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After stressful exam week, we closed last year with memorable JAC Ball ✨✨ It was wonderful night where many friends across three different universities gathered and spent time together💞🥰 Congratulations to the people who were voted first in various categories on the night 🥳🎉 Hopefully all your photos 📷 are great and nothing too embarrassing was captured 😅😅 especially when people were dancing with the DJ 💃🕺 Overall, it was a memorable night where old friendships were renewed and new friendships were made 😊 Thank you everyone who come, hope you all had a good time 🥰❤️
- Sona
As the sun sets on another semester and another year, time flowing by faster than ever, came another one of our Izakaya nights. The gentle red glow in Jazushi, the cool night air on the balcony, the plates of food relentlessly coming one after the other, the alcohol I'm sure more than a few of us consumed, and that irreplaceable atmosphere that being around great company inevitably creates, all bringing us together for one last hurrah before the end of the year. With all the looming dread and doom not too far away now, I hope Izakaya night was one where you could celebrate getting through another semester, make new friends, have some fun, eat some food and laugh away all the stress if only for a little bit. Hope everyone had a fantastic 2022. I'm looking forward to see all you guys next year : )
-Leo
What a great way of spend time watching movie 🎥 together with friends after stressful week✨ It was a relaxing night, many Wasabians 🫶🏻 pop in to take a break from uni work 🤯 We enjoyed super cute Ghibli movie, ‘The Cat Returns’ 🐈 with yummy pizza 🍕, popcorn 🍿 and lollies 🍬 We learn some Japanese from movie as well 🇯🇵 Overall, it was an enjoyable and relaxing night 🥰 Thank you everyone who come ❤️
- Sona
wOOOO~ just in time for the spookiest time of the year, JAC came together and held a terrifyingly fun halloween night for our members. Filled with frightening costumes, horrifying games and activities, and spine-chilling food and drinks, I'm sure everyone in attendance had a fearsome time. There were also grotesque (super cute) polaroids being taken all night, a spooky darts game, and even a competition for the most pretrifyingly-dressed. What better way would there have been to spend halloween than at the most sinister event in town 😎
- Andrew
On a humid ☀️ spring day nearing the end of semester 📚 , we found fun and relaxation in decorating some beautiful fans 💝 ! It was so great to see people unleash their creative sides 🎨 , whether it be by doing calligraphy 🖋️ or making cute little origami bunnies 🐰 ! The snacks 🍭 and drinks 🍵 were plenty, keeping us full and hydrated as we toiled away at our creations. Thank you everyone who came, and I hope you had a fun time making fans with friends 💕
- Kaithlyn
What better after a long day at uni 🥵 than using the rest of your brain juice for some board games 🤩 Board games night was a super fun night where no one could be bored 🤭 ! Many friends (and temporary enemies 😅) were made over rounds of games won by pure luck or a mastermind 🧠 There were an array of delicious snacks 🍬 and drinks 🧃to keep our brains fuelled throughout the night - much needed to understand game instructions 🤓 Overall, it was an enjoyable night where old and new friendships blossomed 🌷, everyone who came were winners 😙
- Maggie ♡
I hope everyone was hungry 😋 on Wednesday because our curry rice event was a banger 🍛! The aroma of chopped potatoes 🥔 , diced 🥕 and stewed beef 🥩 mixed with our hearty curry brought life and energy 🤩 back to our beloved ISL after an enjoyable mid-sem break. Batches of 🍚 and curry were served in quick succession as our hungry members came back for more🫡. We saw many old and new faces alike, chatting and munching away. Nothing better than good food and good company! 😎
- Kai
Week 9 brought with it the first reoccurrence of our language event special: WASABI’s Letter-Writing Workshop! Heaps of cute stickers and letter-writing sets were prepared (shoutout to gudetama-chan) so our members were able to write heartfelt and well-decorated letters to their friends <33 Not to mention we had plenty of yommy snacks to munch on as well as delicious drinks to quench our thirst! We also had a variety of small candies to fit in envelopes to give along with the kawaii letters ٩(๑❛ᴗ❛๑)۶Thank you to our language facilitator team for making the event possible by keeping up the amazing vibes and helping those who wanted to write in Japanese! Overall, I’m very happy with how the event turned out, and I’m looking forward to many more successful language events to come along with the new era!
~ Joyce ( ˘ ³˘)♡
After a fantastic year with the 2021-22 WASABI team, the WASABI AGM finally arrives, calling for a new team for the upcoming year. All the accomplishments achieved in the past year such as the large scale events held and the growth of the member base were reflective of the all time and effort put in by Stephanie and the 2021-22 Executive team. Even with all the hardships and challenges we had overcome together as a team, I could not be more grateful for the group of people I got to work with. With the previous team including the supportive and most lively bunch.. Stephanie, Elina, Jason, Jenny, Christine, Jinju, Annie, Zoe, Joyce, Andy, Emi, Leo, Ngoc, Lily and Jackie have worked so hard for the past year, making sure that WASABI can be the best version of itself. Our amazing subcommittee members Alysha, Amy, Emily, Kai, Kylie, Maggie, Phoebe, Sakura, Tanny and Wilson have been such a helpful bunch at all of our events, ensuring that everything is smooth running while also assisting in the behind-the-scenes planning. Our bright language facilitators Amanda, Ellen, Faye, Hannah, Hiroki, Jessica, Kaithlyn, Keika, Rebecca, Shysie, Sona, Takara and Takumi have guided many members to the right path with the Japanese language and the language events would not have been possible without them. It has been one heck of an amazing ride with you all and I am so glad to have been able to work with you guys for the past year! I cannot express how grateful I am for you guys and your support! For the newly elected 2022-23 WASABI Executive team… Emi, Joyce, Leo, Emily, Jason, Andy, Tanny, Kai, Kaithlyn, Sona, Christine, Jinju, Annie, Stephanie and Ngoc, I am so excited to see what the future holds for WASABI and I believe we can achieve high goals if it’s us! - Emi
As the curtains close on another year of the Wasabi team, under the gentle light of our subcommittee member Kai’s studio, in front of a meagre table and an even stranger setup, some members of our current team reflected on their time in Wasabi this year as well as their whole tenure as a part of Wasabi.Amidst the fun times and the hard times we hope everyone found something enjoyable or cool about all the things we talked about and hope that everything we have loved about the society continues on into the next year with the new team.Til the next podcast : )
- Leo
International Fest was a great event that had a ton of other stalls besides our one. Our stall featured tones of delicious bread that was provided by our sponsor Azuki Bakery. We offered a variety bread such as melon pan, yuzu donuts and yakisoba pan - all of which were well received by everyone! The breads were all delicious and we managed to sell out quite quickly despite our large stock. The event ran super smoothly and despite only allowing one bread per person - we were able to satisfy everyone who came to our bread stall. Overall, this event was a massive success and amazing thanks to Emi who coordinated it and USU for hosting.
- Christine
This week, we teamed up with our good friends at ChocSoc and SUAnime to bring you an event filled with the delicious chocolate-filled taste of a quintessential Harajuku street food: crepes. With each member receiving a beautiful crepe donned with strawberries, bananas, whipped cream and an assortment of chocolates and biscuits, it was the perfect way to sweeten up the sluggish Monday afternoon.Whether you stuck around and chatted with other members over board games, or just came and went for a quick sugar fix, we were so glad to see so many people show up and have a great time together.Special thank you to ChocSoc and SUAnime for collaborating with us once again, as this event would not have been possible without their cooperation. Please check out their societies as well!anyway bye
- Andy
Even though it was slightly drizzling, I think that it perfectly sets the mood ☔🍹 The night was bright and particularly loud with the atmospheric belting of lyrics ever so often . Did everyone enjoy their beverages? Doesn't matter if it was alcoholic or non-alcoholic because the vibes and energy was just perfect ✨✨ We all know why Drinks Night is one of our favourite events (and clearly one of our members favourites too) and I'm glad that everyone enjoyed their Friday night with Wasabi! 🥂 Here's to another successful Drinks Night!
