This year, the families of scientists, administrative employees of the UniLodz, the Rector of the university, as well as students and graduates of our university. have hosted international students who learned about the customs of Polish holidays together with them. Additionally, employees of the Marek Edelman Dialogue Center in Łódź have joined the action for the first time. Among those invited to the Christmas and festive tables there were students from Algeria, China, Japan, Kazakhstan, Mexico, Mongolia, Turkey, Ukraine and Italy.
Christmas Eve with a student from Kazakhstan
This year's Christmas was special and different than usual for the family of dr hab. Elżbieta Roszko-Wójtowicz, Associate Professor at the University of Lodz, Faculty of Economics and Sociology, because they had a guest at their Christmas Eve dinner table – a student from Kazakhstan, Aruzhan Mukhametzhankyzy. This situation gave the well-known tradition a new, very lively dimension. The family members felt joy, curiosity and emotion, while the atmosphere was particularly warm and open, full of conversation and mutual kindness.
Aruzhan was interested in learning about Polish Christmas customs, dishes, Christmas carols and the importance of celebrating together, stressing that it was an important and edifying experience for her. For all of us, it was a real pleasure and joy to share tradition and home warmth with someone who was far from their own family. If we were to encourage others to host such a guest next year, we would say that you should definitely do it – because in this way the tradition of hospitality and the open Christmas table really becomes a reality, and the common holidays acquire a deeper meaning and stay in the memory for a long time – says Prof. Rosko-Wójtowicz.
Meeting of cultures at the festive table
This year, the family of Prof. Jarosław Płuciennik from the Faculty of Philology have once again taken part in the “Christmas Guest” campaign, combining the Old Polish tradition of leaving a free place at the Christmas table for a stranger with the idea of a University Diversity. Bayarmaa Narangarav (a student from Mongolia) and Sami Berhail (a student from Algeria) visited his home.
According to Prof. Płuciennik, participation in the campaign is a gesture of openness, hospitality and intercultural dialogue, especially important in today's dynamically changing world.
During this year's meeting on the first day of the holidays, we hosted students from Algeria and Mongolia, which became an opportunity for an extremely inspiring exchange of experiences and perspectives. The conversations quickly went beyond everyday pleasantries – they touched upon culture, history, music and contemporary challenges. Together we listened to Algerian hip-hop, Berber folk, Mongolian hard rock and traditional throat songs inspired by Tibetan Buddhism. It was a real lesson in cross-cultural sensitivity and openness.
The meeting also had an intergenerational dimension – our growing son enthusiastically conducted conversations in English, talking about his passion for the history and Genghis Khan. We also talked about literature and philosophy, including the work of Albert Camus and his concept of the “rebellious man”, which acquired special significance in the context of the writer's Algerian roots.
Such meetings show how much can be gained by opening up to diversity and perspectives beyond one's own cultural bubble. Our guests – who have been in Poland for several months now – enthusiastically shared their insights about the country, appreciating its peace, friendliness of residents and even... efficiently operating public transport in Lodz.
The Christmas Guest initiative has once again proved that the university is not only a place of learning, but also a space for meeting, dialogue and building bridges between cultures – emphasises Prof. Jarosław Płuciennik.
Meet students of UniLodz from a completely different side
Dr hab Jakub Kronenberg, Associate Professor at the University of Lodz, from the Faculty of Economics and Sociology, hosted Xiao Qing Wang, a student from China, and Olga Lebedovych, a student from Ukraine.
Both my wife and I have participated in exchange programmes ourselves, we have been abroad and we know how important, interesting and necessary different opportunities to meet the locals, traditions and in general the culture of the places we visit are. We travelled a lot, taking advantage of the hospitality of people we met by chance and we are very happy that the University of Lodz creates an opportunity for this type of exchange in Lodz. What is more, this is a great opportunity to meet UniLodz students from a completely different side! – says Prof. Kronenberg.
Polish Christmas and... a game of Twister
Hong Qin, the University of Lodz student from China, spent the festive moments at the home of Julia Stasiak, a student from the Faculty of Management.
This Christmas was different. I was able to show Polish traditions to my guest from China, and her delight in our holidays, customs and the taste of our food gave me great satisfaction. We had Christmas dinner, we also played UNO and Twister (there was a lot of laughter), and then we baked gingerbread cookies and decorated them. Surprisingly, the family members were able to communicate with their guest without using words, which was a nice surprise. We learned a lot about the traditions and life in her country – says Julia Sitarska.
