Kathy Cruz Rodriguez

Sharind Sookoo displays her henna tattoo artistry

Pacific International Club, sponsored by International Programs & Services Director David A. Schmidt, Ph.D. and ASuop, brought to the campus community a night of cultural entertainment and music with an Arabian twist on April 16th. The event program included an Arab Culture Presentation by Ahmed Kanna, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Anthropology at Pacific, “A Taste of Arabic Cuisine” catered by Famous Kabob of Sacramento,  live Tabla by Tariq Abed of San Joaquin College, authentic belly dancers from Jodette’s Dance Studio, Sacramento, henna tattoos provided by students Sharind Sookoo (Canada) and Shabana Kahn, raffle of event t-shirts and Arabic music CD’s, and a chance to learn belly dancing to music provided by DJ, Hamza Benjelloun, Pacific international student from Morocco.

The cultural event originated as a vision of Hassan Shallal, an international Pharmacy School graduate student from Egypt, to share the often misunderstood Arabic culture through music. Together with Kathy Cruz-Rodriguez , International Student Counselor and advisor of Pacific’s International Club, and student club event coordinators, Ayesha Ali, Hamza Benjelloun, Marish Khan, and Bianca Ochoa, Hassan’s vision has grown to be a popular event on campus, with nearly 300 in attendance this year.

Kathy Cruz Rodriguez

Event staff included International Clubs from Pacific & Delta College

Published in : Lifestyles, Volume 101: Issue 31