- Lily
Blessed with fine weather we gathered at the Auburn Botanic Gardens for a viewing of the Japanese cherry blossoms! Whilst waiting to enter the cherry trail, members enjoyed a variety of food and drinks served at the festival stalls, mingled amongst themselves, and also participated in various small events including mini golf, where we took turns trying to get a hole in one. Right before entering the cherry trail, everyone came together to enjoy free pizza and drinks for lunch and continued to socialise some more. Lots of photos were taken in the cherry blossom trail and we were also fortunate enough to be greeted by a large family of geese, several peacocks, and some bright looking chooks. Overall it was a great time and we’re glad everyone had lots of fun!
~ Phoebe
With people flocking back onto campus, hundreds of new and familiar faces alike joining our society, we kicked off the language events this semester with a speed friending session! Whether it was among your first ever WASABI events and an opportunity to make new friends in the society, or a way to catch up with everyone you hadn't seen since Semester One, the ABS room was packed and we quickly ran out of space for our happily chatting members. Thank you to our language team who put together helpful sheets for the brave souls who tackled socialising in Japanese. It was great to see such a large turnout and we hope to see everyone again soon!
- Jason
What better way to start off the new semester than BBQ with friends!!😁 We kicked off week 2 with our long anticipated collaboration with VSA, who were just as excited as us in restarting society events. 🥳 The event had a high turnout, and it was very heartwarming to see so many old and new faces, espeically after a long one and half month holiday break. Our hardworking execs laboured deep into the night before, and early morning of the day of the event to procure freshly made yakisoba.♨️ VSA offered an interesting candied fruit and jelly cup which complemented our savoury fried noodles. 🍎👍 From afar, one could hear the sizzle of the BBQ mingle with chatter and laughter as old friends caught up with each other and new friendships formed. 🤝 If you missed out on welcome bbq, fear not! As there are many more events for you to attend and many opportunities for you to get to know everyone better ^-^
- Kai
There was no better way to celebrate the start of a new semester than visiting the WASABI stall at Welcome Fest!🥳 Excited to meet both new and returning students, our team set out delicious snacks and prizes to be won over the two days!🤩 The luck of new members was put to the test during the raffle where MARUYU ice-cream vouchers🍦, candy🍭, kit-kats🍫and super cute erasers (which deceivingly looked like food🫢) were up to take home! Existing members were also challenged with the kendama game to win some prizes (all those who dared to try were great fun to watch🤣)! A huge thank you to everyone for visiting us, we couldn’t have celebrated such a successful S2 Welcome Fest without you! 🫶
- Emily
JAC Camp is one of the best and most unforgettable experiences you’ll have with WASABI and other universities such as JASS (UTS) and NSA (UNSW). On day 1, get to know your roomies from other uni’s!!! The day started off with a sussy scavenger hunt 😆 and fun icebreakers to get to know your teammates and everyone there! DAY TWO, everyone channeled their inner idol abilities and learned a fun dance to 'summertime' and we threw a concert of our performances!! Later that evening, was the JAC HORROR NIGHT!! Where everyone was CURSED 😱 and to save us from this curse our teams ventured off in the cold, scary woods collecting talismans to protect ourselves from the evil spirits 👻 and freeing ourselves from the curse bestowed upon us!! Definitely one of the funniest and memorable nights ever (espsecially the person hiding under the bed grabbing our legs 👀 ). DAY THREE, the loser team got punished by getting shaving cream smacked onto their face by the victory team and many prizes were handed out!! nevertheless, JAC camp is the place to make your forever friends ❤️ and just get down and have some fun!!! 🫶
-ELLIE
In celebration of the semester coming to an end, our language workshop coordinators had organised a cute and wholesome event for members to put their letter-writing skills to the test. 💌 📝 As a japanese language workshop related event, members were encouraged to write in japanese with the language workshop facilitators being super helpful as always.🥺💗 The tables were also filled with cute washi-tapes, stickers, letter sets and coloured pens for everyone to decorate their letters to their heart’s content! ✨😻 During the event, letters between old and new friends were exchanged📨, inside jokes were cracked and perhaps even a few letters of confession might’ve been written😳, drawing a nice conclusion to our semester one events! ☺️
~ Annie
To celebrate the coming of Autumn, WASABI held our long awaited Akimatsuri!!!!!🍁 We served lots of food including takoyaki 🐙 , yakisoba pan 🍜 , onigiri 🍙, dango 🍡 and candied fruits 🍓 . We also held ring toss, a shooting game 🔫 , ema 🔖and kujibiki🗳 . Each store was bustling with members waiting for food or for their chance to win a prize at the games. It was great to see members with dango and candied fruits as they strolled through the stalls and write their hopes and wishes at the ema store. The shooting game and ring toss were a big hit with members constantly lining up to try their shot. 🤩 The takoyaki store was also a great success, members just couldn’t get enough of them! 🤤And the origini and yakisoba pan had almost sold out by the second half of the event! 😮 Kujibiki proved more difficult then it looked but members quickly got addicted going back for their 3rd or 4th try.😆Although there were some hiccups, we all pulled through and had an amazing time!😍Looking forward to the next Akimatsuri!!
- Tanny
Even after our bellies were satisfied with the previous suke bowl event, we couldn’t help but continue to bring more Japanese delicious cuisine into our mouths on Friday in our BIG snacks and chill - with homemade dangos, matcha cookies, and onigiri! The event was a blast, with members enjoying the food we made the night before. The most popular dish was the sanshoku-dango, or the three-coloured dango, in which the green dango in 🍡 was matcha flavoured. With wasabians chilling in the ISL with other wasabians, while meeting new people and enjoying our snacks, saying that we were contented is an understatement. All in all, we hope everyone got not only a good taste of our dishes, but was able to relax and have fun in our event!
- Sakura
Under an unusually blazing sun for Autumn at Manning Lawn, WASABI held our much anticipated return of the Poke Bowls from our sponsor Suke, and this time with even cheaper bowls 😝 We got to enjoy an assortment of bowls that that were almost deceptively small looking, as well as a nice soft drink of their choice, and some of us got to socialise a little in the scarce amount of shade. We had members new and old, with some of the previous WASABI presidents coming along to say hi, see how the team was doing and, of course, eat some delicious Poke Bowls. As a nice little chill event before our big Aki Matsuri next week, we hope everyone enjoyed their Poke Bowls 😩 and hopefully next year we can all enjoy more Suke 🤓
- Leo
To start back the semester after a week of a much needed mid-semester break, our first collab with both Craftsoc and SUAnime went smoothly with the help of execs and subcom from each societies! Along with the bustling crowd in the courtyard café, members got to experience and experiment with different shibori dyeing techniques on bandanas, tote bags, and t-shirts, some even took a step further and dyed their shoes! We hope everyone enjoyed the event and went home with some nice tie-dye pieces : 3
- Jinju
Despite many delays due to external circumstances, the JAC Companionship Championship, held at the UNSW Quad, proceeded very smoothly with a large turnout. We started the bonding process with icebreakers as members from each society got to meet and make new friends. 🥰 Our first task was the tower building challenge, where teams had to construct the tallest tower with nothing but pasta, tape and a marshmallow. This challenge required teamwork, communication, and lots of creativity, all of which resulted in very peculiar leaning towers pasta.:prayblob~1: As the clock ticked past 1pm, the halls and courtyard were overflowed with the familiar scent of Dominos pizzas. The afternoon sun was warm but not overly harsh, and the courtyard provided ample space for member to chill, socialize and relax. In the afternoon, we were entertained by an array of Japanese mini-games, ranging from the infamous Oreo challenge to traditional Kendama. We hope everyone had fun, and wish to see y’all in future events.✨ OwO✨
- Kai
Our language exchange zoom call with Hiroshima Uni’s English conversation group TalkxTalk was a great opportunity for Wasabi members and Hiroshima Uni students alike to practice their language skills and make new friends. The hosts from TalkxTalk did an amazing job facilitating the event and making sure that everyone had a fulfilling and engaging experience, and introduced us to some fun Japanese group games that I’ll be sure to share with my friends too. There was a good balance of both English and Japanese spoken throughout the session, and all in all was a very fruitful learning experience for everyone who attended.
