Nongki Night: Keep Making Friends & Nobody's missing out!

Levina Candita | 11 Agustus 2024

As the sun sets, the quiet function hall is gradually filled with the sounds of conversation and laughter, created an atmosphere of warmth and comfort. This was the essence of PPI’s new event, ‘Nongki Night’, designed to give Indonesian students at Monash a welcoming place to nongki, a short form of nongkrong (hanging out). 

“The main reason (why we name this event ‘Nongki Night’) is because we try to give a place for new students to meet other Indonesians on campus and make new friends, and we feel like Nongki Night suited the laid-back and relaxing atmosphere of the event.” said Hanif Rafli, one of the person-in-charge. (H. Rafli, personal communication, 10 August 2024). Succeeded in reaching out approximately fourty participants, Nongki Night slowly transformed from a casual hangout place into a lively arena of strategic and mind-thrilling games, engaging all people to cooperate (while still having fun) with their friends. 

We started off with ‘Spaghetti Tower’, where groups of participants had to created a tower, out of spaghetti. Here they are challenged to create the best strategy in building the tallest tower while try not to let it fall afterwards. The winning group had a unique tactic for this: to build a narrow structure at the base before stacking up the spaghetti that went higher and higher. It might sounds funny when you imagine it, but they proved that you can have fun while still working smart.

Think that was too easy? We stepped up the challenge with ‘Count the Cubes’ where participants have to literally count the number of cubes shown in a series of images. But it wasn’t as easy as you might think: they had to complete progressively harder levels within just twenty minutes, relying solely on their spatial imagination and quick thinking–without any tools like calculator, or even a pen for scribbling notes. The tension rose as only two groups remained, fighting for a winning position. It was a true test of mental agility and focus, leaving everyone on the edge of their seats.

The function hall buzzed with excitement as we moved on to the final game, ‘Tic Tac Toe Trivia’–a classic tic-tac-toe game but with a twist of general and mathematical knowledge. Here, participants had to rely on their teammates to answer the questions correctly to mark their spots with X’s and O’s. It seems that most of the people enjoyed the game that they ask for another extra round only to found out if they are smart enough to solve every questions in the board. 

We rounded off the night by warming up the atmosphere with a delicious dinner of Nasi Kuning and a captivating live music performance by Raissa, whose angelic voice was beautifully complemented by Mirko’s guitar melodies. “I enjoyed when I saw the participants mingling and having fun with each other. It felt like we were successful in providing them the space and activities to make friends and enjoy their time.” said Hanif, relieved to see the participant’s happy faces. 

Nongkrong (hanging out) has always been more than just having fun; it’s a way to strengthen friendships and deepen connections. With Nongki Night, Perhimpunan Pelajar Indonesia Monash “Eunoia” hope to offer you not just a place to hang out with friends, but al true comfortable place–a home away from home where friendships are build and beautiful memories are made together.

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