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Singapore Students Sample Arabia

16 June 2005 | comments (0) | Saudi Aramco News | by Saudi Aramco News

SINGAPORE (May 11, 2005) - About 4,700 students in Singapore had the opportunity to experience the sights, smells, tastes and sounds of Saudi Arabia recently at an exhibition titled "Meeting the Middle East – People and Culture."
The event was supported by the Singapore Ministry of Education and was held in conjunction with International Friendship Day at one of the island's leading schools, CHIJ St. Theresa School.

Thousands of students, such as this class, got a taste of Arabia during "Meeting the Middle East – People and Culture," a cultural education effort in Singapore organized and sponsored in part by Saudi Aramco.  Students were able to experience sitting in a Bedouin tent and tasting Arabic dates and coffee. "This is really fantastic. I have never tasted coffee like this. I also learned Saudi Arabia is more than just deserts. Its cities are very well-developed," said 14-year old student Denise Tan.
Photograph Contributed by Saudi Aramco

Saudi Aramco was one of the major forces behind the exhibition, providing many of the main exhibits and photos showing facets of Saudi life – the people, culture, cities and also the oil industry.
"Meeting the Middle East" was opened by Nawazi Daipi, senior parliamentary secretary in the Ministry of Education and Ministry of Manpower.
Amin Kurdi, the Saudi ambassador in Singapore; Abdulsalam Al-Hazmi, Saudi Aramco's marketing manager in Singapore; as well as members of the diplomatic community attended the opening.

Among the events of "Meeting the Middle East – People and Culture" in Singapore was a youth forum.
Photograph Contributed by Saudi Aramco

Public relations specialist and Saudi poet Nimah I. Nawwab shared her views about life in Saudi Arabia through her book of poems, "The Unfurling."
She read a poem titled "The Coming" at the opening ceremony. Nawwab talked to educators, professionals and students at various institutes about themes such as youth, change and perspectives on Arabia. She also gave a presentation to members of the respected think tank, the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies.
Daipi emphasized the need to build bridges and expressed his hope that exhibitions such as this can promote closer social and economic ties between the two countries.
The idea for the exhibition came from a photo exhibit organized last year by Saudi Aramco titled "Patterns for Prosperity and Progress," which was about life in the Kingdom. Visitors to that exhibit included members of the Ministry of Education's National Education Branch, who asked whether something similar could be done for schools.
Seventeen other schools visited the exhibition, which concluded with a Youth Forum attended by more than 150 students.
The forum touched on topics like the common aspirations of Singapore and Saudi youths and how ties between the two countries can be developed.
Mary Martens, one of the teachers who attended the forum, said, "While the exhibition is amazing, the forum was also an eye-opener for our students. It showed how our two cultures share some universal values and views in areas like the family, friendships and in issues like globalization."