- Andy
Wasabi bacc at it again with our annual trivia night 🥵🙏❓With a large turn out, our members were able to indulge themselves with a night of Japanese and anime themed questions and activities 🇯🇵🎌🏯👹 It was so much fun reading everybody's responses, with some people drawing some very creative artworks during our last round!! 🤩 🤙 Like usual, the pizza and drinks to fuel all that brain power used that night were delicious; it certainly gave everyone sustenance to last through all those difficult questions. 😋 🍕 All in all, the night was full of energy and excitement, with our team working busily behind the scenes to make sure the night went smoothly! 🥳 🎉 Thanks for coming along and we hope everyone had a great night 🥺❤️🌸
- Wilson
Drinks night was a very well timed event where members and the WASABI team alike were able to unwind after a torrent of mid-sem exams 📚🙏🏻.The transition from slamming textbooks to slamming shots was much appreciated 😔. The room bustled with energy, laughter and immaculate vibes as we got to meet and learn more about our beloved members 😍. Overall, the night was very based. BTW, ever wondered why WASABI was called WASABI? The meaning behind our name was unveiled at drinks night as we were graced by the presence of our founder! "To add a little spice into our uni life". A very cute message to say the least UwU.
- Kai
Our general meeting went along well during the afternoon. As most executives attended, the meeting was well catered for. Our amendment of our constitution went along well with the general members as we gained another Language Workshop Coordinator to add into our team: Andy Sun. Although, with a funny turn of events as the other two nominees dropped out after his heartfelt speech. We are excited and happy to have him on board and keen to see what he has planned. As well as, also adding Kevin Wong as an honorary member for Wasabi. We all are looking forward to a great sem ahead.
- Christine
We are just around halfway through the semester and WASABI was gladly able to present the first themed Snacks ‘n’ Chill of the year! This week, we got to experience a snippet of Japan and had the opportunity to enjoy some delicious matcha latte and gyokuro tea! On top of that, we all had a taste of some traditional Japanese snacks as well, such as the Kyoto rice crackers and the warabimochi topped off with some sweet kinako! Our lovely members also had the chance to try on beautiful kimonos and we could not be happier with the lovely feedback we have received! Thank you to everyone who came along! I hope to see you at our future events! ૮꒰ ˶• ༝ •˶꒱ა♡
~ Emi
WASABI is back at it again with another pog event, Crafts 'n' Arts 🤩 Members (and execs) got to learn the art of Japanese calligraphy using tools such as calligraphy paper, brushes and ink, while munching on yummy Japanese snacks. We were delightfully surprised with the amazing products created by our talented members which can all be viewed on our Instagram page. owoWe hope everyone enjoyed the event and please look forward to our exciting future events !! 🥺
ehe -Ngoc
A busy summer morning followed by a torrential afternoon was on a quiet, unsuspecting Monday was jsut like any other day. But in the quaint ISL, WASABI was proud to celebrate the second day of love in the year. From chocolates ranging from Ferrero Rochers to Mars bars (as well as some little mochis), members had the chance to make a little present bag for that special someone in their life. Ngoc has organised a cute little event that we hope all the members enjoyed. We also got to meet some of our lovely subcommittee who have been greatly needed and did a great job at their first event.We're looking forward to seeing more people coming to next events :)))
- Leo
After a week of torrential downpour and an unfortunate cancellation of the semester’s first Snacks ’n’ Chill, WASABI was nonetheless proud to bring to its members a safe indoor event away from the hectic rain: Board Games Night! Though the sign-in line remained long for the first hour with people constantly arriving to join in on the fun, we hope everyone was still able to settle in quickly for a night of unforgettable bonding and yommy pizza + drinks. We provided distinctive Japanese games such as Hanabi and Tokyo Highway but also safe classics such as Monopoly and Uno, so before long, ISL was filled with the boisterous sound of laughter and enjoyment from members and non-members alike. We even had cute kimonos on the side for try-on whenever anyone needed a break from the board games, which made for amazing memories and entertaining moments! Special shoutout to our event coordinator Leo for organising such a lively night to wrap up Week 2 - with over 150 members in attendance, 2022 WASABI Board Games Night was most definitely a success! We hope to see everyone again at future events <33
~ Joyce ( ˘ ³˘)♡
Welcome welcome to a new semester and a new year with WASABI! Week one Monday, Wasabi held our very popular Welcome BBQ and there were over 200 of us altogether! At the event, not only was there a juicy sausage sizzle, there were also some mouth-watering yakisoba, and a variety of thirst-quenching drinks (which unfortunately ran out quite quickly ;-;). But nonetheless, the event was a huge success where hopefully everyone walked away with a filled tummy and a new friend to talk to on a hot, summer day! Hope to see everyone again!
~ Annie
It's exam season, and students need a way to get away from all the stress and cool off. Luckily, Donburi planned ahead and created Springtime Paint n' Sip! Donburi knew just what all the wasabians needed and invited everyone to come paint their favourite scenes under the Spring shade and sip on some refreshing drinks!
New and familiar faces turn up one by one to Victoria Park, taking their canvas and settling down on the soft grass. The gentle breeze and warm scenery made the location perfect for small chit chat with friends. As wasabians conversed amongst themselves, masterpieces were being whipped up! Let WASABI cook!! By the end of Paint n' Sip, all the wasabians unwinded for the week and even had a little memory to take home. As expected of Donburi!
Jason
Donburi walked into ISL in a morning, and saw all the students studying before exams. He started watching ninja drama and dozed off. He opened his eyes, seeing everyone shocked on their faces. They found out they had travelled back to Sengoku-era in a ninja academy.
They saw origami sheets, cardboards and coloured A4 papers on the table, and Donburi’s knowledge from the drama kicked in. He started leading everyone to craft ninja weapons such as shuriken, katana and kunai. Folding papers into different types of shuriken and kunai, cutting cardboards into katanas. Everyone was chatting and cheering about their unique fashioned weapons. After all the fun craftings time, they are brought to the corner to examine their ninja skills. Paper cups pyramids, shooting targets and wooden sticks look like a tower stopping them from passing. Despite the obstacles, their determination shone through as they fought hard for the test. Pyramids had fallen, targets were shot and woods were cut into halves. They aced the test and laughter echoed as they celebrated. Donburi felt tired after all these challenges and fell asleep smiling.
He woke up with a cute certificate and KitKat in his hand, and in everyone’s hand. He left ISL with a sense of accomplishment and a smile.
Arthur
As October neared its end and the darkness crept in, a mysterious atmosphere enveloped UTS. The air was thick with anticipation, and a touch of eerie excitement as students prepared for the most spine-chilling event of the year: JAC HALLOWEEN!
Taking inspiration from Donburi, our members pulled up in the scariest, most horrifying, legit spine-tingling, and ickiest costumes possible, fully embracing the spooky theme. Congratulations to the winners, who truly embodied the spirit of Donburi.
Do you know what's scarier than monsters from the unknown? University students and alcohol. The bar at UTS loft served some horrifying concoctions, which left everyone in high spirits (see what I did there). Although some may still be wondering if there was a hint of elixir in those drinks.
Now, it wouldn't be a proper Halloween night without paranormal shenanigans. Our hardworking JAC team set up a spooky twist into the night as members were pulled into the House of Horrors, where every creak and groan sent shivers down spines. From Sukuna to Scary Women (Real, I'm scared of women), the room acted as a domain into the otherworldly.
As the Spectral Soirée fades into the realm of memories, we are left with a lingering sense of the supernatural. Until next year, when the shadows once again come alive, remember: the spirits may rest, but the memories of this haunted night will haunt us forever. 👻🌙
Pranu
In the middle of the hectic assignment seasons, groups of students gathered around the International Student Lounge. As Donburi peeked through the corner, he sees many familiar faces fiddling with what seems to be small colourful plastic pieces.
Approaching closer to the area, it turns out to be plastic beads! Seemingly disconnected from the outside world, this area of the ISL felt very tranquil. Some people were deeply in focus with creating bracelets, others were having leisurely conversations. While the idea was to create friendship bracelets, some people got creative and made keychains, and phone straps. Uncharacteristically, Donburi decided to sit down beside his friends, and started creating a bracelet as well! One by one, he slipped in the plastic beads. Pink.. blue... pink.. blue.. and ocassionally some letter beads. As he finally finished up on the bracelet, he looked up to the window and saw the sky already turning orange.
While it wasn't his usual hobbies of pranks and high energy activities, it was a nice change of pace, Donburi thought while walking back home wearing his brand new bracelet.
