Dormitory Party for Mutual Understanding
 
By Ahn So-hee, Overseas Correspondent
 
Once a year there is a party each dormitory at University of Malaya (UM), which has 12 dormitories. International students and some local students live in the 10th dormitory. This year the 10th dormitory party, which has been held for 15 years, took place on May 19th in the Double Tree Hotel. This party is good for international students who are from different countries such as Korea, China, Japan, and Indonesia to live in harmony. Through this dormitory party, they can learn about the cultural differences between each other. They invite the employers and employees of some cafeterias, cafés and shops in the 10th dormitory in appreciation of their efforts. The party was not a simple annual celebration, but a special event for mutual understanding of international students. It helps students learn mutual respect and how to socialize with different people.
At the party international students ate traditional Malay food for dinner together, and talked about their own cultures. Budrun Taleh (Senior, Islamic Studies, Prince of Songkla University) said, “It was good experience. Before this party, I just knew other students’ faces, but now we know each other and make friends from other countries.” Then each country’s students did performances during dinner time. Some Chinese students did dragon dances and a Kyrgyzstani student sang a traditional song from his country. There were also combined performances by students from different countries. Korean and Bangladeshi students played piano and drums together for songs of Yi Ru-ma. A Japanese student prepared a speech in Malay language with a Malay friend. They had prepared this performance together for about 3 weeks and it brought them closer to each other. Muhammad Nazri Ande Mustajab (Senior, Southeast Asia Studies, University of Malaya) said, “This party is always a new experience for me. I have experienced many dormitory parties over 4 years. I meet new friends and prepare a new performance every year.”
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