DAMASCUS PE CELEBRATES THE 55TH ASEAN DAY BY CO-HOSTING THE BOWLING FRIENDSHIP TOURNAMENT WITH INDONESIAN EMBASSY

Damascus PE, in partnership with the Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia in Syria, hosted a Bowling Friendship Tournament on 08 August 2022 in celebration of the 55th ASEAN Day at the Damasquino Bowling Alley in Damascus, Syria.

During his opening remarks, Indonesian Ambassador to Syria, HE Wajid Fauzi, welcomed and thanked the players for attending the event and briefly explained the history and goals of ASEAN. The event was kicked off with a ceremonial rolloff by H.E. Fauzi, Post’s CDA Vida Soraya Verzosa and Mrs. Warif Al Halabi, Director of the Media and Information Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates.

Officers and staff of both Embassies, as well as personnel from the Philippine Honorary Consulate General in Aleppo, led by Philippine Honorary Consul General Wassim Nanaa, participated in the event. Syrian government key officials namely, Mr. Ziad Zahir Al Deen, Director of the Consular Affairs Department, Mr. Khalid Sharaf, outgoing Director of Afro-Asian Affairs Department, General Mustafa Seifo and his family, Mrs. Dalin Fahd, Director of the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, also attended as special guests.

A total of forty players joined the tournament, who were grouped into ten (10) 4- member teams. A group composed of Filipino, Indonesian and Syrian players emerged as gold medalists. Indonesian Attaché Mr. Saifannur also received a medal for garnering the highest individual score during the games.

As part of gastro-diplomacy, the guests enjoyed Indonesian pastel (a type of pastry filled with chicken and vegetables), Pisang Goreng (Indonesian banana fritters), and ice coconut (a type of Indonesian cold dessert with flower essence and coconut jelly) for snacks, then Rendang (beef that is slow-cooked and braised in coconut milk) for lunch. Filipino food classics like steamed rice, Adobo (chicken stewed in soy sauce and vinegar), and Milky Melon (dessert made from melon, tapioca pearls and condensed milk) were served from the Philippine Embassy’s side.

To cap off the event, CDA Verzosa delivered her closing remarks, highlighting the “Addressing Challenges Together (ACT),” theme of the 55th ASEAN Day, thanking all the senior Syrian government officials who joined, and shared about the importance of sports diplomacy in strengthening bilateral relations between Philippines and Syria, Philippines, and Indonesia and Syria and Indonesia. -END