Loading ...LAU turns red, white and blue for ‘Discover USA’ day
BEIRUT: The Lebanese American University was flush with all-American food, music and sports Friday as hospitality students at the university staged a Yankee celebration. The day, titled “Discover USA at LAU,” staged in collaboration with the U.S. Embassy, saw students replicate some of America’s most prominent cities and states.
The campus was filled with kiosks named after places like New Orleans, Las Vegas, Texas, New York’s 5th Avenue, Boston and Detroit.
The crowd was bustling with attendees of all ages and students with their families. U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon David Hale was also in attendance.
The activities were organized by the Hospitality Club at LAU and gave the students experience in how to organize an event with the help of sponsors.
“Every year or two years we prepare some kind of an event, it has a theme. Two years ago we did it as an Italian theme, this year it’s an American event,” Ahmad Karanouh, a second-year hospitality student working in the Boston section, told The Daily Star. “Basically everything is sponsored, everyone has their own kiosks, whether American products, their food, or beauty products, clothes, etc. They gain much exposure.”
All the food and drink at the event was free and most of the guests indulged in the wide variety of American goodies – from popular food chains such as Cinnabon and Subway close to the New York’s 5th Ave section to American cars such as Chevrolet and Ford in the Detroit section.
At one end of campus, guests were greeted by a celebrated America tradition: Mardi Gras in the New Orleans section along with some classic New Orleans seafood.
Las Vegas and Texas sat next door, offering the chance to try the activities they’re best known for. Kids tried their luck at the roulette table in Las Vegas while few, if any, were brave enough to hop on the mechanical bull in Texas.
In the Boston area, set up at the LAU basketball courts, organizers recreated a typical American sports bar. They sold wings and beer and a big screen overlooking the area played old basketball, American football and hockey games.
Beyond promoting America and American products, the main purpose of the day was to teach students how to run an event of this scale.
“It’s really hard to manage an event but it’s really fun!” Hiba Souhi, a second-year hospitality student who worked at the Miller Beer tent in the Texas area, told The Daily Star.
Karanouh said he enjoyed the teamwork aspect of assuming different roles and delegating work efficiently. He said that learning how to work with sponsors allowed them to provide all the food and drink for free.
There was a festival atmosphere about the day thanks to all the free dishes; families went from one booth to another comparing food items among each other.
There was also a range of American health and beauty products on stage. To top it off, American hits from the ’80s, ’90s and present played throughout the day.
Source: www.dailystar.com.lb