Wednesday February 9th

9:00 – 10:30pm

Berkeley Dining Hall

THIS EVENT IS FREE, ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT, and OPEN to everyone!

The following foods will be served, by the following AASA groups:

CASA (Chinese American Students Association):

Dumplings

JASU (Japanese American Students Union):

Various Mochi Snacks

KASAMA (Filipino Club):

Maja blanca is a Filipino dessert made from coconut milk, cornstarch, sugar, and sweet corn. Like a type of coconut pudding, maja blanca is a very popular dessert for family gatherings and special occasions. The ingredients of maja blanca reveal a little about the history of the Philippines, which was a Spanish colony for more than three centuries. The dish combines the coconut, a fruit of the tropics, and corn, a grain originally brought to the Philippines by Spain from the Americas.

MSA (Muslim Students Association):

Dates are the fruits of the date palm tree, which is abundant in North Africa and the Middle East. It has traditionally been eaten by Muslims to open their fasts every day during the month of Ramadan, and so it holds a special religious significance. Dates are very sweet and can be eaten alone or with a drink, such as milk or water. In Muslim countries, dates are also made into breaded sweets, similar to Fig Newtons.

SAS (South Asian Society):

Lassi is a popular traditional Punjabi drink from India and Pakistan. This delicious yogurt based drink, blended with milk, water and Indian spices is often flavored with cumin, mango or other fruits. Meant to quench your thirst and refresh your soul, lassis are ideal for any time of the day!

ViSA (Vietnamese Students Association):

Mung Bean Pudding

TAS (Taiwanese American Students):

Nian Gao (small New Years cakes)

Berkeley College in collaboration with KASY (Korean American Students of Yale):

Korean Food

PLUS: SAMOSAS AND SUSHI!

When we rushed up the steps of 295 Crown Street on Bulldog Days to “meet the Asian American community” —none of us knew what kind of “Fusion” we were walking into. And whether it was a year ago, or two or three or almost four years ago—how many of us today have an understanding of what the Asian American community is? 

The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines a community as a group of people who “…have a common history, or share a common social, economic or politial interest.” So, what is it that ties the Asian American community together? Is it having the AACC? Is it AASA? Is it us defining ourselves as Asian Americans? Maybe it’s the color of our skin? Our heritage? How about the events that we throw?

While serving in ViSA (2007), PAEC (2008), and AASA (2009), I was really obsessed with events. Perhaps there is something about Yale that makes us so event-oriented because I still see it in all the announcements today. Upcoming meetings. Upcoming cultural shows. Upcoming food-nights. Upcoming Master’s teas. Upcoming movie-screenings. Etc and etc.

Don’t worry, dear current student leaders, you’re not wasting your time with all these upcoming events. You are learning how to lead, how to delegate, how to manage and how to event-coordinate. But through all this, are you learning what the Asian American community is about?  Maybe I’m at a huge learning disadvantage because I grew up in Des Moines, Iowa—where the population of Asian Americans is nil compared to California. Or maybe I just really failed.  Because I didn’t learn much.

For me, the few moments where I felt clarity about what it meant to be Asian American and what it meant to invest in the Asian American community didn’t come because of the thousands of dollars spent on bringing in speakers, or all those late-nights sending out emails and announcements, or even because of all the sweat (and tears) poured into the events.

The clarity came in San Francisco this summer, in the office of AAPIP (Asian American Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy), a nonprofit run by mostly non-Vietnamese Americans. There, the Executive Director, Peggy Saika, sat in front of me to tell me that AAPIP was investing thousands of dollars in the leadership of young Vietnamese Americans.

The clarity came when I sifted through the letters of the first Yale Asian American Students Association (AASA). In the letters, they demanded that the President of the University and the Office of Admissions actively recruit minorities. When Yale stalled for time, the student leaders did the recruiting themselves. They fought hard for resources like the AACC and the Ethnic Counselors program for future Asian American students.

“Just scallions.”

“No lime.”

“Give me everything.”

These are the varied requests I got while manning the condiment station during ViSA’s spectacular night of Unlimited Pho, Vietnam’s most famous dish.  This God-send alternative to dining hall “Pho noodle bar” took place last Saturday at the Af-Am House. For the most part, the third request was most common.  That is, people who had never tasted Pho before (gasp) were very eager to get the authentic experience.

If you are one of the people who are unfamiliar to Pho, it contains, in addition to the basic rice noodle, sweet/salty/sour broth, and chicken or tofu:

-cilantro

-chopped scallions

-chopped onions

-1-2 slices of lime

-bean sprouts

-hoisin & Sriracha

(Note to self: never write a blog post about Pho late at night.)

During the event, the line snaked the length of the room, with hungry Pho-lovers eagerly lining up multiple times.  These guests came from all over the Yale community: Vietnamese Yalies, students from other AASA cultural groups, non-Asian students, families from the ALIVE program, faculty members, and graduate students (LOTS of grad students) were among the faces of Pho Night.

At one point, the kitchen ran out of Pho noodles and there was quite a wait! But instead of angrily leaving or sitting down, people persisted in standing and waiting. This is a testament to the power of Pho.

All in all, Pho Night was a success and ViSA sincerely thanks everyone who helped make their big event so warm and, well, delicious.

Enjoy the photos below!

The Vietnamese Student’s Association will be hosting as part of the AACC Film Festival a screening of A Village Called Versailles, an inspiring documentary about a Vietnamese community in New Orleans and the obstacles they faced in rebuilding after Hurricane Katrina. Before the screening there will be a Chaplain’s Tea and dinner with Father Vien who was featured in the film. Afterward there will be a Q&A session with Father Vien and the film’s director. These event are cosponsored by the Yale South East Asian Studies Council, ALIVE, and the Chaplain’s Office and it was organized by senior Xuan Nguyen as part of her thesis.

Wednesday, March 31st
4pm Chaplain’s Tea w/ Father Vien in Golden Center
5pm Dinner w/ Father Vien in Pierson
7pm A Village Called Versailles Screening + Q&A w/ director and Father Vien in Golden Center

Please send an email to xuan.nguyen@yale.edu to reserve your spot for the dinner.

A brief summary of the story is that the king of Vietnam needs to choose which of his children will inherit the throne.  He decides that whoever creates the most delicious dish will be the next ruler of Vietnam. The Cultural Show put a modern spin on the story and made the search for the next heir into a”Top Chef” (a popular reality TV show on Bravo) competition, with each prince/princess as quirky contestants.

Mark Longhurst MC ’09 and Vy Tran TD ’12 played the king and queen.  The contestants were played by Paul Tran SY ’12, Yen Duong DC ’10, Eric Moy ES ’13, Ian Marpuri PC ’11 and Victoria Nguyen BK ’13.

In addition to the skit, the cultural show included a traditional and hip-hop dance and cameos from various students, like JASU president Kohei Kuwahara as Charlie the Unicorn. Don’t ask. You had to be there.

Overall, the show had lots of laughs as well as information about Vietnamese culture.  In addition, it raised just under $300 for La Maison Chance, a charity for the disabled and orphaned in Vietnam. ViSA thanks everyone who attended and hopes to see you all next year. Enjoy the photos!