Brian
Shaka shaka shaka, sip, sip. What’s that sound? Looking over into Isabel Fiddler, we can see Donburi enjoying a nice cup of matcha tea, then Chinese Long Jing green tea, then Taiwanese Alishan green oolong tea. 🍵
We watched the late afternoon sunshine turn golden, then sunset, then navy blue, the cozy lamps lighting up the evening and spreading their warmth throughout our first collaboration with Tea Society. Enjoying some Japanese sweets and mochi before drinking some whisked matcha, then fragrant and flavourful Chinese and Taiwanese teas, members from both societies enjoyed conversing and sharing small talk on their favourite teas, mindful thoughts, and queries on the process of tea ceremony. 🍵🍡 The wonderfully comforting vibes of the event allowed for tea masters to talk with the tea curious, and share their interests and impart their knowledge. Everyone left feeling the after-warmth from partaking in the selection of delicious teas, a little less stressed and a little more wise. 😌
Sarah, resident tea enjoyer.
With joy, we celebrate Wasabi’s 20th anniversary as a society!! Together with old and new members we celebrated through everlasting polaroids with our wasabians with cute studio ghibli props! drawing our luck 🍀, testing our shooting aim 🫣, letter writing ✉️ and yummy takoyaki. 😋😋 Creating present and future memories with wasabi will forever be a core memory 💛💛.
By the end of the event, everyone’s hearts were full of companionship and love. To wasabi and future events we look forward to creating forever and fun memories 🫶🏻
Ellie
If you were a foodie, you HAD to be there at VSA X WASABI Night Markets 😍
zPicture this: tender beef, fresh herbs, and a dash of secret sauce grilled to perfection. The Bo Lat Lot served by VSA was absolutely mouth-watering and well worth the wait 🤤 And don't forget about WASABI's very own dango. Those sweet and chewy desserts were an absolute feast on the eyes (and the stomach course) 💗 ! Served some DELICIOUS miso soup (and some really good company) we brought the night market to you on a Tuesday at uni.
By the end of the event, everyone's hearts and tummies were full, after an exciting day at VSA X WASABI "night" markets 😊
- Kaithlyn
Donburi walked into ISL one afternoon with his mouth wide open in shock - how could WASABI neglect him and hold an event in celebration of the lowly Sanrio characters?!
Despite his reservations, he waddled his way over to the first station he saw as he still wanted to experience the event with an unbiased lens. There, he made a cute omamori charm and giggled as he admired his own work of art. Maybe the event wasn’t so bad after all.
Then, he waddled over to the next station where he made a fun popper craft. He pulled it open with Sona but ran away as the little pop of confetti gave him a fright. Eventually, he regained his breath to tackle the final station, where he made a little shaking keychain. He was so proud of it that he shook it happily in front of each team member he came across.
At the end of the day, Donburi waddled his way back home to the WASABI lockers and looked over his loot from the afternoon. The event was a lot of fun after all, even if it wasn’t all about him.
~ Joyce ^•ﻌ•^ฅ
Coming together for a delightful event that celebrated the wonders of sushi and wagashi, we rolled in the fun with a burst of enthusiasm!
With skillful hands and imaginative minds, we crafted charming flower maki-sushi, classic cucumber rolls, and even the enchanting ichigo-daiguku. Everyone got to experience the joy of making these delectable treats.
Laughter echoed as we worked side by side, sharing tips and techniques. It was a true team effort, and we savored every moment of it! A big thanks to everyone who joined in, making this event a truly memorable one. Stay tuned for upcoming events!
Sona
As the birds chirped and faint rays of light passed between the blinds, we see Donburi brushing his fur, stuffing his learning materials into his bag and rushing to the door. On campus, heaps of returning and new students flooded the Eastern Avenue and the Front Lawn. The sun was bright, the sky was clear and Donburi happily weaved through the crowd to finally arrive at the WASABI Welcome Fest Stand! Execs scurry around, distributing flyers, helping students sign up, and writing up membership cards. Laid on the tables were stationery packs! Coin pouches! Plushies! As well as merchandise! T-shirts and tote bags with Donburi on it! Donburi took his chances, stuck his paw into the pile of paper and... a coin pouch!When the time for his first lecture arrived, he bid everyone goodbye, and went on his way to the lecture hall. This semester is going to be a great one, Donburi thought, don don don...
Brian
Ahh JAC Camp.. the annual event Donburi looks forward to every year.
He looked off into the distance as he reminisced the fun mini games, horror night, scavenger hunt, idol dance and.... the nights at Geebung.
Mini games and scavenger hunt released the member's inner-child, as the activities were structured with various childhood games. Donburi had way too much fun playing bento box.. can't believe he won against our gym boy Wilson. But we did catch the moment he lost against our little Leo. He definitely cried back in the cabins... he denied it in the morning but we all saw Sona comfort him as he rolled up under his blanket.
Horror night was a personal favourite for sure. Donburi, Pranam and Judy walked through the field with nothing but torch in hand. They heard rustling in the bushes and started running for their lives as an invisible figure started running towards them. His short legs couldn't keep up with Pranam and Judy's speed and he face planted as he tried to catch up. I hope he was ok.
Idol challenge was one to remember. Kaithlyn and Sarah put blood, sweat and tears into teaching Donburi the dance but he just could not master the footwork near the end. However, in the improv section, we all got to see him do a round-off back hand spring, layout to back handspring full... and it was impressive. Joyce gave it a 100/10 and Jason just winked. I think that means he approves.
To top off each night, we had the iconic Geebung parties. Donburi and Emi had a nice tipsy karaoke session, singing Arashi at the top of their lungs as all the members gathered to play uno at the big table. Kai walked over and challenged Donburi to some rounds of table tennis. Kai played with a blindfold on and Donburi still lost. At least we know he's good at farming and taking care of the WASABI family.
We all hope his goofy moments at camp can be looked back on as iconic highlights and we look forward to another JAC Camp with him in 2024.
~ Emi <33
Whipped cream + Anko + Cookies + Fruit + Chocolate syrup = one of Donburi’s favourite desserts…PARFAITS! 🍓
With a long line of WASABI and CHOCSOC execs/subcom manning the parfait creation chain, our lovely members were able to enjoy a quick and easy dessert at ISL! Our non-decisive members may have had a harder time as many stations had more than one option but some found a way around that by requesting a bit of everything (Franken-parfait? 👀). It was also great fun watching our members try unusual flavour combinations and either smile or grimace in turn! 😝
Thank you to everyone who came to our event! I shall leave you all with Donburi’s parting words:
"Don Don Donburi!" ☺️
- Emily
On this lovely day, nestled in a corner of new law was our lovely WASABI Kodomo No Hi crafts event! 🤩 We were transported back to when we were just small children, having fun making crafts while chatting and playing around with friends. Our members nibbled away on snacks and drinks whilst making the koinobori 🎏, a fish-shaped windsock that is an important part of Japanese tradition and culture.✨The chatterbox brought back fond memories of childhood 👶 and reminded us of the joy that came from choosing random colours and numbers to reveal a message or dare inside 😈. Finally, members challenged themselves with origami as they made their way through the different levels, making foxes 🦊, frogs 🐸 and of course the infamous geese 🐦.
- Tanny
As the sun descended and city lights shimmered into view, an air of anticipation enveloped Jazushi. With glasses raised and spirits high, we embarked on a tantalizing culinary odyssey, exploring the splendid offerings of the special WASABI Izakaya Night menu. Mouthwatering kingfish sashimi and wagyu tataki, crispy JFC, delectable salmon rolls delighted our taste buds, leaving us craving more with each bite.As the evening progressed, the merriment grew, and the sound of clinking glasses and cheerful banter filled the air. Drunk with joy, we sang the night away, fully embracing the present moment and letting go of our worries about the impending finals. Donburi invites you to toast to the oishii food, fantastic company, and an extraordinary semester brought to you by the WASABI Team. Kanpai! See you in Semester 2!
- Shysie
Events Coordinator Kaithlyn was lying in bed one night, trying to catch some snoozes, when little subcom Sarah telepathically whispered in her ear, “WASABI tea ceremony…”
And so began a frenzy of planning, as Kaithlyn frantically worked to bring to life a vision that had struck her on that fateful night.
