The Cultural Quiz of the Day

We had three guests come to campus today. I am going to give you a series of clues and you are going to have to guess what country they were from.

*The three were administrators of a vocational center who had come to Kyrgyzstan to learn about education programs, particularly for those who are developing skills and trades.
*They were extremely kind and appreciative that I, and everyone on campus, was taking the time to meet with them and show them our university.
*All three of them spoke nearly flawless English.
*They dressed in standard Western clothing--more stylish and nicer than what I was wearing today.
*They asked a series of questions about our student body and curricular programs as they were interested in providing information to students from their home country on our institution and on how to apply.
*They gave me a beautiful leather wallet handmade by their vocational students as a gift of appreciation.

So, which country were these educators from? I would be surprised if anyone would guess the right answer at this point in the quiz.

Let me give you one piece of information that might help. When they told me how much they loved visiting Kyrgyzstan, I asked them what they liked the best. And they said, "it is so peaceful here, no rockets or missiles in the air."

I bet you have a different guess now. Try again.

If you guessed Syria, then you have passed the Cultural Quiz of the Day. Here is what I've gathered from the quiz and my experience today:

*When we judge nations or peoples strictly what we hear on the news, we form skewed opinions.
*People in every country want to make their homes better places.
*People carry on and are brave and don't give up, no matter the adversity. We don't understand what adversity truly is in many of our personal contexts.
*Stereotypes are not helpful.
*Never say one word in judgment about the people of another country until you've eaten lunch with them (at the very minimum, and probably 50 lunches would be better).
*Most of us, myself included, know very little about the world and even less about the places we have never been.
*A reminder to me and all of us: consider each person, not as a part of a particular group, but as a distinct and unique individual, as you encounter them in the world.

Hope you enjoyed playing.