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<p>WILKES-BARRE &#8212; Wilkes University&#8217;s cafeteria was filled with the strong scent of Panamanian food, loud music, sporadic cheers and laughter as students gathered to celebrate and learn about Panama&#8217;s culture on Wednesday afternoon.</p><p>Decorated with red, white and blue streamers to resemble the flag of Panama, the third floor of the Henry Student Center hosted Panamanian Cultural Day, giving students from the country a chance to commemorate and educate others about their culture.</p><p>&#8220;Panama &#8230; where no one is a foreigner,&#8221; said Sixta Perez, a 22-year-old student from Panama, as she led the opening presentation for the event, describing Panama&#8217;s diverse population as a &#8220;melting pot.&#8221;</p><p>The event also included Panamanian dance, culture and customs with posters scattered throughout the cafeteria, providing insight into the country&#8217;s history, tourism and traditions. Men and women dressed in different outfits, each representing a unique part of Panama&#8217;s culture.</p><p>One woman wore a pollera &#8212; a white top with a fanned out pink skirt &#8212; that is traditionally the dress worn for work in Panama, while another wore a white dress with red accents that historically was worn at weddings but is currently worn on more casual occasions.</p><p>Nov. 3 marks Panama&#8217;s Independence Day and is celebrated throughout the month of November. The Panamanian students took this time not only to celebrate their culture, but also to educate others about its most important facets.</p><p>&#8220;We wanted to show a little bit of our Panama by sharing important facts such as our food and clothes,&#8221; Perez said. &#8220;They are what identifies us.&#8221;</p><p>The event was part of the curriculum for the Bilingual Panama program, which is an initiative of Panamanian President Juan Carlos Varela. It sends teachers and students to English-speaking countries, seeking to ensure professional development opportunities for students and teachers with a goal of strengthening public schools in Panama by making them fully bilingual. Wilkes has been participating in the program since January 2015.</p><p>&#8220;We hope to create a two-way street,&#8221; said Wilkes Director of International Engagement Rosie Ponce, adding that Panamanian students and teachers learn from American students and vise versa. This project is a way for the students to show their pride and heritage, Ponce said.</p><p>The students fanned out their skirts, turned up the music and laughed as they danced around one another.</p><p>&#8220;I&#8217;m really proud of my country,&#8221; said Perez. &#8220;This event is a great opportunity for us to show what Panama is all about.&#8221;</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Carmen Gonzalez and Christian Castro explain facts about Panama to Laura Kessler at the Panamanian Cultural Day event at Wilkes University on Wednesday. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/web1_TTL113016Panama2.jpg</photo0><caption0>Carmen Gonzalez and Christian Castro explain facts about Panama to Laura Kessler at the Panamanian Cultural Day event at Wilkes University on Wednesday. </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/web1_TTL113016Panama1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Katerin Delgado spins during a dance at Panamanian Cultural Day at Wilkes University. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/web1_TTL113016Panama1.jpg</photo1><caption1>Katerin Delgado spins during a dance at Panamanian Cultural Day at Wilkes University. </caption1><photoCredit1></photoCredit1></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Alyssa Mursch</p><p>For Times Leader</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><factboxMeta><p>Video</p><p>To see a video of Panamanian Cultural Day at Wilkes University, go to tinyurl.com/j3phbj9</p></factboxMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach the Times Leader newsroom at 570-829-7242 or on Twitter @TLnews.</p></shirttailMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><videoMeta><p><table style="border:none;width:98%;" class="mceItemTable"><tbody><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">VideoID:</td><td id="videoid" style="width:50em;font-size:90%;"> 1YJhi6jp7QQ</td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">VideoType:</td><td id="videotype" style="font-size:90%;"> YOUTUBE</td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">URL:</td><td id="url" style="font-size:90%;"> www.youtube.com/watch?v=1YJhi6jp7QQ</td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">Video Embed String:</td><td id="videoembedstring" style="font-size:90%;"> &lt;iframe width=&#8221;560&#8221; height=&#8221;315&#8221; src=&#8221;https://www.youtube.com/embed/1YJhi6jp7QQ&#8221; frameborder=&#8221;0&#8221; allowfullscreen&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;</td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">Video Caption:</td><td id="videocaption" style="font-size:90%;"> Wilkes University exchange students from Panama treated students to a dance and information in celebration of Panamanian Day.</td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">Video Credit:</td><td id="videocredit" style="font-size:90%;"> Aimee Dilger</td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">Video Position:</td><td id="videoposition" style="font-size:90%;"> </td></tr></tbody></table></p><p style="margin-top:10px;font-size:70%;color:#555;">(use the &#8220;for files&#8230;&#8221; link above to associate attached files with this source)</p></videoMeta></div>

A little piece of Panama at Wilkes University