Fast forward to the actual day of the event, Kaithlyn sat down and breathed a sigh of relief as she contentedly watched everyone enjoy delicious green tea, the bitterness of which was perfectly balanced by the sweetness of the authentic Japanese snacks she had prepared. The professional tea ceremony performed by Sarah in a beautiful yukata (thank you Shysie!) was mesmerising to witness and an experience that I'm sure we will all never forget.
That day, Kaithlyn went home and lay in her bed again. This time, she could sleep soundly without any disturbance... at least until Semester 2 starts.
~ Joyce ^._.^ฅ
WASABI's back again with our annual trivia night!
With a crazy turn out, our members were able to indulge themselves with a night of Japanese and anime themed questions and minigames 🇯🇵🎌🗾 It was so much fun seeing the responses to short answer questions and the member's very creative drawings of Donburi 🦝 As always, the pizza and drinks were delicious, and it certainly gave everyone energy to make it through all those difficult questions. 🍕🍵
Overall, the trivia night was vibrant and exciting, and everyone on our team worked hard to make sure everything went smoothly! 👍
Thanks to everyone who came, and we hope everyone had a great night 🫶
- Wilson.
Dear Donburi,
What have you been up to lately? It’s been a while since we met each other, and I must admit I missed you and the WASABI events over the mid semester break. I’ve been busy with mid sem assessments and study, but writing this letter to you has granted me a short reprieve from my stressful schedule.
Listening to upbeat city pop tunes and comforting background beats, I look around to see new friends and familiar acquaintances alike absorbed in creating beautiful letters. Nearby, laid out in an aesthetic array are an extensive collection of pretty letter designs, and multiple different styles of stickers. We pondered over the perfect combination of letter paper and envelopes, and laughed about the humourous Gudetama and sushi stickers, and I thought about what would best fit my letter to you.
I hope to meet you there at the next Letter Writing Workshop in Semester 2, but if not, I’ll write another letter to you again. ☺️
Love from Sarah ✨
With the looming pressure and stress of all our assignments and exams, I wonder if I’ll ever get a chance to relax again. “Fear not”, Donburi says. “Have a matcha latte.” Whilst the sun shines through the windows and birds chirp, the ambience of laughter and studious typing fills a comfortable room in ABS. People eagerly line up for their shot of customisable matcha lattes as our enthusiastic baristas work hard creating drinks for our wasabians attending. Gentle lo-fi music breezes through the air as some people put on their focus on as they get through their university work, or they merrily chatter their woes away with friends new and old.
I close my eyes for a brief moment, sipping my calming matcha latte.
Donburi was right all along.
- Michelle
The gentle noon sun warms us against the cold winter breeze as we frantically pace through Prince Alfred Park, collecting items for the scavenger hunt. In the distance, you can see Donburi watch over enthusiastic WASABI members as they mingle with friends from NSA and JASS.
Undoukai is undoubtedly a staple JAC tradition, where members of the Japanese societies of UTS, UNSW and USYD are able to come together to compete, socialize and create inter-university bonds. We had many activities running simultaneously, to keep our active and athletic members entertained. Tug of war was an absolute classic, as well as the infamous egg and spoon race. By the end of the day, everyone was exhausted, but wore satisfied smiles.
- kai
Held in a spacious room in ABS, as the sun said its goodbyes and the glowing moon crept up through the skies, so did Annie who marked her last week as our Communication Officer. Annie’s speech resonated across the halls and hit everyone's hearts as she reminisced on her hard work and great services to WASABI ༼ ༏༏ີཻ༾ﾍ ༏༏ີཻ༾༽༽.
Yet, we all turned to a new chapter in the story of WASABI with the election of the new Communications Officer. As our executives carried the general meeting with utmost professionalism (〃▽〃), our Wasabians filled the air with good vibes as always, contagiously laughing and all excited to watch the highlight of the event - the Communications Officer nominee speeches.
With massive gratitude and honour, I write this blog as your new Communications Officer for WASABI 2023. It was truly a memorable day and of course, I want to thank my fellow Wasabians who were supportive and made it comfortable and wholesome for everyone running („ಡωಡ„). I hope to see everyone at the next General Meeting.
-Michelle (∗ᵒ̶̶̷ω˂̶́∗)੭₎₎̊₊♡
When you think of the classic university experience, our first thought is probably alcohol. If it isn't, then you're too innocent. Wasabi's Drinks Night established a comfortable and safe hub for students to wind down after a high pressure day of school, work or commitments. For others, as the sun slowly set over Herman's Bar, it was time to call it in, but for Wasabi, the day had just began. As the people started piling up, so did the lovely scent of alcohol as it wafted throughout the bar as Students both past and present had a good time, mingling, drinking and simply vibing to the music.
Who could ask for a better time?
Thank you to everyone who came, we hope you enjoyed and wish to see you at future events!
Pranam 🙂
It was a cloudy Saturday, light rain lining the path of which groups of wasabians toured our amazing sponsors. We were quick to make new friends, as we made our way to Ramen Zundo for lunch, enjoying bouncy ramen noodles served in a rich, savoury broth. After lunch, we were serenaded by street musicians on our way to Via artists embraced by the familiar tunes of studio ghibli where at Via Artists, members were quick to snatch up their stunning designs. After, we headed to Hondarake, stopping at Maruyu on the way to pick up a light snack. Our members filling up every inch of Sydney's favourite rustic Japanese bookstore, we exchanged new books with our newfound friends. We enjoyed Dinner at Tenkomori, with the creamy soft serve of Oh Matcha for dessert, before singing out hearts out at Karaoke !!
Thank you to our sponsors for hosting us !!
- Leo L<3
International Fest was an exciting event with many stalls besides our one! Our stall featured a variety sushi🍣 such as salmon, prawn, fried-tofu, and California roll. Despite super hot weather😎☀️, many wasabians popped in to say hi and tried sushi with ‘wasabi’💚😆 The food was all delicious, many people came back to get more and we sold out before 1pm😊🙊
Overall, the event was successful, hope everyone enjoyed our food😋 and thank you USU for hosting✨
-Sona
Braving the summer heat☀️😎and a postponement (tyty sydney trains🚂), our members mingled with our friends over at NSA (UNSW) and JASS (UTS) in a series of challenges and games! With our stomachs full with freshly sizzled sausages🌭and lovingly handmade fairy bread✨, we played charades, silent line up and even with kendama, forging new friendships along the way 💖🤝
An epic JAC start to what is hopefully an equally epic year of events, thank youuuu to everyone who came along and endured the heat, and we hope to see you again in the future!! 🎉🫶🫶
- Henry
Like the world of Narnia tucked away in an ordinary wardrobe, ISL was not your usual USYD building on the Wednesday of week 4. Stepping inside, our members were instantly transported into the magical world of Studio Ghibli. The nostalgic Ghibli tunes sounded as members made their way around the multiple stations, enveloped in both a sense of childhood familiarity and the foreignness of a fictional world.
Chihiro’s Stall, Ponyo and Friends, Soot Sprites' Corner, Totoro’s Photos, Ghibli Cinema, and Calcifer’s Firewood, from sushi stations to craft stations to a photo booth - we’ve got it all! Members unleashed their inner child and let their creativity ran wild. Soot Sprites came to life as pom-poms, Calcifer's firewood pieces turned into beautiful artworks and origami Ponyos also jumped to life one after another under the magic of members' crafty hands and the special guidance of execs. There was even a cosy Ghibli cinema if you wanted to relive the magic of these films again. Best of all, members were able to take a polaroid photo at our Totoro Photobooth as a token to remember their journey into the world of Studio Ghibli.
As much as it was an event for our members, the stories of Ghibli are for everyone and it couldn't have been a better afternoon to spend with old and new friends at uni, sprinkled with a little bit of Ghibli magic.
- Annie
WASABI’s first ever scavenger hunt was held on an extremely hot autumn day - but that did not deter our lovely Wasabians from coming to check out our event, and solving clever clues to scavenge for treasures!
