Participant Observation
The United States of America is known as a melting pot, and there are endless opportunities to attend and participate in ethnic festivals, religious services, cultural medicinal practices and life changing events that are different from ones own culture. Participating in these different activities allows for understanding, appreciation, and tolerance for other cultures and belief systems. The author of this paper attended a Greek festival in order to gain an understanding about a culture that has a large presence in her community and is different from her own. An overview of the festival, worldview, historical background, implications for nursing care, and the authors experience are discussed within this paper. The …show more content…
Basil Greek Orthodox Church grounds in Stockton, California September 8-10 2017. The purpose of the Greek Festival is to showcase, celebrate and share the beliefs and traditional culture of the Greek people with the surrounding community. People from the city of Stockton, and the surrounding cities and counties come to celebrate and partake in the festival activities. As soon as one approaches the front gates of the festival, smells from many different foods fill the air. There were over 20 food booths set up selling many different traditional Greek foods such as Falafel, Gyros, Dolma, Baklava, and Brown Butter spaghetti with Greek Mizithra cheese. Traditional Greek music playing was playing with teen children from the church performing traditional Greek dances. There was a children’s area that included jumper houses, an obstacle course and other fun children’s activities. There were many booths selling traditional handmade Greek jewelry and artwork. The priest gave tours of the church event center that included a brief overview of the Orthodox Church belief system. The expected behaviors of the festival were to be respectful, and have …show more content…
on through to modern day times (Pomeroy, et al., 2004) According to Jurgens (n.d.), the first Greek immigrants arrived in America in the early 1820’s with the majority of them living in California, New York, and Massachusetts. In the 1920’s, the Greeks living in the Stockton, Lodi, Manteca and Tracy area congregated together and would hold services in homes or used other Churches facilities in the area before they owned a church of their own (Henning, 2001). The first church was built in the 1930’s and that was the official establishment of St. Basil’s Orthodox Church and in 1960, the very first Greek Food Festival was established (Henning, 2001). Since that initial festival, the church has moved to its current location and the festival has grown in size and by the number of visitors that come to celebrate each year (Henning,
The United States of America is known as a melting pot, and there are endless opportunities to attend and participate in ethnic festivals, religious services, cultural medicinal practices and life changing events that are different from ones own culture. Participating in these different activities allows for understanding, appreciation, and tolerance for other cultures and belief systems. The author of this paper attended a Greek festival in order to gain an understanding about a culture that has a large presence in her community and is different from her own. An overview of the festival, worldview, historical background, implications for nursing care, and the authors experience are discussed within this paper. The …show more content…
Basil Greek Orthodox Church grounds in Stockton, California September 8-10 2017. The purpose of the Greek Festival is to showcase, celebrate and share the beliefs and traditional culture of the Greek people with the surrounding community. People from the city of Stockton, and the surrounding cities and counties come to celebrate and partake in the festival activities. As soon as one approaches the front gates of the festival, smells from many different foods fill the air. There were over 20 food booths set up selling many different traditional Greek foods such as Falafel, Gyros, Dolma, Baklava, and Brown Butter spaghetti with Greek Mizithra cheese. Traditional Greek music playing was playing with teen children from the church performing traditional Greek dances. There was a children’s area that included jumper houses, an obstacle course and other fun children’s activities. There were many booths selling traditional handmade Greek jewelry and artwork. The priest gave tours of the church event center that included a brief overview of the Orthodox Church belief system. The expected behaviors of the festival were to be respectful, and have …show more content…
on through to modern day times (Pomeroy, et al., 2004) According to Jurgens (n.d.), the first Greek immigrants arrived in America in the early 1820’s with the majority of them living in California, New York, and Massachusetts. In the 1920’s, the Greeks living in the Stockton, Lodi, Manteca and Tracy area congregated together and would hold services in homes or used other Churches facilities in the area before they owned a church of their own (Henning, 2001). The first church was built in the 1930’s and that was the official establishment of St. Basil’s Orthodox Church and in 1960, the very first Greek Food Festival was established (Henning, 2001). Since that initial festival, the church has moved to its current location and the festival has grown in size and by the number of visitors that come to celebrate each year (Henning,