Since the pandemic began, I haven't been able to attend any Christmas parties. It's been three years, and this year marks my return to Christmas celebrations. The last one I participated in was during my senior year of high school, when I was in grade 12. Now, as a fourth-year student undergoing on-the-job training at C and G Bridal Couture, I attended our Christmas party on December 23, 2023, along with my two classmates from Cebu Technological University and the employees of the boutique.
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After lunch, we went to the boutique to decorate for the party, which was being held there. As OJT interns, my classmates and I were assigned to arrange the tables, inflate balloons, and adorn the racks of bridal gowns with curtains to create a stage. Meanwhile, other workers were responsible for preparing the food.
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After we finished decorating, we made Christmas hats for a competition for the most unique hat. My design was a hat with a gift on top, and on the side, I added a design inspired by the Christmas tree. The cost of making my hat was only 10 pesos, which I spent on buying gift wrapper.
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At 5:00 in the afternoon, while waiting for other guests to arrive, we played a quick game of shooting straws into water bottles. We formed two groups, each with five members, and despite losing, the joy was still overwhelming. The other group graciously shared 50 points each with the opposing team.
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After playing the game, we sat down to eat. Our ma'am ordered a food package that included chicken curry, chicken cordon, buttered shrimp, spicy chicken wings, calderetta, and chop suey. They also bought a roasted chicken. We also had desserts like macaroni salad, maja, and cake, and fruits such as watermelon, banana, apple, and orange.
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After we finished eating and preparing for another game, there was an intermission number where the workers danced. We then started playing the second game, which required breaking an orange inside a box while walking towards it, with the orange placed on the knee and not allowed to fall on the floor.
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In the third game, the challenge was passing a calamansi using a spoon. In the final game, the one who is the fastest finished a liter of beer was considered the winner. Even though I didn't join the other games, I still had a great time watching them. I laughed so much that my stomach hurt.
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After playing games, we proceeded to the hat competition. The mechanics of the competition required us to model the hat we created in front of the audience, who would then judge who had the most beautiful one. I didn't expect to win, but I did! There was a prize of 300 pesos for the first place, 200 pesos for the second place, and 100 pesos for the third place, while others received a consolation prize.
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After all the games, we began our manito and manita. My manito was the husband of the boutique owner. His wishlist was a sleeveless guitar, so I bought three for him since our manita and manito limit was 500 each. I didn't expect what I received, which was from my classmate/best friend. She knew I loved crop tops, so she gave me crop tops as her gift. I was really happy with what I got.
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After the party, there was still a disco where everyone was so happy, there was karaoke, and some ate again. I was extremely happy that night during my first Christmas party with my co-workers. It's a different kind of joy when your colleagues are older than you. At first, I thought it might be boring because our colleagues weren't the same age, and there were three of us OJT interns at the party. But I was wrong in my assumption because I felt immense happiness that night. It turned out to be a joyful Christmas party.
Thank you for reading my blog. Have a good day!