Armed with a mini bottle of water to fight against the heat (also personalised with their name and a smiley face for luck), they got to travel across many fun corners of Japan, from Hokkaido to Shikoku to Kyushu, and tackle entertaining challenges such as the struggle of moving a biscuit from forehead to mouth! Of course, they were accompanied by cute mascots along the way (such as Kumamon and Shikamaro-kun - search them up hehe) as well as our slay team of execs, subcom and language facilitators <33
The final destination did not disappoint - it offered an impressive selection of stationery (cat pens, washi tape, stickers and more), hydrating face masks for skincare, and yommy Japanese snacks which included adorable cups of Pokémon instant ramen Ϟ૮(๑⚈ ․̫ ⚈๑)ა These surely made all the trekking and brainpower worth it ♡
We hope everyone who was able to attend enjoyed their time and was able to leave just that one bit happier to progress with the rest of their day C: Shoutout to Sona for her intricate planning leading up to the event! See you guys at our next scavenger hunt~♪
~ Joyce ( ˘ ³˘)♡
Starting off with our first Japanese communication workshop for this semester, members and language facilitators were able to meet new faces and tackle worksheets together. 💪 The main focus was on letting go of feelings of fear about making potential mistakes and understanding that it's all part of the learning process. We learned how to introduce ourselves in Japanese and interesting facts about each other -- all whilst snacking on a variety of delicious treats and drinks. 🍵🍬 We would love to see you at our next language workshop, to practice Japanese or even just pick up a few introductory phrases! ☺️ - Sarah 😌
We began our semester with our brand new reading and writing Japanese workshop. Members gathered around with our talented language facilitators by their side and worked through the challenging worksheets, studying new kanji and even role playing as different characters whilst reading though the provided Japanese stories. We had our usual amaysing snacks and drinks as well, and everyone went away learning something new.Hope to see many more of you at our workshops in the future
- andrew
The curtains open to the 20th year of WASABI under the ever-so familiar, fiery sun our Welcome Week is known for. But under that scorching blaze, over those three days, saw another successful beginning to the year. We all loved welcoming the eager first years and second year, the seasoned third and fourth years and of course the familiar faces we've grown fond of over the past weeks, months or even years.Thank you for joining WASABI in 2023 ! We hope we can continue spicing up your uni lives a little bit more for another 20 years : )- Leo
We started off our semester with a bang at our awesome Board Games Battle 🎲 With plushies, stickers and stationery up for grabs, who could resist a little friendly competition 😈 Armed with the our Donburi-decorated stamp cards, we were on our ways to become board game champions🤘 It was so lovely to meet friends, old and new 💗 and of course, we ate lots of yummy snacks tew. All in all, a super start to the semester, and I hope to see you all again soon
<33 - Kaithlyn
The language workshops started off the semester with a fun speed friending event. In a quiet corner of abs, friendships began to form as chatter and laughter slowly filled the room.😆 Attendees rotated between groups, sharing their hobbies and interests with new friends whilst nibbling on snacks.🍟🍪 Despite some technical difficulties with the projectors not working 🖥, the team pulled through to make the event enjoyable for everyone.💖 Overall, it was a successful event with many members lingering behind to talk for longer and exchange contacts with one another!🤩 -Tanny
Keep an eye out here for a blog 0-0
As you walked down Eastern Avenue on that particular, breezy, Tuesday morning, you couldn’t help but notice a line of students wrapped around the side of the Chemistry building. The alluring scent of sizzling sausages flowed from the bushes. Hidden in the grove was WASABI’s Welcome BBQ, where members and passersby were able to enjoy a banquet of onigiris, spam musubis, drinks, snacks and the classic sausage sizzle…all for FREE! The long line of students buzzed with anticipation as our sign-up desk worked hard to admit everyone into the event. Conversation filled the air as attendees attempted to complete the Mingle Bingo challenge, or to get to know someone better and make friends. By the end of the event, our mountainous supply of foods and drinks had been cleaned out by satisfied attendees, marking the end of another successful Welcome BBQ.
-Kai
After stressful exam week, we closed last year with memorable JAC Ball ✨✨ It was wonderful night where many friends across three different universities gathered and spent time together💞🥰 Congratulations to the people who were voted first in various categories on the night 🥳🎉 Hopefully all your photos 📷 are great and nothing too embarrassing was captured 😅😅 especially when people were dancing with the DJ 💃🕺 Overall, it was a memorable night where old friendships were renewed and new friendships were made 😊 Thank you everyone who come, hope you all had a good time 🥰❤️
- Sona
As the sun sets on another semester and another year, time flowing by faster than ever, came another one of our Izakaya nights. The gentle red glow in Jazushi, the cool night air on the balcony, the plates of food relentlessly coming one after the other, the alcohol I'm sure more than a few of us consumed, and that irreplaceable atmosphere that being around great company inevitably creates, all bringing us together for one last hurrah before the end of the year. With all the looming dread and doom not too far away now, I hope Izakaya night was one where you could celebrate getting through another semester, make new friends, have some fun, eat some food and laugh away all the stress if only for a little bit. Hope everyone had a fantastic 2022. I'm looking forward to see all you guys next year : )
-Leo
What a great way of spend time watching movie 🎥 together with friends after stressful week✨ It was a relaxing night, many Wasabians 🫶🏻 pop in to take a break from uni work 🤯 We enjoyed super cute Ghibli movie, ‘The Cat Returns’ 🐈 with yummy pizza 🍕, popcorn 🍿 and lollies 🍬 We learn some Japanese from movie as well 🇯🇵 Overall, it was an enjoyable and relaxing night 🥰 Thank you everyone who come ❤️
- Sona
wOOOO~ just in time for the spookiest time of the year, JAC came together and held a terrifyingly fun halloween night for our members. Filled with frightening costumes, horrifying games and activities, and spine-chilling food and drinks, I'm sure everyone in attendance had a fearsome time. There were also grotesque (super cute) polaroids being taken all night, a spooky darts game, and even a competition for the most pretrifyingly-dressed. What better way would there have been to spend halloween than at the most sinister event in town 😎
- Andrew
On a humid ☀️ spring day nearing the end of semester 📚 , we found fun and relaxation in decorating some beautiful fans 💝 ! It was so great to see people unleash their creative sides 🎨 , whether it be by doing calligraphy 🖋️ or making cute little origami bunnies 🐰 ! The snacks 🍭 and drinks 🍵 were plenty, keeping us full and hydrated as we toiled away at our creations. Thank you everyone who came, and I hope you had a fun time making fans with friends 💕
- Kaithlyn
What better after a long day at uni 🥵 than using the rest of your brain juice for some board games 🤩 Board games night was a super fun night where no one could be bored 🤭 ! Many friends (and temporary enemies 😅) were made over rounds of games won by pure luck or a mastermind 🧠 There were an array of delicious snacks 🍬 and drinks 🧃to keep our brains fuelled throughout the night - much needed to understand game instructions 🤓 Overall, it was an enjoyable night where old and new friendships blossomed 🌷, everyone who came were winners 😙
- Maggie ♡
I hope everyone was hungry 😋 on Wednesday because our curry rice event was a banger 🍛! The aroma of chopped potatoes 🥔 , diced 🥕 and stewed beef 🥩 mixed with our hearty curry brought life and energy 🤩 back to our beloved ISL after an enjoyable mid-sem break. Batches of 🍚 and curry were served in quick succession as our hungry members came back for more🫡. We saw many old and new faces alike, chatting and munching away. Nothing better than good food and good company! 😎
- Kai
Week 9 brought with it the first reoccurrence of our language event special: WASABI’s Letter-Writing Workshop! Heaps of cute stickers and letter-writing sets were prepared (shoutout to gudetama-chan) so our members were able to write heartfelt and well-decorated letters to their friends <33 Not to mention we had plenty of yommy snacks to munch on as well as delicious drinks to quench our thirst! We also had a variety of small candies to fit in envelopes to give along with the kawaii letters ٩(๑❛ᴗ❛๑)۶Thank you to our language facilitator team for making the event possible by keeping up the amazing vibes and helping those who wanted to write in Japanese! Overall, I’m very happy with how the event turned out, and I’m looking forward to many more successful language events to come along with the new era!
