Sharing the Mekong river, full of friendship

Provincial Youth Union Standing Committee, Student Association Secretariat have just cooperated with Thu Dau Mot University and provincial Union of Friendship Organizations to organize the 11^th provincial “Sharing the Mekong river” program 2023. The activity has tightened the friendship between the three countries in general, Binh Duong students, Lao and Cambodian ones living and studying in Binh Duong in particular.

Exchange, connection

This year's “Sharing the Mekong river” program has attracted more than 1,000 students from universities in the province, especially students from Laos and Cambodia. Participating in the program, students were connected through many useful exchange activities such as a cultural and culinary exchange with food stalls of 3 attractive countries, a football friendly tournament, especially a performance on art and national costumes of 3 countries.

Provincial Youth Union Standing Committee, Student Association Secretariat jointly present 20 gifts to Lao and Cambodian students studying at Ngo Quyen University and Thu Dau Mot University

Each program, each performance item was enthusiastically cheered by the students. The traditional costume show attracted viewers by cultural features shown through each costume. Traditional Lao costumes with Sinh are for women and Salong for men. Sinh is a tube dress made of silk, delicately flowered designs. A Sinh dress is often elaborately woven at its bottom and decorated with gold sometimes. Lao traditional costumes are often worn on important occasions such as Tet, weddings and festivals. Sinh and Salong will come in different colors, depending on the occasion they are worn.

Cambodia's traditional costume is Sampot with a cloth of about 3m, 1m long, wrapped around the waist, stretched out and tied with a knot, then pulled up between the legs and fixed by a metal knot. Cambodian women today often wear Sampot on special occasions such as celebration of the new year, wedding parties, funerals. For Vietnamese costumes, students not only performed familiar traditional Ao Dai costumes, but also had costumes of all three regions: North, Central, South, ethnic costumes, etc. on this occasion.

Upholding the tradition of solidarity

The impressive thing about the program is that most students from Laos and Cambodia can speak Vietnamese fluently. Homsombath Bounsong, also known in Vietnamese as Nam, a student of Thu Dau Mot University’s finance and banking faculty shared: “As an international student, I sometimes miss home. But, the friendliness and kindness of Vietnamese friends have helped make me feel warm. Today, participating in the cultural exchange program of 3 countries, I have met my friends and watched special cultural performance items, enjoyed the dishes of my hometown..., helping me get rid of my homesickness ...".

Le Tuan Anh, Vice-Secretary of provincial Youth Union said that the 11th provincial “Sharing the Mekong River"  program 2023 is one of the typical international integration activities in the Youth Union work, student movements of schools in the province. The program is organized with contents showing very unique cultural features, thereby contributing to tightening and further strengthening the traditional friendship and solidarity relationship between Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia and useful activities and exchanges between Binh Duong students, Lao and Cambodian ones studying in Binh Duong province. The program also creates excitement to learn about the culture of other countries among students to supplement their knowledge in learning.

Through the 11th provincial “Sharing the Mekong River" program 2023, each student will respect, preserve and uphold the tradition of solidarity, friendship and multifaceted cooperation between Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia to strengthen relationships. The program also facilitates support for outstanding Lao and Cambodian students who are attending schools in the province, thereby tightening the solidarity and friendship between the people of Binh Duong, Cambodia and Laos.

Reported by Ngoc Nhu-Translated by Kim Tin