Buenos días, Ciao, Nĭ Hăo und Namasté!

Food and the way people eat are an important part of social and cultural identity all over the world. To find out more, since last year we have been offering traditional meals from different countries and cultures once a month or as lunch in our canteen on certain holidays.

We started in January with a “Burrrito-Day”. On this day there were tortillas with minced meat, soya for the vegetarians and red beans as warm ingredients. Each class also had delicious toppings to add – diced tomatoes and onions, corn, grated cheese and sour cream. The students filled their own burritos, folded them and topped them off with a tasty salsa. Our students were enthusiastic about this delicious Mexican dish and the hand-rolled preparation.

For the Chinese New Year celebration 春節 / 春节 in February, there were tasty dim sums, vegetarian noodles and spring rolls. Peanut and sweet and sour sauce was also on offer. We spoke about the traditions and the spreading of this celebration in east Asia. The art of eating elegantly with chopsticks was also practiced beforehand in the hope that the students would be able to eat their meal in a more authentic way. This endeavour was more or less successful and offered a lot of laughter along the way. The Year of the Dog was celebrated in high spirits.

Last March we celebrated the Indian “Feast of Colours” – the Holi feast. Like many people in India, we enjoyed our food with all our senses. The children authentically ate the Tandoori chicken, vegetable curry and rice by hand. In fact, eating in this way is not so easy and there are many rules that need to be followed.

To return to European culinary, we served Belgian waffles with vanilla sauce and fruit after the Easter holidays.

In May we celebrated American Burger Day with hamburgers and cheeseburgers. Although it is not the healthiest food, it is one of the most popular dishes in the world. As a rare exception, once a year we enjoy a juicy burger with side dishes.

As it is a national holiday and our school is of course closed on German Unification Day, we will celebrate this special and important holiday on 9th of October. This year the menu entices us with a mouth-watering schnitzel and lukewarm potato salad.

As a tribute to the unique, varied and, above all, favourite Italian cuisine, a pizza and a pasta day are in the plans.

Most of all, however, we are looking forward to the beautiful and delicious Christmas season, particularly a Thanksgiving turkey with matching side dishes and a traditional German Christmas dinner at the end of the year.

We are firmly convinced that not only love goes through the stomach, but also tolerance, understanding, openness and curiosity about the big, wide world.

Enjoy your meal!