CulturalHeritage

The speaker discusses the intersection of culture and cuisine and shares their personal story of growing up in a multicultural household. They talk about how their family's diverse heritage influenced their meals, traditions, and cultural pride. Food became a way to connect with their cultural identity and understand other cultures. The speaker encourages listeners to explore different flavors and get to know their own neighbors. Hello, welcome to an episode of Savoring Cultural Heritage where we will be exploring the intersection of culture and cuisine. Today we will be delving into a personal story of mine, an interview I did with my mother, Chaconda. More specifically, we will talk about cultural pride and what that means for food and just how having a mixture of cultures can impact generational traditions. So a little background about me, I'm currently in my last semester of college and I have lived at home for the entirety of the last few years. While this might be seen as a burden to some, to me it let me focus entirely on my studies rather than focusing on other responsibilities. Plus, nothing really beat coming home to a home-cooked meal. My family was very traditional. My mother was the homemaker and my father was a provider. My parents didn't want that same future for me though. I was never taught how to cook and very rarely helped my mother in the kitchen. Coming home from a long day of classes and walking through the front door to an aroma of spices and familiar flavors, it would calm me down. Nothing beat seeing my mom in the kitchen making a delicious meal, especially when I was facing some of the worst projects and the worst stress I've ever encountered. My mother grew up in Venezuela with roots in Spain and Italy. Our home quickly became a melting pot of flavors, traditions, and practices that have been passed down through our family from multiple backgrounds. Growing up, many of our meals were a combination of all these cultures. Where we would have a Spanish meal, we would have it accompanied with fried plantains. Where we would have a Venezuelan meal, we would have it with Italian dessert. There was a constant inclusion of every part of our generational identity. I always loved asking my mom questions about her family and about her. She would constantly be recalling stories about my grandfather. He would always ask my grandmother to make a plate of spaghetti whenever they were meeting anyone new. He would chew with his mouth open and open wide just to see how the guests would react. If they were worthy of his time, he would be happy, and if he weren't, he would just leave the room. My grandfather was Italian, and like my mother, he seemed very hard-headed and stubborn, but was so incredibly loving and caring. I remember whenever we visited our family in Spain, my grandmother would prepare us a tortilla española with churros. It was my favorite meal, and I loved visiting because of it. Later that night, we would always have a plate of spaghetti. Our family's kitchen quickly became a safe haven for the mixture of culture and a testament to the power of cultural pride. Our diverse heritage didn't stop in the kitchen either. From Christmas to New Year's, we had a mixture of traditions. It was an Italian tradition to throw all the trash out on New Year's, a Hispanic one to eat 12 grapes at midnight and wear a specific color undergarment for good luck, and to open Christmas presents on Christmas Eve at midnight. My family, while it not be complete polar opposites of culture, we are the example of what a mixture of cultures can do, a new culture that is a product of generations of immigration. Through our family, food is more than just survival. It's an identity, a connection, and even a gateway to be more understanding and explore the world around us through a different lens. Our complex history allows us to be more open to our neighbors and encourage others to do the same. Being secure with our own cultural identity, whether that is through food or different practices, allows us to be more open to other cultures too. My family, like many others around the globe, use food as a way to connect with our cultural identity and pride, and I encourage those listening to do the same and get to know their own neighbors. And there you have it. How food creates a pathway to culture and identity. Thank you for listening. I hope you all have fun exploring the different flavors the world has to offer. This is Tiziana signing off.