It was cold and drizzling that Friday afternoon of December 14. This gloomy weather, however, did not stop foreign and Japanese students, and some members of Fukuoka city's upper 'crust' to flock to Mitaka Hall in Tsukuba-machi, Fukuoka in joining KUFSA's "Christmas and Year-end Party 2001". And as expected, a large number of Japanese guests arrived early and eagerly waited for the party to start. At exactly 6 PM and, after some miscues by the organizing committee, the party eventually got started and was well under way a few minutes later. But even during this time, the reception committee still had their hands full with lots of arriving guests.

The MCs for the evening were Dr.Laura Ana Regalado of El Salvador and Ms. Yuko Sasaki of Japan. KUFSA Adviser, Ms.Kanthi Abeysndara of Sri Lanka delivered the opening address. This was followed by an official welcome address by none other than the incumbent KUFSA President himself, Mr. Biplob K. Shil of Bangladesh. Some of the important guests of the evening also gave all the foreign students some inspirational speeches. They were Prof. Hideki Nozawa(野澤 秀樹), Vice-president of Kyushu University and Prof. Shigeo Nishimura(西村 重雄), Director of International Student Center, Kyushu University. The generous sponsors and benefactors of KUFSA were also called on the stage and were introduced to the crowd as an acknowledgement for their unwavering support for KUFSA. When all was finally said and done, the time to enjoy the sumptuous food finally come. But of course, this was not before the traditional 'Kampai', which was delivered by one KUFSA's staunchest sponsor, Mr. Katsutoshi Yokomakura(横枕 勝敏) of Nishi Nippon Bank International Foundation.

The party's dinner was done in the usual cocktail party style where everybody was standing up or moving around and mingling with the crowd while eating. And while the attendees were enjoying the delicious food, some musical entertainment was provided by a group of Japanese musicians who played traditional music using the 'shakuhachi' (bamboo flute) and 'koto' (Japanese harp). And immediately after dinner and with KUFSA Social and Cultural Sec.Mr.Ong Chee Chong of Malaysia coordinating the program, the performances for the evening started off with a beatiful Flamenco (Spanish dance) number performed by four equally beautiful Japanese ladies. This was followed by a 'fashion show' where some foreign students, dressed in their respective country's traditional costumes, gamely paraded on stage and much to the delight of the crowd. Some more musical and dance performances followed after this. The first was a beautiful rendition of Christmas songs by the Agepe Church choir while they depicted the offering of gifts by the three kings to the infant Jesus Christ. This was followed by a couple of lovely Colombian traditional dance numbers. The second musical group to provide entertainment was the Meinoshima Catholic Church choir who provided some up-tempo songs that livened up the crowd some more. Culminating the entertainment portion of the night's program was the popping of party favors amidst the joyous shouting of Merry Christmas. A short time for dancing followed after this. And then, the part that everybody was waiting for, came...the lottery. At stake were two round-trip air tickets to Seoul and to Shanghai. Of course lots of minor, but no less important, prizes were also given away to many lucky participants but the truly lucky ones were a student from China who won the ticket to Seoul and Ms. Maria Aries Aborde of the Philippines who won the ticket to Shanghai. The end of the lottery, however, also signified the end of the party. The closing address was given by Mr.Yeap U Wen of Malaysia to officially end the party. But this writer was pretty sure that for most, the night was just the beginning of some more fun in the form of 'nijikai' or maybe even a 'sanjikai'.

After all the noise and excitement of the party died down, the KUFSA Ex-Com particularly Pres. Biplob, all heaved a big sigh of relief thankful that it was a success. It was teamwork that made it successful. And it will still be teamwork that will carry the present KUFSA Ex-Com past the tasks that still lie ahead in the future.
"Otsukaresamadesu!"

by Chris N.C.Luciano, D.M.D.
4th year Doctoral student
Graduate School of Dental Science

※KUFSA: Kyushu University Foreign Students' Association(九州大学留学生会)