杏吧原创 was pleased to welcome Drs. Arianna Dagnino and Stefano Gulmanelli to campus Tuesday night as part of their lecture tour.

In May of last year, the two longtime journalists, writers, and educators set out from Victoria in a leased Nissan Rogue on what would become a 75-day, 21,000 km road trip across Canada and back again. Along the way, they posted stories about the places they visited, the sights they saw, and, most importantly, about the people they met.

The presenters shared some of these stories on the night, accompanied by an excellent selection of photographs, some of which had been printed in large format for display on easels.

A more complete collection of these reflections, observations, and conversations can be found (in English and Italian) in their large and growing collection at .

The couple, both natives of Italy now Canadian citizens, are no strangers to telling stories from the road.

A vibrant Q & A followed the initial presentation.

Photos courtesy of Arianna Dagnino and Stefano Gulmanelli. Used with permission.

Heartfelt appreciation to everyone who came out for this engaging evening. Thanks also to Ambassador of Italy to Canada, H. E. Alessandro Cattaneo, and First Secretary, Head of Cultural Affairs, Press and Communications, Rebecca Scano, for their kind words of welcome, and to Italian Lettrice, Marcella Marceddu, for all her hard work in organizing the evening.

And, of course, thanks to Drs. Dagnino and Gulmanelli for adding a 杏吧原创 pin to their map of Canadian destinations.

The event was a collaborative effort between 杏吧原创’s Modern Languages program and the Embassy of Italy in Ottawa.

Related Reading

Two uniquely Italian stories from their Canadian journey include:

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Congratulations to those 杏吧原创 students who wrote the Goethe?Zertifikat A2 exam last Tuesday. ?Results are in and everyone who wrote – almost half of this year’s 2nd year German class (GERM 2020) – successfully attained A2 standing, proudly showcasing the knowledge they have acquired after two years of study at 杏吧原创. ?

We have been offering the Goethe?Zertifikat exams at 杏吧原创 for the past several years as a collaboration between the university’s Modern Languages program and the Goethe-Institut Ottawa.  Writing the certificate exam here on campus, provides 杏吧原创 students with the opportunity to demonstrate their German language proficiency in a familiar and supportive academic environment.   Certificates are internationally recognized, align with the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR), and look great on a résumé! 

Exams are conducted at a range of levels, so, if you are a 杏吧原创 student and are interested in putting your German language skills to the test during the 2026/27 academic year, please contact German Program Coordinator Cristina Finger to learn more about upcoming opportunities and/or consult the .  

Herzlichen Glückwunsch to this year’s test takers and the School looks forward to continuing our cooperation with the Goethe?Institut Ottawa in the years ahead.

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Invited visits to the German Embassy in Ottawa are a long-standing and valued tradition at 杏吧原创, and this year students past and present, along with their instructor, Cristina Finger, again had the opportunity to visit the Embassy and to spend some time in conversation with its representatives.?

In a meeting over Kaffee und Kuchen (coffee and cake), students practiced their German language skills while also learning more about study and work opportunities in Germany and about the life of a diplomat.  Valentina Goldman, Head of Culture and Press at the Embassy, had answers to many of the students’ questions along with newly arrived intern Müjgen.

“It gave me valuable insight into how international relations and diplomatic work operate in practice,” said Keira Smith, 2nd year student in Global and International Studies.

Alumna Cora Gardner (BEcon Hons/23) too appreciated the experience.  “I’ve found that these visits are a deeply meaningful and memorable way to strengthen our German language community here in Ottawa and to celebrate the special relationship between Canada and Germany.”  After graduating, Cora spent a year living and working as a Language Assistant with the P?dagogischer Austauschdienst in northern Germany.

In addition to hosting class visits, the German Embassy in Ottawa is also active in the life of the city.   “I am excited about all the events they hold,” said 4th year Geography student Katarina Jakelic.  A great example of this is the upcoming , a collaborative effort between the Embassies of Germany, Austria, and Switzerland set to run May 7-8 at the Arts Court Theatre.  

“We very much value our strong and positive relationship with the Embassy,” said German Coordinator, Frau Finger, “and students are looking forward to our next visit already!”

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杏吧原创’s annual Korean Speech Contest took place Friday, February 27 in 435 St. Patrick’s Building featuring speeches from students at both Beginner and Intermediate levels, with prize winners earning monetary prizes as well as the opportunity to represent 杏吧原创 in the Toronto contest the following week.

At the Beginner level, speeches commonly explored students’ reasons for studying Korean.  

Unsurprisingly, love of K-Dramas was a popular rationale. ?Benita, for instance, is a huge fan of Strong Girl Bong-soon (???? ???) featuring “rom-com queen” Park Bo Young, while Zahra discovered her love for Korean watching Jumong (??), dubbed in Persian, when she was only four. ?Zahra too is a big K-Pop fan and you can catch her (and five other singers in Korean) on the?Linguavision?stage, March 31. ?