~ Joyce ( ˘ ³˘)♡
After a fantastic year with the 2021-22 WASABI team, the WASABI AGM finally arrives, calling for a new team for the upcoming year. All the accomplishments achieved in the past year such as the large scale events held and the growth of the member base were reflective of the all time and effort put in by Stephanie and the 2021-22 Executive team. Even with all the hardships and challenges we had overcome together as a team, I could not be more grateful for the group of people I got to work with. With the previous team including the supportive and most lively bunch.. Stephanie, Elina, Jason, Jenny, Christine, Jinju, Annie, Zoe, Joyce, Andy, Emi, Leo, Ngoc, Lily and Jackie have worked so hard for the past year, making sure that WASABI can be the best version of itself. Our amazing subcommittee members Alysha, Amy, Emily, Kai, Kylie, Maggie, Phoebe, Sakura, Tanny and Wilson have been such a helpful bunch at all of our events, ensuring that everything is smooth running while also assisting in the behind-the-scenes planning. Our bright language facilitators Amanda, Ellen, Faye, Hannah, Hiroki, Jessica, Kaithlyn, Keika, Rebecca, Shysie, Sona, Takara and Takumi have guided many members to the right path with the Japanese language and the language events would not have been possible without them. It has been one heck of an amazing ride with you all and I am so glad to have been able to work with you guys for the past year! I cannot express how grateful I am for you guys and your support! For the newly elected 2022-23 WASABI Executive team… Emi, Joyce, Leo, Emily, Jason, Andy, Tanny, Kai, Kaithlyn, Sona, Christine, Jinju, Annie, Stephanie and Ngoc, I am so excited to see what the future holds for WASABI and I believe we can achieve high goals if it’s us! - Emi
As the curtains close on another year of the Wasabi team, under the gentle light of our subcommittee member Kai’s studio, in front of a meagre table and an even stranger setup, some members of our current team reflected on their time in Wasabi this year as well as their whole tenure as a part of Wasabi.Amidst the fun times and the hard times we hope everyone found something enjoyable or cool about all the things we talked about and hope that everything we have loved about the society continues on into the next year with the new team.Til the next podcast : )
- Leo
International Fest was a great event that had a ton of other stalls besides our one. Our stall featured tones of delicious bread that was provided by our sponsor Azuki Bakery. We offered a variety bread such as melon pan, yuzu donuts and yakisoba pan - all of which were well received by everyone! The breads were all delicious and we managed to sell out quite quickly despite our large stock. The event ran super smoothly and despite only allowing one bread per person - we were able to satisfy everyone who came to our bread stall. Overall, this event was a massive success and amazing thanks to Emi who coordinated it and USU for hosting.
- Christine
This week, we teamed up with our good friends at ChocSoc and SUAnime to bring you an event filled with the delicious chocolate-filled taste of a quintessential Harajuku street food: crepes. With each member receiving a beautiful crepe donned with strawberries, bananas, whipped cream and an assortment of chocolates and biscuits, it was the perfect way to sweeten up the sluggish Monday afternoon.Whether you stuck around and chatted with other members over board games, or just came and went for a quick sugar fix, we were so glad to see so many people show up and have a great time together.Special thank you to ChocSoc and SUAnime for collaborating with us once again, as this event would not have been possible without their cooperation. Please check out their societies as well!anyway bye
- Andy
Even though it was slightly drizzling, I think that it perfectly sets the mood ☔🍹 The night was bright and particularly loud with the atmospheric belting of lyrics ever so often . Did everyone enjoy their beverages? Doesn't matter if it was alcoholic or non-alcoholic because the vibes and energy was just perfect ✨✨ We all know why Drinks Night is one of our favourite events (and clearly one of our members favourites too) and I'm glad that everyone enjoyed their Friday night with Wasabi! 🥂 Here's to another successful Drinks Night!
- Lily
Blessed with fine weather we gathered at the Auburn Botanic Gardens for a viewing of the Japanese cherry blossoms! Whilst waiting to enter the cherry trail, members enjoyed a variety of food and drinks served at the festival stalls, mingled amongst themselves, and also participated in various small events including mini golf, where we took turns trying to get a hole in one. Right before entering the cherry trail, everyone came together to enjoy free pizza and drinks for lunch and continued to socialise some more. Lots of photos were taken in the cherry blossom trail and we were also fortunate enough to be greeted by a large family of geese, several peacocks, and some bright looking chooks. Overall it was a great time and we’re glad everyone had lots of fun!
~ Phoebe
With people flocking back onto campus, hundreds of new and familiar faces alike joining our society, we kicked off the language events this semester with a speed friending session! Whether it was among your first ever WASABI events and an opportunity to make new friends in the society, or a way to catch up with everyone you hadn't seen since Semester One, the ABS room was packed and we quickly ran out of space for our happily chatting members. Thank you to our language team who put together helpful sheets for the brave souls who tackled socialising in Japanese. It was great to see such a large turnout and we hope to see everyone again soon!
- Jason
What better way to start off the new semester than BBQ with friends!!😁 We kicked off week 2 with our long anticipated collaboration with VSA, who were just as excited as us in restarting society events. 🥳 The event had a high turnout, and it was very heartwarming to see so many old and new faces, espeically after a long one and half month holiday break. Our hardworking execs laboured deep into the night before, and early morning of the day of the event to procure freshly made yakisoba.♨️ VSA offered an interesting candied fruit and jelly cup which complemented our savoury fried noodles. 🍎👍 From afar, one could hear the sizzle of the BBQ mingle with chatter and laughter as old friends caught up with each other and new friendships formed. 🤝 If you missed out on welcome bbq, fear not! As there are many more events for you to attend and many opportunities for you to get to know everyone better ^-^
- Kai
There was no better way to celebrate the start of a new semester than visiting the WASABI stall at Welcome Fest!🥳 Excited to meet both new and returning students, our team set out delicious snacks and prizes to be won over the two days!🤩 The luck of new members was put to the test during the raffle where MARUYU ice-cream vouchers🍦, candy🍭, kit-kats🍫and super cute erasers (which deceivingly looked like food🫢) were up to take home! Existing members were also challenged with the kendama game to win some prizes (all those who dared to try were great fun to watch🤣)! A huge thank you to everyone for visiting us, we couldn’t have celebrated such a successful S2 Welcome Fest without you! 🫶
- Emily
JAC Camp is one of the best and most unforgettable experiences you’ll have with WASABI and other universities such as JASS (UTS) and NSA (UNSW). On day 1, get to know your roomies from other uni’s!!! The day started off with a sussy scavenger hunt 😆 and fun icebreakers to get to know your teammates and everyone there! DAY TWO, everyone channeled their inner idol abilities and learned a fun dance to 'summertime' and we threw a concert of our performances!! Later that evening, was the JAC HORROR NIGHT!! Where everyone was CURSED 😱 and to save us from this curse our teams ventured off in the cold, scary woods collecting talismans to protect ourselves from the evil spirits 👻 and freeing ourselves from the curse bestowed upon us!! Definitely one of the funniest and memorable nights ever (espsecially the person hiding under the bed grabbing our legs 👀 ). DAY THREE, the loser team got punished by getting shaving cream smacked onto their face by the victory team and many prizes were handed out!! nevertheless, JAC camp is the place to make your forever friends ❤️ and just get down and have some fun!!! 🫶
-ELLIE
In celebration of the semester coming to an end, our language workshop coordinators had organised a cute and wholesome event for members to put their letter-writing skills to the test. 💌 📝 As a japanese language workshop related event, members were encouraged to write in japanese with the language workshop facilitators being super helpful as always.🥺💗 The tables were also filled with cute washi-tapes, stickers, letter sets and coloured pens for everyone to decorate their letters to their heart’s content! ✨😻 During the event, letters between old and new friends were exchanged📨, inside jokes were cracked and perhaps even a few letters of confession might’ve been written😳, drawing a nice conclusion to our semester one events! ☺️
~ Annie
To celebrate the coming of Autumn, WASABI held our long awaited Akimatsuri!!!!!🍁 We served lots of food including takoyaki 🐙 , yakisoba pan 🍜 , onigiri 🍙, dango 🍡 and candied fruits 🍓 . We also held ring toss, a shooting game 🔫 , ema 🔖and kujibiki🗳 . Each store was bustling with members waiting for food or for their chance to win a prize at the games. It was great to see members with dango and candied fruits as they strolled through the stalls and write their hopes and wishes at the ema store. The shooting game and ring toss were a big hit with members constantly lining up to try their shot. 🤩 The takoyaki store was also a great success, members just couldn’t get enough of them! 🤤And the origini and yakisoba pan had almost sold out by the second half of the event! 😮 Kujibiki proved more difficult then it looked but members quickly got addicted going back for their 3rd or 4th try.😆Although there were some hiccups, we all pulled through and had an amazing time!😍Looking forward to the next Akimatsuri!!
