Internationalmatt's Blog

This blog is about my international friends and their inspiring stories

Miriam and Martha’s Lunch Van

I stopped to pick up some Pupusas for my lunch this afternoon at a store owned by former students of mine. Miriam and Martha are from El Salvador and were my students last fall and winter. They are hardworking women who are making a life and future for their families through their hard work. Martha persevered through her son’s battle with leukemia and improved her English while also working. They are both remarkable women who have made new lives for themselves and their families. They recently started their lunch van which is in the parking lot of Miriam’s store Variedades El Quetzal at the corner of 13th and E streets in Lincoln.

Pupusas are similar to eating a round tortilla that is stuffed with chicken, beans, or pork  and cheese. It is eaten with shredded cabbage and salsa topping it. It is a food I heard about quite often when I went to school in Minneapolis. A friend of mine, Beatriz Rodriguez from El Salvador, talked about pupusas all the time. I had my first pupusas several years ago found out they are delicious, so when I heard Miriam and Martha had begun to serve them from their lunch van I had to go there on Cinco de Mayo.

Miriam in her lunch van

Martha in her lunch van

Miriam and Martha also sell tacos, burritos and nachos and they are all are priced great. You can sit there at their picnic tables or take them to go. Their lunch van is open 11am to 10pm. If you want to have some authentic food priced better than fast food, stop by and enjoy some pupusas or the tacos, nachos and burritos.

May 22, 2012 Posted by | El Salvador, Experiences of international friends, food, Hispanic friends, International Friendships, Internationals | Leave a Comment

Babylon Restaurant with my friend George from China

After my morning ESL reading group at my church today, I enjoyed lunch at Babylon Restaurant with my new friend from China. George has been in Lincoln for a few months to study English in the Intensive English Program at the University of Nebraska Lincoln. Last week we had some Mexican food and while we were eating, George told me that he wished he could travel around the world and try the foods in each place. I enjoy trying foods from other cultures as well, so I told George we would eat some food from the Middle East.

Babylon Restaurant is in a strip mall on S. 48th street close to 48th and Highway 2 in Lincoln. Our waiter was Ali and I must say the service was excellent. When you first come to Babylon Restaurant it does not look like much on the outside due to it being in a strip mall, but when you go inside you and see the decor, you get a glimpse of Middle Eastern Culture. I particularly appreciated an mural on the wall that had a scene of a prayer tower contrasted with a moon smiley face.

Good service is essential for a restaurant and decor is a nice extra, but when dining out it is all about the food. I found the food to be delicious and authentic at Babylon. It is definitely a place I will go back to and is a place I highly recommend.

George had the Kofta Kebab which is made from ground beef. I love Kofta Kebab myself as well. It was served with rice and choice of soup. The only negative comment I heard from George was that he was full and it was too much, but it was too much of a good thing :)

I had the chicken kebab which is my favorite kebab. It was cooked just right and was tender and juicy the way chicken should be.

We started it off with some hummus and bread. I love hummus!! Fortunately for me hummus is healthy :) it is made of beans pureed with olive oil and garlic. Other ingredients can be added as well.

I loved the food, and the service was excellent. I will certainly visit Babylon again!!

April 14, 2012 Posted by | Chinese friends, Cross Cultural, food, International Friendships, international students, Internationals | Leave a Comment

Malaysia Night 2012 – Delicious Food and Teh Tarik

One aspect of experiencing other cultures that I enjoy is tasting their food. One afternoon during one of my trips to Romania my group wanted to go to McDonald’s for lunch, which I did not want to do because I can always have junk food anytime. When I spend time with another culture, I want to experience their food. It helps me to learn about their culture and allows me to experience new taste sensations. The food at Malaysia night was tasty, but not as spicy as I thought it might be.  They may have toned it down for the Americans :)

My friend Tu from Vietnam volunteered in the buffet line

For our dinner we had a buffet line and could choose from colored rice, fried chicken, stir fry, and other delicious items. The only thing I did not try was the roasted coconut. I sat at a table with people I had not met before, but had the chance to meet two young men from China who are working on their Master’s Degrees in Actuarial Science. I did sneak back for seconds, but there was only some sweet and sour chicken left, which of course is Americanized Chinese food :)

At the end of the evening they served all of the guests Teh Tarik which is a tea made with tea, sweeten condensed milk, and a little salt. It was a night of good food, a humorous musical, good music, and information about Malaysia. If I have a chance in the future, I will visit Malaysia. I will for sure go back to Malaysia Night next year.

