The hottest salsa on campus Wednesday wasn't bought in a store. Rather, it could be found with its spicy dance counterpart, merengue, in the rhythms and movements of students at this year's annual Latino Bazaar in the Student Union.
That isn't to say there wasn't food.
The purpose of the event, said coordinator Mitchell Chavez, is to expose students to different culture, art, dances, and of course, the ever-popular Latino food.
"(The event) is going well, we have a lot of students, and participation has been great. Students really came out to support the organization," said Chavez, who is a staff member with the Cultural Diversity Center. "The entertainment was provided by the Caribbean SA, the Latino American SA and a borinquen dance theater group from Rochester."
Along with the dancers from Rochester, UB students got in on the music as the Latino American SA group Alma Nanichi took the floor.
"What that stands for is, 'alma' is Spanish for soul, and 'nanichi' is a Taino word that means 'from the heart,' " said Milton Macias, a second year graduate student in pharmacology. "We do a lot of traditional Latin dances, like merengue, salsa and bachata, which is what we performed today."
Taino is the language of a group of Native Americans who lived in the Greater Antilles islands, now known today as Haiti, the Dominican Republic and Cuba.
While Macias learned to dance six years ago, this is the first group for which he has acted as choreographer.
"Overall, the event was a great success. We want to represent what our culture is. We want to communicate the culture that is here on campus," Macias said.
The bazaar also had a buffet of Latin American foods, and posters displaying facts about Latin American countries that were made by the organizations involved. The posters included facts about the origins of countries, and unusual facts or vocabulary.
"I was drawn to the event by the prospect of food and a free mini-maraca, and the food was delicious," said Sara Paur, a senior psychology major. "I thought it was a good representation of Latino culture. The music was hopping. I would definitely come to another cultural bazaar in the future; I was impressed by the quality of the event."
There was also an activity where students could paint flags on picture frames, and small maracas, key chains and notepads were handed out to students as they came in.
"The idea of having the picture frame making and food drew me in. I put the Nicaraguan flag on my frame," said Joe DeVincenzo, senior electrical engineering major.
Some students, however, seem to think not quite enough is being done to promote understanding of their culture.
"It doesn't surprise me that there aren't many other people here. The school doesn't seem that diverse to me," said Jasson Ruiz, a junior chemical engineering major. "I mean it's diverse, but it's segregated."
Ruiz said he did think the event itself was good, however.
"It's very nice, they (the dancers) have more skill than I imagined they would," Ruiz said. "It was the music, music I know, that drew me."
"It is (educational and representational)," said Ruiz. "I didn't think they'd have the dance, just booths, although it could have been longer."
Organizers were said they were pleased with the day's activities and the turnout it elicited.
Deepa Govindaraj, a senior English major, is a volunteer with the Diversity Advocacy Program, which helped sponsor the event.
"These kinds of events are really important. People should come out and support them. It's how we learn about other peoples and cultures," said Govindaraj, as she handed out surveys to obtain feedback about the event. "We (Cultural Diversity center) do diversity advocacy workshops about gender, race, AIDS discrimination and others. There's just so much."
The Cultural Diversity center will be offering a variety of bazaars this year, the next one being the Native American Bazaar on Wednesday, Nov. 16 in the Student Union.
