To parallel the idea that diversity is the true spice of life, the creators of this year's Asian Heritage Month (AHM) have prepared a lineup using the theme, "Spices of Asia: A Journey Through a Multicultural Continent."

The spices are a symbolic way to journey from one Asian culture to another and learn about the cuisine, customs, current issues and traditions of each. It is also a way to show appreciation for the wide variety of Asian cultures in the world. Like many of the theme months, a goal of Asian Heritage Month is to "foster cross-cultural communication and broaden the possibilities for cultural celebration."

The theme for this year's AHM came up during the first exploratory meeting held before spring break. When the planning committee started throwing ideas around for events and themes for the month, they kept coming back to the idea of making AHM a celebration of all Asian cultures, not just the mainstream ones (i.e. Korean, Chinese, Japanese) that most people think of when they hear the word Asian.

"We saw this year's AHM as a way to really push the idea of unity amongst the multicultural ' multiethnic Asian community at NYU," said Jennie Fong, the decoration coordinator of AHM 2002. "We want to celebrate our differences and our commonalities, and invite non-Asian cultures to share in the celebration of cultural diversity."

To show the variety within the different cultures, Fong spent a lot of time putting together a window display in the Office of Student Activities. She said that she wanted to catch people's eye, make them stop in mid-stride, voluntarily or not, and encourage them to check out what was going on.

The window on Washington Place is a fusion of colors decorated with various food, art and emblems representative of many different Asian cultures. The background blends a magenta piece of silk embroidered with golden dragons and a bright blue rice-paper parasol. In the front of the display is a multiplicity of "Asian-ness," including Chinese vermicelli noodles, Korean ginseng, Japanese origami paper, Thai tea, Indian statues and various spices from across the continent.

With nearly 14 percent of NYU's student body falling into the "Asian" category, according to U.S. News ' World Report, another major purpose of the month is "to examine critically the often isolated concepts of Asia, Asian and Asian-American."

This year's festivities kicked off on April 1 with a Thai dinner at the Violet Cafe, accompanied by cultural performances from different parts of Asia. Attendees also enjoyed a keynote address by John Liu, the first Asian-American ever elected to the New York City council. His actions have motivated and inspired all "to empower and to appreciate the strength, honor, beauty and wisdom of the various Asian cultures."

"The councilman encouraged all of us, not just Asians, to get more involved in the community. There's a real lack of voice for Asians in the community and there should be more people to help verbalize Asian concerns," said Alex Liu, a sophomore in the College of Arts and Science (CAS).

She added, "It's not only important to go to the events of this month to remember one's own heritage, but to learn about others as well."

This year, Asian Heritage Month is dedicated to unifying the Asian and Asian-American groups at NYU with the New York City community in order to make everyone more aware of Asian traditions, values and innovations.

"Just because someone isn't Asian doesn't mean that they're any less appreciative of the cultural differences and similarities that exist in the world today. Attending the theme month activities shows one's belief in the existence and growth of a more multicultural world," Fong said.

Despite the frustrations that have surrounded the month, the planning committee admits that it was all worth it as the end result has been successful.

"I think that everyone on the planning committee feels that it's worth all the trouble we had to go through, and still are going through, just to see that this month got off to a great start, and to make sure that it stays that way," Fong said.

Teresa Yu, a freshman in CAS, agrees that the month has gotten off to a great start.

"Even though I was raised in a very traditional Chinese household, I've learned so much about not only myself and my culture, but about other groups as well, and I'm excited to learn more," Yu said. "But, I think I'm most excited about the Multicultural Festival because it's going to be a little taste of everything."

Some of the major events the rest of this month include various discussions on racial diversity and the Asian identity, panels with corporate guests, Dragon Boat Festival Celebration, Asian Cultural Expressions XIX, A Multicultural Festival, Expo Fashion Show and many others. For more information on events, please go to AHM's Web site at http://come.to/Asianheritagemonth@nyu.216,10,1