Christmas dinner with students from China and Belarus
This year, the family of dr hab. Piotr Sitarski, Associate Professor at the University of Lodz, from the Faculty of Philology sat down for Christmas Eve in the company of Defeng Tang, a student from China, and Stanisława Leonaweja, a student from Belarus.
We have been participating in the Christmas Guest campaign for many years and Defeng Tang was already the second student from the Middle Country at our table. In addition to her, we also invited my student Stanisława Leonava from Belarus, who did not return to her country for the holidays – says Prof. Sitarski. – After the meeting Defang Tang wrote to me as follows:
“Participation in your family gathering made me reflect: no matter where we are, the true essence of important holidays is being together with family. Even though I don't speak Polish, I felt completely immersed in this atmosphere. Sitting among you, listening to your conversations, observing the relationships between you, I remembered what it is like to be at home with my loved ones. I will always remember that evening in a foreign country, experiencing a different culture and feeling the same joy of being together with my family and the incredible kindness of the family I have just met.”
Christmas and a visitor from Japan
It was not our first foreign guest at Christmas, but the first as part of the Christmas Guest campaign. We were a little nervous, but also excited. Our guest, student Tamaki Sato from Japan turned out to be a kind, open and very positive person. He has been in Poland for three months and is already grasping the basics of Polish! During the 3-day stay, he ate Christmas meals with us and we also visited the neighbourhood together. We tried to show him as many Christmas traditions as possible, and in return we learned a lot about the culture of Japan. We can't wait for Tamaki to fulfil the promise of coming again and talking in Polish! It was a great adventure. Thank you and Merry Christmas! 来てくれてありがとう! メリークリスマス！
– reports Małgorzata Niedźwiedź, expert on international students at the University of Lodz Students' Government Council.
About Polish and Islamic holidays at the Christmas table
Dr Magdalena Sasin has participated in the “Christmas Guest” campaign for the third time. This time, she hosted Eysa Ebrar Kartal, a Turkish woman who lives permanently in Azerbaijan. She was the guest of the scientist from the Faculty of Educational Sciences on Christmas Eve.
The meeting and joint celebration were an opportunity not only to get to know each other, but also to learn more about each other's cultures. The extremely interesting conversation concerned, among other things, a comparison of the ways in which important religious celebrations are observed in Christianity and Islam, the significance of fasting in both religions, and the similarities and differences in the traditions of both cultures. Eysa was open to Polish traditions, including culinary ones; she gladly tasted all the dishes and was interested in the ways of their preparation. I was happy to show her Polish customs, such as breaking the Christmas wafer, placing hay under the Christmas tablecloth, and the symbolism of individual dishes and products. Spending Christmas with someone from abroad is a lovely tradition that allows the wonderful Polish custom of leaving an empty place setting for an unexpected guest to fully resonate. It is a way of bringing different cultures together, sometimes very distant ones, and cultivating traditional Polish hospitality – says Dr Magdalena Sasin.
The UniLodz Rector: we have more in common than divides us
The Rector of the University of Lodz, Prof. dr hab. Rafał Matera, as always has joined the “Christmas Guest” campaign. Gullu Yagmur Olcek, a student from Turkey, and Kazuki Ono, a student from Japan, spent unforgettable moments at the Christmas table together with him and his family.
This campaign organised by our university is to show a piece of the world to other people, which is basically the best thing you can do. It serves both parties, creates new relationships, gives true joy. It may seem stressful, but this is just our “comfort zone” we should try getting out of. This year we have once again hosted young people from far away in our home and again it has turned out that we are separated only by geographical distances, and there are definitely more things in common for us. I am extremely proud that UniLodz will be organising this action for the 10th time in a year, and that other universities in Poland are following our example – underlines the Rector of the University of Poland.
Małgorzata Gramala, Head of the UniLodz International Centre, who is the coordinator of the campaign, is already thinking about the next year's edition.
The Christmas Guest campaign is a beautiful, long-standing tradition of the University of Lodz. As every year, we are encouraged by the response and commitment of the UniLodz academic community. It is an initiative that shows that free space at the Christmas table is not only a tradition, not only decoration, but also in practice openness to other people. Next year we will have a jubilee edition of the action, so we will definitely prepare something special – she announces.
Source: International Centre, University of Lodz and participants of the Christmas Guest campaign
Edit: Press Office, University of Lodz
Photos from the archive of the participants of the Christmas Guest campaign
