T2 W4 Journal Writing : International Friendship Day

International Friendship Day celebrations take place on the first Sunday of August every year. The tradition of dedicating a day in honor of friends began in US in 1935(no references). Gradually the festival gained popularity and today Friendship Day is celebrated in large number of countries. On this day people spend time with their friends and express love for them. Exchange of Friendship Day Gifts like flowers, cards and wrist bands is a popular tradition of this occasion.

We celebrate International Friendship Day by getting pupils from other countries to wear their national costume. ASEAN stands for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. I like the activities by the school on International Friendship Day because it is interesting. I have a friend in a ASEAN country. I got to know him one day when I sat on a bus with him.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations, commonly abbreviated ASEAN (generally pronounced occasionally in English, the official language of the bloc), is a geo-political and economic organization of 10 countries located in Southeast Asia, which was formed on 8 August 1967 by Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand. Since then, membership has expanded to include Brunei, Burma (Myanmar), Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam. Its aims include the acceleration of economic growth, social progress, cultural development among its members, the protection of the peace and stability of the region, and to provide opportunities for member countries to discuss differences peacefully.

For the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), April 11, 2009, will be remembered as the day of a major embarrassment. The Thai government was forced to cancel the summit between ASEAN and its dialogue partners — the ASEAN+3 (APT) Summit and the East Asian Summit (EAS) — initially planned to be held in Pattaya. Hundreds of red-shirted pro-Thaksin protestors broke into the site of the summit and forced the government of Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva to declare a state of emergency in Pattaya.

I think the school should make all Andersonians buddies with the pupils from ASEAN countries. In doing so, we can develop friendship with pupils from ASEAN countries. We can then understand their traditions, culture, language and religion.