking to go forward for college or postsecondary there are people willing to help and help us to try to achieve our dreams. Back in Thailand, I felt like a lot of us or most of us didn't have a lot of dreams. So even after you have been graduating from a school, [for] everyone as long as the...

Last fall, Elissa had the opportunity to interview some Karen youth in St. Paul, MN. They met at a Karen grocery store, shared a meal together, and talked about various aspects of the Karen culture. We have divided this interview into a four part series: Culture, Immigration, Family and Faith, and Food and Holidays. For authenticity, we have transcribed the interview material as accurate as possible. The Karen People We encourage our readers to visit the Karen Organization of Minnesota website  in order to learn more about the history and culture of the Karen people. Part 1: Culture The interviewees Elissa: Within Karen culture what is the definition of success? Re: I think success it is someone who is achieving their dreams and has a stable job and have a place to live. Kyeh: Yeah, I would say people who do a career that they love. My parents whenever they see a doctor they are like, “Oh, there is a doctor,” and they say that person is, you know, very ...

My name is Amanda Khaukha. I'm one of four. The rest of us are David Khaukha, Kari Wheeler, and Elissa Dale. We all have our own stories you will get to know later. Culture Kids International. What is that?  We are working on it. Well, developing the full picture anyway.  Culture Kids International is born out of the love and dreams of four friends who want to make a lasting impact and long-term contribution in the lives of youth in Uganda, Africa. It is an idea, or lots of ideas, that have been churning in our hearts for a long time. We decided one day that there was enough talking, and we needed to start acting. It came suddenly, from one day to the next.  David and Amanda in Makhai Village in Mbale, Uganda. (2011) David and I had been talking for over two years about building some kind of technology and literacy center in his hometown of Mbale in Uganda. David, Elissa, and Kari had a conversation about six months ago about all of us working together...