Last Thursday, on the 19th of April, the Jawa Barat Chapter had their first relaunch event: a ‘soft opening’ called ‘Apa kabar, Jabar?’ The event was held at Bamboo Shack in Dago, Bandung, and was organized by the newly-formed AIYA Jawa Barat leadership team including current ACICIS student and new President Philip Hibbard.

Many people, both Indonesian and Australian, attended the night. The atmosphere was full of excitement when the new members of AIYA JaBar were welcomed.

At the event, we all shared our knowledge and experiences about what it’s like to live in Australia and Indonesia. In particular, we shared about culture, social life, government, economy, entertainment, and many other topics.

We also enjoyed funny riddles and sharing sessions. A few of us thought the sharing sessions were most fun, because we could hear about unique experiences. Some of those experiences included hearing from the Australians who are studying in Indonesia, and the Indonesians who have studied in Australia.

This welcome night should be regarded as the first of many future AIYA JaBar events, and has made a positive impression for all involved. We look forward to building strong ties between Australia and Indonesia through sharing our understanding and experiences in the future!

Some of the committee members and event participants posing with the national flags.

Some of the committee members and participants enjoying the event!