Yesterday, some of my male students came up to me at lunch time and asked if they could have the two-hour afternoon lesson to celebrate International Women's Day. I said, "Of course, no problem", not really knowing what to expect since we don't really make a big thing of it in England.
I went back to my classroom at 2pm and they had laid out loads of food and in the middle of the room there was a table with a huge bouquet of flowers, a cake and two bottles of champagne on it! They had decorated the board with a crossword and pictures and there were presents arranged on a table. One of the men stood up and made a little speech (in his best English) about how it was very important for men to appreciate all the women in their lives and how they should always do their best to make their women happy. I couldn't believe it! Then all the women (including me) had to go to the front of the room and we were presented with gifts while the men cheered and clapped and threw makeshift confetti over us (bits of paper!). It was hilarious! Then they cracked open the champagne and everyone started eating. The entertainment was various students coming to the front and singing bad karaoke tunes in English. One student sang 'I believe in Angels' by ABBA (I thought of you, Mum ;-)) and one of the blokes translated a Vietnamese love song into English which was something about having no car and no money ;-) I stood up and taught them 'If you're happy and you know it' (couldn't think of anything else, my mind went blank!) and then we did the crossword game on the board and I won. The prize was a bar of chocolate shaped like the biggest bank note here: 500,000 dong (£15).
I have to say that it was the best laugh I've had in ages and it really brought home to me how lovely the people are here and what a great sense of fun they all have and a wicked sense of humour. I'm looking forward to getting to know them better and maybe a few nights out together.... :-))