Smithsonian Folk-life Festival

     Last week, we went to Smithsonian Folk-life Festival as our field trip. We are studying American culture and conversation, so we go on a field trip, like the zoo, museums, and Botanic garden, to learn about the U.S. every week. This field trip was about Basque and Sounds of California, so we could enjoy a lot of traditional Basque culture and various music of California. Many people came to see the festival and share the special culture. It was a good opportunity to learn about Smithsonian Folk-life Festival, traditional cultures, and immigration from other countries.

     Smithsonian Institute holds the Folk-life Festival every year on the National Mall. It is conducted by the people from different countries to share their tradition and culture. People can get involved and learn about their food, dance, songs and hand crafts. These things help us understand different cultures which is very important to tie people together. For this reason, Smithsonian Institute has tried to introduce cultural variety and encouraged people to learn about different things and new places since 1967.

     This year, the topic of Smithsonian Folk-life Festival is "Basque: Innovation by culture and Sounds of California." Basque country is a small place between Spain and France, and it has a unique tradition and culture. Because there were many special booths which showed their lives, music, dance, costumes, food and art, we could see, experience and learn about the Basque. In addition, many musicians sang and played instruments in the booth related to Sound of California. California is the most famous melting pot in the U.S., so cultural diversity has affected people's lives and music as well. It is a good chance to think about how music reflects and connects different people together. Also, this festival reminded us of that immigration is a very important part of the U.S. culture and history

     These events, which are held to celebrate different cultures and countries, are one of the reasons why people come to the U.S. Every year, people from all over the world immigrate here for education, technology, and freedom. The education in the U.S. system is more practical. As the technology is very developed, people can utilize their skills and talents to achieve their goals. Each and everyone has their own individual right, so they can feel free to do anything.