Study abroad life and advice
Written by: A grade 12 student in International Business
This week, I finished the International Business class. In this course, we learned about studying and working aboard. I am deeply touched because I am also an international student, and I want to talk about my life in Canada.
Life in Canada
When I came to Canada, I was only 15 years old. I just completed my junior high school in China, which is equivalent to Canadian grade 9. Before the start of school in September 2018, my cousin and I participated in an orientation party held by DDSB for welcoming the international students. There were some interactive sessions in the orientation meeting. My english was not good and I was scared to communicate at that time. When people interacted with me, I was embarrassed. Fortunately, my cousin helped a lot. After I got used to the routine here, my parents returned to China. At the beginning, everything was fresh and exciting because I felt free from my family. Canada is a new world for me, without parental control and busy homework. I was like a little bird who just learned how to fly, yearning for a bigger sky.
Skiing
During the first winter in Canada, I learned skiing. I am a person who likes yoga, but not aerobics. At the beginning, I couldn’t control the speed and always wrestled. My body movements were clumsy. Later, after proficiency, I could slide down the slope with a curve. For me, skiing allows me to exercise my body and gives me a pleasing mood. In the white world, the active body brings vitality to the boring winter.
Friends
Here, I met some new friends, some of them are in higher grades, and some of them are in lower grades than me. They have different skin colors, different personalities, but the same kind and respectful hearts. Everyone always gathers to eat in the same school’s classroom at noon every day. Once, we went downtown to eat sushi, watch a movie, and go shopping. It was late and we ran wildly on the street in order to catch the train back to Whitby. It was always happy back then. Now some of them have graduated, and everyone no longer has time to sit in the AR classroom at school to eat and chat. Sometimes, I feel lonely by myself like I have always being a stranger alone in a foreign land.
I have been in Canada for two and a half years, and I miss my hometown even more as I grow older. I like my life in Canada a lot because the air here is fresh, the culture is diverse, and it is as safe as China. The only regret is that I cannot spend the New Year with my family because the Chinese New Year is usually in February in Canada.
After going abroad, I have changed a lot:
1. I know how to cook
2. I am more independent
3. I am more tolerant and patient
4. Learned about different perspectives and different cultures.
When I leave my parents and family, I need to consider things like shopping and choosing a university major. I can feel the pressure of life while studying. All this experience challenged me to improve in every way and grow stronger.
Advice
I want to give some suggestions to some friends who are considering studying abroad. If you can accept loneliness and are willing to accept new things, then studying abroad will be a good choice. My biggest feeling is to broaden my horizons, because I have felt the impact of different countries, environments, cultures, and ideas. Studying abroad will improve one’s abilities, such as communication skills, living skills, learning skills, and thinking skills. You will feel the different ways of thinking of people from different cultural backgrounds, learn to think independently, and look at problems from different angles. Although there will be some unpleasant episodes in the life of studying abroad, you will meet real mentors and friends. As you will also learn to respect and understand different backgrounds of people.