On the 16th of February, our wonderful students from the Southeast Asia and Asia Pacific regions came together to organize their very own cultural day! Throughout the day, our community was introduced to different aspects of the region, from special food in the cafeteria to a splendid blowout show in the evening that included a fashion show, song and dance, and even street games!
Yet, for the organizers, it was challenging to put the day together. Gunn (Class of 2018, Thailand) shared that it was difficult to decide on how to present the region as a whole, since each country has such distinct cultures and they wanted to ensure that they were able to show them all off. Additionally, since they wanted to have a food tour that showcased famous dishes from their home countries, they had to carefully plan how to obtain the specific ingredients here in Japan. ” I think it has been a great opportunity for all the performers including me to finally present our cultures here at UWC ISAK Japan. I am also happy to see many different shows including singing, dancing, presentations, and games.”
Similarly, Vidya (Class of 2019, Indonesia) was worried as to whether they would be able to represent each country well enough. On her end, in addition to organizing, she also took part in a panel discussion, performed an Indonesian song and cooked several iconic Indonesian dishes, including nasi goreng and martabak. She explained that while taking on so many roles made the week incredibly busy, the end result was clearly enjoyed by the entire community, and she was genuinely happy about it.
“Overall, despite the small struggles faced prior to the event, I was really happy that we had the opportunity to share with the community, and that the people who came were engaged and excited to watch our performances, and try the different foods we prepared for them. One thing I wish was different when planning was to have our cultural day not in the middle of G12 mock exams (our event fell on the last day of the exams!), but witnessing them enjoying the evening made everything worthwhile as if it were a celebration for them to finish mocks!”
– Vidya (Class of 2019, Indonesia)
