Events
Posted by BiBer
As a society, we strive to be a distinctive, prominent and represent ourselves as proactive students. So we took the initiative to be creative and organise our own events which are unique to us and make us stand out. We aim to manage more events in the future which will also involve students around the UK. Here are some of the events we have organised so far:
Ice-Breaking Session
Existing members of BBSS organise this session to welcome and introduce the new students to Birmingham and BBSS. Here we brief them on the aims and missions of the society, and introduce ourselves individually. The session is also filled with games themed towards getting to know individuals, and then a small dinner.
Hari Raya Aidilfitri
Spending Eid away from home, family and friends isn’t always pleasant, so we make the best of it by having our own celebrations here in Birmingham. Visiting each other’s open houses, lots of food and dressing up in traditional Malay attire are what we usually do as students living far from home.
Weekly jemaah prayers
Every Thursday evening, members would take turns hosting the weekly prayers at their house, followed by a small dinner. This religious gathering hopes to create a strong community that is also brought together by faith.
Maulud Nabi
To commemorate the birth of Prophet Muhammad (Peace be Upon Him), we gather for a jemaah prayer and recitals of zikir, and occasionally discussions regarding the religion of Islam. This is just one of the number of religious events we put together, along with our periodic jemaah prayers on Thursday nights, as well as Hari Raya Aidiladha, where we honor the day with recitals of takbir.
Secret Santa
One of the advantages of studying in a foreign country is to be able to learn and understand the country’s culture. Christmas is a national holiday in the UK and is celebrated widely. To understand this part of the British culture, we hold a Secret Santa party every Christmas Eve. For those who are unfamiliar with the Secret Santa tradition, each person is randomly assigned to give a gift to another person anonymously. The gift giver’s identity must remain secret and must not be divulged even to those who are not the gift recipient. The Secret Santa event has been held for three years now, with each event getting merrier every year with the annual addition to the BiB family. Ever so often, friends from other parts of the UK also join in the festivities.
Badminton Minggu Ini (BMI)
Badminton Minggu Ini, or in English, This Week’s Badminton, is a weekly sporting activity held alternately between the Woodcock Sports Hall at Aston University and the Munrow Sports Centre at the University of Birmingham. It is both a fun way to keep fit and instill a sense of community between Bruneians in Birmingham.
Intra-Society Badminton Tournament
Following the popularity of badminton within society members, last year’s Sports Officer, Razan, has initiated a friendly badminton competition. This is a relatively new sporting event, our first tournament was held on 31st January 2009. Badminton is a popular sport within our society. A friendly match between society members adds a little competition spirit between us and at the same time helps us to keep fit. We plan for this event to be held annually.
MadPaintball
The history of MadPaintball tournaments goes way back since 1999, and was also founded by Bruneians studying in the UK. In 2008, BBSS helped organise the tournament with Ariffin Adnan, a Bruneian student from Leicester. The next year BBSS fully hosted the event. We hope to continue organising future MadPaintball tournaments. For a detailed story on how the tournament began, please visit these links, taken from Paintballbrunei.com:
Revival Part 1: History of MadPaintball
Revival Part 2: History of MadPaintball
Easter holiday trips
We have organised trips for BBSS members to travel to main attractions around the UK or in Europe during the Easter holidays. This usually falls on the end of March to middle of April. Friends from other parts of the UK are also invited to join us if they wish. So far we have organised trips to Blackpool, Paris (France), Prague (Czechoslovakia) and Alton Towers.
Easter BBQ
Another fairly new event which we hope will continue, our first ever BBQ event was held in 2008. The BBQ lasts from midday till late, and consists of lots of food, fun and games. Again this is one of our attempts to bring Bruneians in Birmingham together. Bruneians from other parts of the UK are also very much welcome to attend this event. Also held on this day is the announcement of the new BBSS committee. Elections are held at least a week beforehand, and the results are announced on the day of the BBQ. This marks the resignation of the previous committee and simultaneously the appointment of the new committee.
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