City College campus will be a small world during International Week starting April 17 with the heat of a soccer tournament.

“I’m very excited about this,” said Rosy Vidal-Ayres, Housing and Activities Coordinator to the International Student Support Program who has been organizing this event for three years. “And I’m happy to organize it.”

City College has 1,086 international students from seventy different countries and it is about five percent of the students. Several students are organizing events during International Week.

International Week, where many different cultures are presented, is going to be a fun place to go on campus for every student. Vidal-Ayres said that it is an opportunity for the students to see the world as it really is, not as they think it is. Also, she wants the students to see how small we are as a world.

International Week will begin with a popular soccer tournament, the biggest and the only athletic event during the week at La Playa Stadium.

A lot of students compete against each other and tend to team up with friends from their own countries. Vidal-Ayres said that the students take the soccer tournament very seriously and play to win the prize. Twelve teams will compete, and three are going to the finals on April 24 which is the last day of International Week.

Cultural events start on Monday, April 19 on East Campus. Some of the big events are a Japanese kimono exhibition, a Japanese tea ceremony, and the screening of International films such as Chinese film presented by a Chinese student club. Also, lectures and a speech will be given to open audience.

Several departments and clubs, such as Student Coalition and the Modern Languages Department, are collaborating for these events this year. ISSP wanted many people to get involved in this event to make the week more exciting, Vidal-Ayres said.

International foods will be provided as well. An International Buffet will be sold on Monday, Scandinavian buffet Tuesday, an Asian Special Wednesday, Organic Special Thursday, which is also Earth Day, and a Middle Eastern Special Friday. Those foods will be sold at Cafeteria for lower prices than on usual school days. Musicians will be performing at Cafeteria during the week, so the students can enjoy international music while having international lunch.

Moreover, the Student Coalition, Global Student Experience, Japanese Calligraphy Club, and Modern Languages Department are going to be tabling at Friendship Plaza on East Campus where students can walk by and look at different cultures.

Students can attend a lot of fun activities. However, International Week also has educational components, Vidal-Ayres said. It is important for students to be aware what is really going on in the world. Each day has a special purpose for the day such as organic food provided on Earth Day.

Vidal-Ayres said that it would be a great opportunity for students to experience different cultures. They may find new facts about other countries more than what they already know. It is a small world that we live in and International Week is for the students to get to know more about the world.