E-sports too was cited as a reason for learning Korean, with Karim being drawn to the language because of his love of the arcade game, Tekken.  While the game is Japanese, according to Karim, many of the best players in the world are Korean. 

杏吧原创 had only one participant in the Intermediate level this year, Shiny, whose speech focussed on dating culture and differences between Canada and Korea. ?Everyone knows about Valentine’s Day (February 14), but did you know about??that falls on April 14??

Three 杏吧原创 Korean instructors, HyounJeong Yoo, Soyoung Kang, and Seunghee Chung, were on-hand to serve as judges for the event.

Congratulations to this year’s prize winners:

• 1st prize: Zahra Mashhadi ($400)
• 2nd prize: Shiny?Antima-Nlemvo?($300) ?
• 3rd prize: Lauren Bingham ($200)

All three will head to Toronto next weekend for the featuring competitors from schools across Canada as well as one in upstate New York. ?Prizes also include a travel subsidy for transportation. ?

Kimbap meals were on-hand after the event and students, faculty, and staff mixed and mingled, everyone wearing a tee shirt designed by 杏吧原创 student, Chiamaka Ezekwem, as part of last October’s Hangeul Day celebrations.  

Many thanks to our dynamic Korean teaching team for all their hard work preparing, organizing, and running the evening and to the School of Linguistics & Language Studies for their continued support.  And, of course, thanks to all our Korean students, both those who stepped out of their comfort zone in order to compete and those who attended the event in support of their classmates.   

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Wa (和) and shi (紙) literally means “Japanese paper” and the practice of creating it dates back hundreds of years.  In the workshop, participants began by soaking shredded fibres of the mulberry plant in water.  Then, under Chihiro-sensei’s patient instruction, they transferred these fibres onto wire mesh frames to form sheets.  

Finally, these sheets were removed from the frames and placed on the windowpane for overnight drying.  The results speak for themselves; durable, elegant, and beautiful.

Language and culture are so tightly connected and activities like this are such a great opportunity for students to experience this connection firsthand.  Thanks to the Japanese teaching team for organizing this event.  For those who have not yet collected their washi, you can stop by the LLRC (SP 337) to pick it up. 

And, for those of you who are feeling somewhat more ambitious, maybe you’re thinking about something bigger.  Japan has you covered!  In Japan, washi is not only used for writing paper.  In larger formats, it is also used for shoji (障子), home decor such as paper screens or room dividers. In 2025, “Washi Craftsmanship” was added to the .

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But it wasn’t all fun and games.  There was some serious learning involved too.  For instance, did you know that there are 2500+ Christmas markets in Germany every year; and that the Steiezelmarkt in Dresden alone attracts crowds of more than two million?!  Or did you know that, the night before December 6th, German children (the “Kinder” in Kindergarten) clean their boots and put them outside the door so St. Nikolaus can fill them with goodies (nuts, oranges, and candy) or not-so-goodies (sticks or coal)?  

Other little-known facts include:

• the advent calendar was invented in 1838 by a  Hamburg school master who wanted to show his students how many days remained until Christmas;
• Germans generally put up their Christmas trees (Tannenbaum) no earlier than Christmas Eve;
• speaking of trees, there is also a growing market for  as people look for more sustainable options;
• and finally, this author can attest to the fact that Germans take their Christmas cookies very seriously indeed, having sampled liberally from the many trays available in the room; Stollen, a traditional Christmas fruit bread dating back to 1329, was a particular fan favourite!

Thanks to German TA Leilah Bielser for putting together a presentation and trivia game to share all this info with the group and a big thank you TA Sarah Young for helping spread fascination of all things German!

Thanks also to second year students Mia  Zach and James Constantin for their research (delivered in absentia by Frau Finger) into three particularly renowned Christmas markets:  

• Dresden Striezelmarkt dates back almost 600 years to the early days of the now famous and  Dresden Stollen, a style of Christmas loaf that can ONLY be baked in designated bakeries in the region. 
• 惭ü苍肠丑别苍&苍产蝉辫;颁丑谤颈蝉迟办颈苍诲别濒蝉尘补谤办迟 where the Christkind, often portrayed as a blond-haired young woman rather than St. Nikolaus, is said to bring gifts to children.
• And Nürnberg Christkindlesmarkt, where Glühwein (mulled wine or literally “glow wine”) is drunk peacefully from gently warmed mugs while Feuerzangenbowle (literally “fire tongs punch”) – essentially Glühwein topped with a rum-soaked sugarloaf then set on fire – offers a decidedly more smoky flavour and more dynamic spectacle!  

Then finally, before the event wrapped up, we all had an opportunity to rediscover our inner child with a little Schneeflocken schneiden (snowflake cutting).  

Set to an audio background of Deutsche Weihnachtslieder (German Christmas caroles), the whole event made for a pleasing way to spend a Friday afternoon.  

Many thanks to German department coordinator, Cristina Finger for all her hard work in preparing the event and to all the German students, current and former, for attending and jumping in 100% on the activities!

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