April 4, 2012 Posted by | Experiences of international friends, food, International Friendships, international students, Internationals, Malaysia | Leave a Comment

Kim Bop- Lunar New Year Gift of Korean Food from Vietnamese Students :)

One of my friends from Vietnam in my Saturday group has some Korean friends. Linh and I have shared about out mutual appreciation for Korean food. She has been able to enjoy some Korean food with her Korean friends. For three years I helped with a Korean church on Sunday afternoons. I would teach the children bible in English while their parents worshiped in Korean. Afterward we would sit down together to dine on various Korean dishes. On Saturday after our study group Linh told me she had made some Kim Bop for me.

my three chefs :)

Linh told me the Kim Bop was from her and our friends Thao and Tram. The simple gifts made by hand many times have the most meaning. It was a blessing to receive Kim Bop because I love it, but even more so because my friends took the time to make it for me.

Kim Bop is made of of rice and vegetables rolled in seaweed and cut into small round pieces. Some people will put fish, meat or egg inside. I tried to make some once myself when I was at a Korean friend’s house, but it fell apart. My Kim Bop chef days lasted all of 10 minutes as my friends and I laughed at my inept chef skills. I was proud of my friends Linh, Thao and Tram for being to make Kim Bop.

Kim Bop

Thanks for the Kim Bop Linh, Thao and Tram. Happy New Year to all of my friends from China, Korea and Vietnam. Or as they say in Vietnam- Chuc Mung Nam Moi, in Korea- 새해 복 많이 받으세요, in China- 新年快乐.

January 23, 2012 Posted by | Cutural Celebrations, food, Holidays, International Friendships, international students, Internationals, Korean friends, Vietnamese friends | Leave a Comment

Thanksgiving Day with Friends from China

Alex, Nancy and Huiyuan

I celebrated Thanksgiving Day with my friends from China, Alex, Nancy and Huiyuan. I told them I would prepare dinner for them and bring with me. The preparation consisted of buying the food from HyVee Deli. I promised them a taste of an American Thanksgiving, so we had Turkey, Mashed Potatoes, Stuffing and Pumpkin Pie.

Thanksgiving is an American Holiday, so it does not have emotional attachments for my international friends. For them it is nice to have time off from classes or work depending on their situation in life. Alex, Nancy and Huiyuan were glad to have time off from classes at the University of Nebraska. They have holidays that are important times to be with family and friends in China such as Chinese New Year’s or Fall Moon Festival, but Thanksgiving is mostly time to relax or travel for international students. Some may feel lonely if they are stuck in their dorm rooms with no one around. Many travel to see the USA.

Nancy getting her food

They were curious about why we eat certain foods for Thanksgiving, so we talked about the first Thanksgiving and what the Pilgrims ate such as Turkey, Cranberries, Pumpkin etc. We also talked about why Thanksgiving is a Holiday and the meaning behind it.

Huiyuan getting her food

In a way it was a fitting way for me to celebrate Thanksgiving Day. The first Thanksgiving the Pilgrims, who were new to America, had a celebration dinner with the Americans living here who were the Native Americans. Likewise I was the American having dinner with newcomers to America. The difference was that I prepared the food for them. Another difference would be the fact that there were no Delis to buy food from at the first Thanksgiving. The main similarity was that I had a chance to share with my friends and show my appreciation for their friendship :)

November 26, 2011 Posted by | Chinese friends, Cultural Ambassdors, Experiences of international friends, Fall, food, Holidays, International Friendships, international students, Internationals | Leave a Comment

Buñuelos Party with my friends from Ministerio Manatial de Vida and Spring of Life Deaf Church

On Sunday and Labor Day I spent time with my friends from Ministerio Manatial de Vida and Spring of Life Deaf Church. On Sunday we had corn Mexican style and rolled the dough to make a Mexican treat called Buñuelos. On Labor Day we had a potluck lunch which included chicken tacos, ices and the Buñuelos.

