February 21st, 2009 will be a date uttered
on many students’ tongues for a long time to come. It was the day 41
nations represented by 24 culinary booths and 18 embassy representatives
joined by over 1200 students came to the Romhanyi Gyorgyi Aula at the
Medical Faculty of the University of Pecs to celebrate the 15th
International Evening. Since the success of last year’s event, the Deans
decided that the celebration were to become annual therefore leaving
little time for the English-German Student Council run by Daniel
Livingston and Frédéric Zuhorn to plan a new large festivity. The
results were no less than astonishing and turned out to be the biggest
event ever organized and hosted by international students.
This event, however, had massive support from both
sponsors and staff of the University. Businesses such as Raiffeisen
Bank, Travel4You, B&D Copy Studio, Subway, Volan Taxi, Hotel Palatinus
and the Swedish Restaurant all contributed with donations which made a
lot of the evening possible. A special thanks must go to the Rector,
Deans and administrative staff of the medical faculty for being
supportive and assisting with making everything possible.
Organizing International Evening 2009, however, was no
easy task. Planning started as far ahead as November and needed careful
collaboration between several country representatives. The university
graciously offered to sponsor flags for the event from each respective
country represented at the facutly. It took a team of dedicated students
and great leaders to overcome the difficult task of trying to create one
of the largest organized events to this day.
24 countries from all over the world were competing for the best table
of the night and motivated by thewinning prize of a Champagne Magnum Bottle donated by the
Pezsgöhaz restaurant. With lots of food at hand, drinks were also served
at several locations. Lemon Cafe hosted the drink bar and was constantly
crowded till the end of the night. There was also a table for authentic
German beer, strategically placed next to the German table. On the
second floor, a wine bar was hosted by a bar from Villany to the great
appreciation of many wine lovers. Before of the official opening, the
faculty and EGSC leadership hosted a welcome reception for the diplomats
of 18 nations represented at the medical faculty. This was shortly
followed by individual country meetings, in which students were able to
utter their opinions on everything from school to politics in a neutral
zone to personal affairs.
A charity raffle (tombola) was hosted by the EGSC with
profits of 150.000 Ft going to the Pediatrics Department for renovation
of a corridor in the intensive care unit. On the itinerary was also a
fully packed program on stage, which included entertainment from several
countries with a colourful array of music, presentations and dances.
While students and guests from around Hungary were having a good time in
the Aula, a separate VIP room was kept for diplomats and distinguished
guests with catering hosted by Elefantos Etterem. This was a quiet place
for student escorts and diplomats to sit down and talk about relevant
and private issues.
The intercultural celebration ran
smoothly and the hired security, thankfully, did not encounter any
problems, despite our times of political disharmony. Feedback from the
Rector, Deans, Vice-Deans and respected board members were uplifting and
it was clear they all enjoyed themselves with a glass of wine in one
hand a plate of exotic food in the other and a smile on their face.
given by the Deans of the medical faculty to the EGSC presidents, Daniel Livingston and Frédéric Zuhorn, who have set a remarkable standard for future International Evenings to come.
Terje Kristensen (1st Year Medical Student)