By Arabella Balderama

The Ateneo de Manila Senior High School (ASHS) Interstrand Week (IW) continued for its second day on Tuesday, January 16, 2024.

Activities led by the Assembly of Class Officers (ACO) concluded on this day, closing with an awarding ceremony and a program.

Special awards from the ACO were given to every camp that exemplified the spirit of camaraderie and had participated actively in the prepared gimmicks.

Camp Cyan was given the Best Dressed award and the overall third runner-up of IW.

On the other hand, Camp Purple won the tug-of-war championship and Best Chant, and was named the overall second runner-up of the event.

Meanwhile, the Most Spirited Camp Award was given to Camp Orange as well as the title for overall first runner-up.

Lastly, Camp Pink was hailed as the final capture-the-flag winner and the IW’s overall champion.

The day ended with a variety of thrilling performances by students and teachers, and a bonfire was lit in the middle of the red brick road heading to the Formation Learning Center. The whole ASHS community then sang the Song for Mary.

Remarkable activities 

The excitement and fun from the past two days were made possible by the activities prepared by the ACO. Some students mentioned the speed dating game as their favorite.

“I really like the speed dating. It was really fun to meet other people from different sections and different strands. It was also nice to be able to spend time with my classmates overall outside of academics,” said Alison Centino (Camp Purple; 12-Walpole).

“For me it was very enjoyable lalo na ‘yung speed dating, we met other juniors in different strands and na-meet ko rin yung other friends ko from other sections so doon na kami nag reunion,” added Athena Astucia (Camp Purple; 12-Walpole).

“Para sa akin interesting ‘yung speed dating kasi never ko pa siyang na-try before. Masaya makipag-kuwentuhan sa ibang tao… Masayang makipag-bonding with the camp and classmates,” Gaia Camaya (Camp Cyan; 11-Grande) expressed.

“We did the speed dating so we were able to meet other sections and other people na hindi talaga namin nakakausap,” Kinichi Bajao (Camp Pink; 11-Torres) stated, adding that the camaraderie brought about by the IW made the experience more fun.

Altogether, the students enjoyed the first two days of IW—an event packed with fun and sociable activities that allowed for building new connections.

Solidified bonds, strengthened friendships

As the second day came to a close, bonds and friendships were successfully strengthened as people from different sections and strands interconnected.

“[The IW] further solidified and further strengthened the bonds we already had within the strands, like for example, we would have acquaintances across the hall, and throughout this entire event, those acquaintances slowly became our friends so they became part of our class,” said Sebie Sanchez, Vice President of 12-Walpole.

Sanchez added that this event allowed each strand to showcase their individual strengths and unify them to form a stronger connection, giving way for more events such as IW to be conducted in the future.

“In the future, more events would be hosted like this because it is essential not only to know who we are as a person, but it is essential to know our identity as not just a batch, but also as a school,” he concluded.