International Day 5.0
WE DID IT, FOLKS!
We succeeded in having an event that gather a lot of people from different countries!!!! Whoa, that was a blast! Did you come see us? If not, come, we'll walk you to the rides!
The grandeur of the International Day, hosted on December 5, 2023, at Thomas Aquinas's Theater Room in Soegijapranata Catholic University, was a masterful event of cross-cultural exchange. Quote on quote "Through Diversity, We Discover Unity," the event was dedicated to cultivating a profound understanding and admiration for the diverse array of global cultures with the Poseidon themed event. "How fun!" One would say.
This annual celebration is a step of international camaraderie with bringing together individuals from over 20 diverse countries. We've gathered the people of Egypt, Kyrgyzstan, America, and many more! The atmosphere resonated with the spirit of friendship and the eagerness to learn and respect each other's cultures. Spoiler alert, we had a blast!
There is something special about this event! Guess what? We can meet new friends who come from many different countries, obviously! But what's more is that we achieved what other seniors haven't done yet which is gathering a lot of people of cultures! "I learnt a lot from this event and I got to share my culture, so, thank you so much Global Friends, I really do love this. I was shocked to know how much of an amazing event I joined. No one discriminate, everything is full of joy! I don't regret it one bit." One of the participant commented.
Before entering the theater room, participants must register first. After that, participants were welcomed with joyful themed songs as they sat on the available seats. Precisely at 11:00 WIB, the opening ceremony commenced!!! The Master of Ceremonies, Rebecca Adisetya and Nicholas Asfredo, welcomed all the participant happily! As they introduced themselves as the King and the Queen of the Ocean, as themed. They started the event with prayer as a traditional must-do in Indonesia and the rendition of Indonesia Raya, the national anthem. The participants are getting excited! "I didn't know you have to pray before an event start in Indonesia. Such a nice culture!" One of the participant said.
The session continued with speechs from Alvin Bintang Miza Come Reba as The Project Manager International Day, and then continued with Raveena Alifia Sahara as President of Global Friends, and Mr. Probo Yulianto Nugrahedi, The Vice Chancellor for Cooperation and Business Development. The remarks ended with thunderous applause. The sheer amount of shared enthusiasm of those in attendance was amazing! You've got to know!
Mr. Shark on the move, giving gifts to reward the participants!
The actual event starts with a performance of Indonesian regional culture, which is then followed by culture abroad. The first event was "Batik Culture Introduction", Batik is a culture from Indonesia that even UNESCO can't ignore! This session is led by our beautiful local speaker, Helga Zefanya Wical. We also checked the enthusiasm of the participants by giving a surprise!!! We held a small quiz for the participants. If you saw what happened when the participant received their gifts from Mr. Shark, you would be in for the fun too!!!
The second performance continued with performances of Kembangtaru (an Indonesian dance called "Indonesia Menari") and Hornbill Dance or as we called it Tari Enggang (Kalimantan Culture Introduction). This dance performance has a very regional impression because it is accompanied by regional music which is rarely heard in urban areas anymore.
Tari Enggang by a Kalimantan Lady
Stress no more, even if the event's got a lot to unpack, we also enjoy a quick 30 minutes break while participants talk with each others and bonded. During this break, participant had the pleasure of savoring the meticulously prepared "oti chicken" courtesy of the organizing committee and sponsored by Oti themselves. Participants could redeemed their food coupons for this meal delight!
Tari Enggang by a Kalimantan Lady
Following the break, the event resumed with a captivating "Papua Culture Introduction," shedding light on the unique and mesmerizing culture hailing from the eastern part of Indonesia.
After the cultural performance from Indonesia was finished, quiz time was held again to have fun while making sure everyone had their fun in tact!
The mesmerizing dance by people of Papua
Then the moment we had been waiting for had arrived….. Cultural performances from abroad began!!! Starting with a performance from America by Malcolm Rashid. At the show, Malcolm gave a video about his experience of getting rid of cigarette addiction and rapping at Simpang Lima Semarang. Of course, this was very inspiring and made the audience cheer in admiration.
Malcolm explaining what he did in the video and in Semarang for 100 days
Continued with Performance from Pakistan, where Rana Sharjeel and Ihsan Ahmed did a presentation about Pakistani Culture, then Performance from Ghana (Ellen Ekuful sang Ghanaian folk songs). Then, Performance from Kyrgyzstan (Periza Abdilova sings and presents a video of the beauty of Kyrgyzstan).
Next, Performance from Arnold Julio Libero, singing two songs, a Dayak song and his own song about how we are enough and strong). Followed by a performance from Egypt (Ahmad Salah, singing three Egyptian songs in Arabic and one song requested by Pakistanis). Finally, it was continued with the Fashion Show from Afghanistan (Zuhal Azimi, Gulmina Azimi, Jamila Asef, Nooria Naarwan). They introduced traditional Afghan clothing, which consists of the traditional ones and the modern ones. Those clothings were lovely!
Here comes the sharing session, where participants expressed joy and appreciation. "I feel so happy about this event, I get to be here today with all of you and get to know you all. I'm so happy, thank you to all of you," exclaimed a Pakistani woman. Everyone was nodding in agreement and showed no remorse of coming to the event.
Everything has come to an end, but as the MC said, “An Ending will Start Another New Beginning”, the event was wrapped with a mesmerizing dance by Kembang Taru, which gives off a lasting impression. The festivities ended with a photo booth session, enabling participants to capture memories against the backdrop of the Thomas Aquinas building.
"Amazing…," remarked one participant in awe. International Day 2023 was an unequivocal success, a celebration of diversity leaving an indelible mark on the hearts and minds of all attendees.