Buñuelos is a sweet deep-fried treat similar to a sweetened tortilla shell. The dough is rolled into thin somewhat round shapes and then set aside to dry over night. They are fried in oil and the allowed to cool. They are a tasty crunchy treat. It seemed to me the fun was in the rolling the dough. Several people joined in on rolling the dough ad there was a lot of laughter. Rolling Buñuelos seemed like a community event.

me rolling the Buñuelos dough with my "assistant" Elizabeth watching

For some reason my rolling efforts were not fully appreciated by my “assistant” Elizabeth. I guess some people do not like it when someone claps their hands with flour in them :) After rolling out the dough, the pieces are placed on paper to dry overnight.

Pastor Rogelio with the Buñuelos

After drying overnight, the much anticipated treat was ready for frying. I noted that it was the men who were doing the frying. I think it is because then they can sample the treats :)

me demonstrating the "correct" frying technique

When they are done being fried and allowed to cool, they are ready to be enjoyed by young and old.

We also had ices with several flavor choices. The children enjoyed not only eating the ices, but also seeing how their tongues changed color. Candice was our ices chef with some willing assistants.

It was a fun weekend. It was great to be able to sample some special Mexican treats such as Buñuelos, chicked tacos, and corn on the cob with a twist. Tomorrow I will write about corn on the cob Mexican style.

September 6, 2011 Posted by | children, food, Hispanic friends, International Friendships, Internationals, Uncategorized | Leave a Comment

Fun in Cooper Park with Iglesía Berea

Last Saturday I joined my friends from iglesía berea for a fun afternoon in Cooper Park here in Lincoln. When I am with my friends from iglesía berea, I am always blessed to see many former students. There was fun for all ages, but especially for the children. There was face painting, an inflatable jumping gym, a fire truck for the children to get into and learn about fire safety, and Piñatas.

from left- pastor of iglesía berea, a firefighter and my friend Hugo the worship leader for iglesía berea

It was great to see the children having fun. It was even more meaningful to see many of my former students and hear about how they are doing and about their lives. While the worship group was singing, I noticed that 2 of the 4 women singing were former students of mine, and 2 of the four men playing instruments and singing were former students of mine, so half of the worship group were my former students.

The one surprise for me was the food. I expected to have some food from their culture such as papusas or tortas, but due to the event being more for children they had hot dogs and chips. There some salad topping we could have that was spicy :) I got a kick out of The decoration on top of the food tent which announced what the food would be.

It was a fun afternoon and I was blessed to see how my former students are giving back to the community. There were children from diverse groups enjoying the festival. I saw not only Hispanic children having fun at the festival. I also saw White, Black and Asian children having fun at the festival. Maybe if we adults have more fun together, we might get along better.

July 27, 2011 Posted by | children, Cross Cultural, Cultural Ambassdors, food, Hispanic friends | Leave a Comment

4th of July Fun with Friends from Many Countries

me with our host Aynur

On the 4th of July I was invited to a party hosted by my friend Aynur from Turkey. It was fun to meet a lot of people and eat some good food. It was also a blast-pardon the pun- to watch people take turns lighting off fireworks. I met people from several countries at the party. People from Afghanistan, Bosnia, Colombia, India, Iraq, Kurdistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Turkey, and Uganda and a few Americans as well.

Garret at the Grill

Aynur’s husband Garret was a chef at the grill. There was plenty of good food that people brought such as some curry chicken and rice, Turkish potato salad and much more. We had fun mingling and meeting each other. Aynur’s dog walked around to greet everyone and managed to get some food from a soft-hearted little girl.

