As the academic year 2020-2021 ended on 30 July 2021, the European Cooperation Center and Bata Centre held a celebration party, TDTU’s Day in Ostrava, Czech Republic. This was the third year that university students and Ph.D. students held this event.
This year, due to the pandemic, several students had to come back to Vietnam, so there were just a few remaining Vietnamese students studying and living in the Czech Republic, that could attend the celebration party.
The main purpose of holding the TDTU’s Day was to do a variety of activities together, such as buying food to prepare for the BBQ party, sports activities, and camping in the forest located in Ostrava.
On that day, it was very sunny, the heat hitting 30oC. It took around 30 minutes to commute from Dr. Dao’s home which is near the Černá Louka Exhibition Ground to the Center of Ostrava, Komensky Park – the name of a notable teacher of the Czech Republic. Then, they moved to the Monument to the Red Army of the Soviet Union and Unknown Soldiers of World War 2, and arrived at river Ostravice.
They talked about everything under the sun, played badminton and football, and grilled meat together. Students had a lot of things to discuss together from studying, exams to part time jobs, but the main topic of this year was the vaccine and the pandemic period in Ho Chi Minh City – one of the largest cities of Viet Nam, and their future schedule for the next academic year. They thought that online learning could not be as effective as traditional learning. They thought the main drawback of the trend towards online learning is that there is less direct interaction. Students could not have the opportunity to engage face-to-face with their teachers and students in the Czech Republic, and they had to rely on written forms of communication. Similarly, students who studied online do not come into direct contact with each other, and this could have a negative impact on peer support, discussion, and exchange of ideas. Also, they felt lack the motivation and element of competition that face-to-face group work brings.
Until now, there is approximately 70% Czech population being vaccinated. All Vietnamese students have 2 doses of vaccination that mean they can be protected against the virus. People are hoping that the world can become normal again as soon as possible, so people can work and study more effectively.
That was a happy summer day, by the beautiful tree-lined river Ostravice with nostalgia and worries about Saigon, where the epidemic is increasing significantly.
Wishing you a good and peaceful day in Viet Nam, also in the Czech Republic.
PhD students go to buy food at the standard MAKRO supermarket during the BBQ party
Park – Exhibition Area CERNA LOuka, Ostrava 30.07.2021
Forest and barbecue