Chonnam National University (CNU) held a special Chuseok event for international students at the Yongjigwan Convention Hall at CNU on September 20th. About 300 people that included international students studying at the CNU Language Educational Center, foreign teachers, and Korean Buddy-Buddy teams participated in this event, which is aimed at providing the opportunity to build bonds of friendship between local and international students and to give international students the opportunity to experience Chuseok, Korean Thanksgiving Day.
Two foreign students, Rahmat Aidil Djubair (Dept. of International Trade,Philippines) and Irich Mdrie Alarcon (Dept. of English Language and Literature, Philippines) hosted this occasion; the former spoke Korean, the later spoke English. The simultaneous interpretation was a great help for foreign and Korean students. The Chuseok Get-Together event included an international tudents’ Talent Show and Traditional Dress Fashion Show to introduce the traditional costumes of various countries. The Talent Show was prepared by five teams, and the Traditional Dress Fashion Show was introduced by six to ten international students from China, Vietnam, Mongolia, and Brazil and so on. Li Aijuan (Junior, Dept. of English Language and Literature, China) said, “The mid-autumn festival is a popular traditional festival in China. Fortunately, this day is also my mom’s birthday; I miss my family so much. This get together provides foreign students away from home with the warm feeling of home and family celebrations. The fashion show was wonderful, it really impressed me.” Most of the participants were chosen at random and received a present.
Shin Gyong-gu (Director of the International Affairs) said, “This Chuseok event is arranged for foreign students who do not know the true meaning of Chuseok. CNU lacks a special occasion for international students, so most of them have little chance to enjoy school life. However, this event will be the special chance for them to participate in school programs and to have a sense of belonging to CNU.” The Chuseok event is a new forum for ideas and cultural exchange, but it included only foreign cultural activities. It is hoped that foreign students will experience Korean traditional culture during the next get-together event.
 
▲ Introducing traditional costumes of various countries
By Kim Han-na, Tribune Reporter
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