Photo by Craig Baxter.
German lederhosen, Japanese kimonos, Peruvian ponchos and traditional Australasian bogan apparel of black jeans and black heavy metal T-shirt were some of the garments worn.
University of Otago Chinese programme senior lecturer Dr Paola Voci said about 100 cultures were represented by expatriates at the university but the clothes they wore on campus made it difficult to identify and differentiate them.
''We want to make it more visible for just one day.''
Although she was an Italian expatriate, she had chosen to wear a cheongsam - a colourful one-piece Chinese dress - because she had ''adopted'' the culture and taught Chinese at the university.
Dr Voci said the inaugural showcase of cultural diversity would be held again next year.
