The Asian Student Association is sponsoring the cultural celebration, which will also include film screenings, food tasting and Asian games.
Events kicked off Monday night with a screening of "Eat Drink Man Woman," a 1994 Oscar-nominated romantic comedy about a Taiwanese chef and his family. On Tuesday, Asian Studies Professor Jan Bardsley gave a lecture titled "Reel Men Don't Eat Sushi: Why Hollywood Hates Japanese Men and Loves Japanese Women."
Heritage week continues today at 11 a.m. as ASA members sell traditional cuisine in the Pit for $1 per serving.
Linda Kim, president of the ASA, said members will dress in traditional garb while selling cuisine, including Hmong jello, Japanese sushi and Vietnamese sweet rice balls and tapioca pearls.
Caroline Um, an organizer of Asian American Heritage Week, said many students are only familiar with popular Americanized versions of Asian foods, like egg rolls and fried rice.
This year's events signal a departure from previous heritage weeks, Kim said. She said that in past years, ASA dedicated each day of the week to individual Asian countries, but this year's organizers wanted to give each day a specific theme so that more Asian countries could be included in the cultural celebration.
Other events this week include playing games in the Pit on Friday. The games include Chinese chess and mah-jongg as well as Korean cards and yut --a Korean game in which players throw sticks in the air to advance pieces on a game board.
The week will close with a semi-formal held at Cafe Parizade, a Mediterranean restaurant in Durham.
Kim said the heritage week is important because the events provide students with the chance to practice their traditional customs while away from home.
