Last night, Culture Editor Tony Gong went to CCSC's massive multicultural event "Passport to Columbia," and returned a little more appreciative of diverse foods, arts, and Columbia, the nation. His account of the night follows.

Some people (naysayers and cynics, mainly) don't think you need a passport to go to Columbia. "Columbia is a university, not a country," they may argue. Well, last night, the CCSC Campus Life Committee finally showed us that Columbia is actually a country with over twenty smaller countries inside of it. Correspondingly, we've got a pretty kickass flag (see picture to the right). And yes, you do need a passport to enroll, naysayers. More proof and pictures after the jump.

You still have an hour and a half left in the activities fair! Hurry up before all the snacks run out (SGB is still serving samoosas and chicken wings, for those out to ruin their diets). Feel free to refer to the following extremely approximate cartogram for locations, and see highlights after the jump.

In which Bwog daily editor Alexandra Muhler examines whether enormous infusions of the administration's money can make a Thursday night on campus enjoyable.

The crowds were thick at Lerner tonight for an event excessively fond of wink-wink references to wink-wink cultural icons (event t-shirts had "Glass House Rocks" on the front and "Best Thursday Ever" on the back). Stepping into the packed building, I fretted over whether the awkwardness of running into half the people I know would be worth campus clubs' booths, snacks, and performances.

A number of the club-dedicated tables and rooms were terrific. Alongside inappropriately sober community service clubs playing videos of starving children in Third World nations were spicier groups like Conversio Virium, which distributed a connect-the-dots worksheet inappropriate for publication on a family-oriented blog. Also notable was the Chinese Student Club's tea-pong room, and the noticeably diminished skill of all its abstemious (2 IDs to drink) players.

Bwog presents this Fall's off-off-off-Broadway line-up. Look for their inevitable posters later this semester.

October:

Cowboys and Indians (CU Players)
— 10/19-20
The Gist: A Will Snider (CC '09) play about three guys, a campfire, and the American dream.
The Gimmick: A student written show that'll be performed sober.

The Real Inspector Hound (Aporia Repertory Company/KCST)
— 10/19-20
The Gist: Agatha Christie meets literary theory.
The Gimmick: Post-show discussions with actors and crew, making it even more like you never left class.
Auditions Mon, Tue, Wed at 8pm in Hamilton Hall

King Lear (KCST) — 10/26-27
The Gist: Sometimes it's not good to be king.
The Gimmick: Actually set in medieval England as opposed to, say, Japan.
Auditions Mon, Tue, Wed at 8pm in Hamilton Hall

Remember Project Athena, the promised Columbia wiki that was supposed to revolutionize campus life? Right, "barely" was our response, too. That is, until a mysterious i-banker IMed Bwog with the tantalizing info: Project Athena was online, and hosted off campus. We were quickly directed to wikicu.com, the slightly less sonorous realization of the project. While most of the site appears to remain in development, much already seems handy, including endless important links, an events calendar to rival ours (well, in all but wit, of course), and...by Zeus! That's where all the lavish photos from the old housing website went! Other miscellany includes a swim test schedule and a guide to Spanish verbs.

What to expect? Where is this going? This Spec column from back in September makes one notable suggestion: documenting the horrors that await unsuspecting future residents of Wien.

Meanwhile, over on real-world Wikipedia...

Someone's been messing with Jester's entry. This morning, it read:

"The magazine is known on campus for its completely inept coverage of the scientific community and generally poor quality paper stock."

As of this evening, it reads:

"The magazine is known on campus for its lackluster understanding of particle physics, frequent misrepresentations of string theory, and fervent hatred toward America."

One tipster blames the Columbia Undergraduate Science Journal. Let the wiki-war begin.

-CJS

Those trying to study in Lerner last night didn't have a chance, as the beats of DJ prophecy wafted up from a candlelit Roone Arledge, where over 400 sari-clad students celebrated Diwali, the Indian Festival of Lights.

Diwali, a holiday celebrated by Hindus, Sikhs, and Jains, celebrates the victory of good over evil, which--along with samosas--is something that kids of all faiths can get behind.

After a hilarious skit, the party began with Raas stick-dancing and segued into the North Indian perennial favorite of Bhangra, with plenty of Jay-Z remixes thrown in. Dancing was absolutely out of control, there were plenty of Punjabi "brrraas!", people getting hoisted up on shoulders, saris and sashes flying. All in all, a pretty kick-ass event, making attendees temporarily forget that they were spending a Saturday night in Lerner.

More photos after the jump: