On a recent January afternoon, StartLine Foundation paid its monthly visit to Open Doors in the Wilanow district of Warsaw. Ata Aminpour was our featured guest. With his Turkish and Iranian background, our objective was to expose kids to a tiny slice of Persian culture, and as always, English language.
We started our meeting by asking the kids to guess where Ata was from. No luck. When Ata revealed he was half Turkish and half Iranian, it was clear that at least half the group hadn’t heard about either of these foreign lands. However, when we challenged the kids to find these countries on a globe, they succeeded! In fact, they were surprised to see how close Iran and Turkey are to Poland. A new perspective on geography had been reached.
Did you know Iran uses a calendar totally different to the one we’re most familiar? Ata explained that Iran’s New Year’s celebration occurs on the spring equinox in March. The New Year starting in March? How is it possible? The kids were in a bit of shock. Ata shared Iranian New Year’s Eve traditions, including the decoration of the holiday table. In a “show and tell” style, Ata brought references to all the items placed on the table on this festive day, such as coins, a clove of garlic, and a mirror (just to name a few), passing each around for everyone to see up close.
Next, we got all the kids involved in an activity they love: cooking! But on this day, they would cook something totally foreign to them called “kofta”. Ata methodically explained the art of preparing this Middle Eastern staple. Using a combination of fresh ground lamb and beef, the kids started by making their patties. And while the meat was grilling, the kids prepared homemade tzatziki sauce, and chopped, sliced and diced lettuce, tomatoes, garlic and cucumbers, all under Ata’s close supervision.
The last step was the design of each plate. We challenged each kid to take pita bread and all the prepared ingredients and prepare his or her individual, unique kofka creation. The outcomes ranged from smiling pita-faces to bulging pita sandwiches. But the best part was when everyone got to enjoy the flavors of their creations. That moment led to the biggest smiles of all.
In short, it was a wonderful day spent with the children of Open Doors. StartLine is always happy to introduce kids in the local Polish community to cultures from around the world, through sports, food, tradition and language. That’s our objective. And the social impact it leaves is remarkable.