- Tanny
Even after our bellies were satisfied with the previous suke bowl event, we couldn’t help but continue to bring more Japanese delicious cuisine into our mouths on Friday in our BIG snacks and chill - with homemade dangos, matcha cookies, and onigiri! The event was a blast, with members enjoying the food we made the night before. The most popular dish was the sanshoku-dango, or the three-coloured dango, in which the green dango in 🍡 was matcha flavoured. With wasabians chilling in the ISL with other wasabians, while meeting new people and enjoying our snacks, saying that we were contented is an understatement. All in all, we hope everyone got not only a good taste of our dishes, but was able to relax and have fun in our event!
- Sakura
Under an unusually blazing sun for Autumn at Manning Lawn, WASABI held our much anticipated return of the Poke Bowls from our sponsor Suke, and this time with even cheaper bowls 😝 We got to enjoy an assortment of bowls that that were almost deceptively small looking, as well as a nice soft drink of their choice, and some of us got to socialise a little in the scarce amount of shade. We had members new and old, with some of the previous WASABI presidents coming along to say hi, see how the team was doing and, of course, eat some delicious Poke Bowls. As a nice little chill event before our big Aki Matsuri next week, we hope everyone enjoyed their Poke Bowls 😩 and hopefully next year we can all enjoy more Suke 🤓
- Leo
To start back the semester after a week of a much needed mid-semester break, our first collab with both Craftsoc and SUAnime went smoothly with the help of execs and subcom from each societies! Along with the bustling crowd in the courtyard café, members got to experience and experiment with different shibori dyeing techniques on bandanas, tote bags, and t-shirts, some even took a step further and dyed their shoes! We hope everyone enjoyed the event and went home with some nice tie-dye pieces : 3
- Jinju
Despite many delays due to external circumstances, the JAC Companionship Championship, held at the UNSW Quad, proceeded very smoothly with a large turnout. We started the bonding process with icebreakers as members from each society got to meet and make new friends. 🥰 Our first task was the tower building challenge, where teams had to construct the tallest tower with nothing but pasta, tape and a marshmallow. This challenge required teamwork, communication, and lots of creativity, all of which resulted in very peculiar leaning towers pasta.:prayblob~1: As the clock ticked past 1pm, the halls and courtyard were overflowed with the familiar scent of Dominos pizzas. The afternoon sun was warm but not overly harsh, and the courtyard provided ample space for member to chill, socialize and relax. In the afternoon, we were entertained by an array of Japanese mini-games, ranging from the infamous Oreo challenge to traditional Kendama. We hope everyone had fun, and wish to see y’all in future events.✨ OwO✨
- Kai
Our language exchange zoom call with Hiroshima Uni’s English conversation group TalkxTalk was a great opportunity for Wasabi members and Hiroshima Uni students alike to practice their language skills and make new friends. The hosts from TalkxTalk did an amazing job facilitating the event and making sure that everyone had a fulfilling and engaging experience, and introduced us to some fun Japanese group games that I’ll be sure to share with my friends too. There was a good balance of both English and Japanese spoken throughout the session, and all in all was a very fruitful learning experience for everyone who attended.
- Andy
Wasabi bacc at it again with our annual trivia night 🥵🙏❓With a large turn out, our members were able to indulge themselves with a night of Japanese and anime themed questions and activities 🇯🇵🎌🏯👹 It was so much fun reading everybody's responses, with some people drawing some very creative artworks during our last round!! 🤩 🤙 Like usual, the pizza and drinks to fuel all that brain power used that night were delicious; it certainly gave everyone sustenance to last through all those difficult questions. 😋 🍕 All in all, the night was full of energy and excitement, with our team working busily behind the scenes to make sure the night went smoothly! 🥳 🎉 Thanks for coming along and we hope everyone had a great night 🥺❤️🌸
- Wilson
Drinks night was a very well timed event where members and the WASABI team alike were able to unwind after a torrent of mid-sem exams 📚🙏🏻.The transition from slamming textbooks to slamming shots was much appreciated 😔. The room bustled with energy, laughter and immaculate vibes as we got to meet and learn more about our beloved members 😍. Overall, the night was very based. BTW, ever wondered why WASABI was called WASABI? The meaning behind our name was unveiled at drinks night as we were graced by the presence of our founder! "To add a little spice into our uni life". A very cute message to say the least UwU.
- Kai
Our general meeting went along well during the afternoon. As most executives attended, the meeting was well catered for. Our amendment of our constitution went along well with the general members as we gained another Language Workshop Coordinator to add into our team: Andy Sun. Although, with a funny turn of events as the other two nominees dropped out after his heartfelt speech. We are excited and happy to have him on board and keen to see what he has planned. As well as, also adding Kevin Wong as an honorary member for Wasabi. We all are looking forward to a great sem ahead.
- Christine
We are just around halfway through the semester and WASABI was gladly able to present the first themed Snacks ‘n’ Chill of the year! This week, we got to experience a snippet of Japan and had the opportunity to enjoy some delicious matcha latte and gyokuro tea! On top of that, we all had a taste of some traditional Japanese snacks as well, such as the Kyoto rice crackers and the warabimochi topped off with some sweet kinako! Our lovely members also had the chance to try on beautiful kimonos and we could not be happier with the lovely feedback we have received! Thank you to everyone who came along! I hope to see you at our future events! ૮꒰ ˶• ༝ •˶꒱ა♡
~ Emi
WASABI is back at it again with another pog event, Crafts 'n' Arts 🤩 Members (and execs) got to learn the art of Japanese calligraphy using tools such as calligraphy paper, brushes and ink, while munching on yummy Japanese snacks. We were delightfully surprised with the amazing products created by our talented members which can all be viewed on our Instagram page. owoWe hope everyone enjoyed the event and please look forward to our exciting future events !! 🥺
ehe -Ngoc
A busy summer morning followed by a torrential afternoon was on a quiet, unsuspecting Monday was jsut like any other day. But in the quaint ISL, WASABI was proud to celebrate the second day of love in the year. From chocolates ranging from Ferrero Rochers to Mars bars (as well as some little mochis), members had the chance to make a little present bag for that special someone in their life. Ngoc has organised a cute little event that we hope all the members enjoyed. We also got to meet some of our lovely subcommittee who have been greatly needed and did a great job at their first event.We're looking forward to seeing more people coming to next events :)))
- Leo
After a week of torrential downpour and an unfortunate cancellation of the semester’s first Snacks ’n’ Chill, WASABI was nonetheless proud to bring to its members a safe indoor event away from the hectic rain: Board Games Night! Though the sign-in line remained long for the first hour with people constantly arriving to join in on the fun, we hope everyone was still able to settle in quickly for a night of unforgettable bonding and yommy pizza + drinks. We provided distinctive Japanese games such as Hanabi and Tokyo Highway but also safe classics such as Monopoly and Uno, so before long, ISL was filled with the boisterous sound of laughter and enjoyment from members and non-members alike. We even had cute kimonos on the side for try-on whenever anyone needed a break from the board games, which made for amazing memories and entertaining moments! Special shoutout to our event coordinator Leo for organising such a lively night to wrap up Week 2 - with over 150 members in attendance, 2022 WASABI Board Games Night was most definitely a success! We hope to see everyone again at future events <33
~ Joyce ( ˘ ³˘)♡
Welcome welcome to a new semester and a new year with WASABI! Week one Monday, Wasabi held our very popular Welcome BBQ and there were over 200 of us altogether! At the event, not only was there a juicy sausage sizzle, there were also some mouth-watering yakisoba, and a variety of thirst-quenching drinks (which unfortunately ran out quite quickly ;-;). But nonetheless, the event was a huge success where hopefully everyone walked away with a filled tummy and a new friend to talk to on a hot, summer day! Hope to see everyone again!
~ Annie