It was then time to light off the fireworks and there were plenty of them. Most of the guests are Undergraduate or Graduate Students at UNL. As they lit off the fireworks the young adults turned into little kids for a while. It was funny as I watched a friend from Colombia who is working on her PHD get excited as she prepared to light a firework.

Jihan with her firework

As we were watching the fireworks, I met a group of Undergraduate students who are from Afghanistan, Bosnia, Iraq, Kurdistan, and Sri Lanka. I asked them if they knew the famous words from the Declaration of Independence. One said “liberty and freedom” and I then shared with them “We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal and endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights….. the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”

After the fireworks were finished we had some spontaneous entertainment. Aynur’s two little nieces sang some songs for us. I taught one of them to say, “thank you, we will sign autographs out back”.

It was awesome to spend the 4th of July with new friends from all over the world. During the evening I thought about how what began on July 4th 1776, the cause of freedom and liberty, has spread throughout the world.

July 5, 2011 Posted by | America to other cultures, Experiences of international friends, food, Holidays, international students, Turkish friend | Leave a Comment

Birthday Cake Vietnamese Style

I just met my new neighbors who moved in yesterday and are from Vietnam. It seemed fitting to write about an experience with my Vietnamese friends last Friday. I stopped by to visit some friends and see their new house. I also wanted to bring a birthday gift for my friend. They had another visitor who brought a birthday cake.

I usually hear two comments from my international friends about American food; 1- it is to salty and 2- it is too sweet. The too sweet I agree with when it comes to birthday cake from the store. You know the sheet cake kind that is so sweet it is almost sickening. Just looking at the picture makes me realize birthday cake Vietnamese style is a more natural kind of sweetness. Notice the fresh fruit on top and you get the idea of what I am talking about. I could not have a piece of this cake because it had coconut, but I have had cake with other Vietnamese friends and have enjoyed the natural sweetness from the fruit not only on top, but also layered in the cake. The cake was for my friend Tram. Belated Happy Birthday to Tram :)

Another Vietnamese food I love are Vietnamese egg rolls. Fresh out of the pan Vietnamese egg rolls or Spring rolls are far tastier than the cheap egg rolls in restaurants. I am secretly hoping that my new neighbors will share some egg rolls with me and maybe even some Pho Bo :)

June 28, 2011 Posted by | food, Vietnamese friends | Leave a Comment

Ice Cream- Spontaneous Treat with Vietnamese Friends

On Tuesday I went to the University of Nebraska Lincoln to participate in New Student Enrollment with my friend Tai from Vietnam. During a break time for the parents/supporters I saw three of my friends from Vietnam- Elaine, Hien and Van-in the Student Union at the ice cream counter. I went over to say hi and they invited me to join then and they bought me some ice cream.

my friends Van, Elaine and Hien enjoying their ice cream

I had not seen them for a long time, so it was great to catch up on what is happening in their lives. Van will graduate this summer and is looking into MBA programs. Elaine will graduate in December. Hien graduated from Dental Hygienist school, passed her boards and is now working as a Dental Hygienist. All three are very intelligent young women. It was a wonderful break in the day. I love unplanned spontaneous moments and I have to admit when someone buys me ice cream it makes it even better. I had two scoops, one peppermint and one chocolate. Thank you to my friends for a fun time and a tasty treat :)

Ice cream is one of my favorite foods. My favorite ice cream in Lincoln is from the University’s Dairy Store. They use fresh milk from the Ag college and make the ice cream on East Campus. It tastes the way ice cream should taste. I do not use mix ins or any toppings when I eat ice cream there. I also like Coldstone when I want ice cream with mix ins, but when I want ice cream the way it used to be, just good old fashioned ice cream, the East Campus Dairy Store is the best. I makes me wonder what favorite snacks or treats my friends enjoy and also what ice cream others like best.

my ice cream :)

June 23, 2011 Posted by | food, International Friendships, international students, Internationals, Vietnamese friends | 2 Comments

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