‘The beauty, charm, love and friendship I’ve found in Hamilton will stay with me forever’
The skyline of the city of Hamilton, taken from the Niagara escarpment.
The following story, written by international student Shuang Cui, was published by the Hamilton Spectator Dec. 13. It chronicles Cui’s experience as a Chinese student at McMaster as well as how Cui got to know Hamilton.
I came to Hamilton as an international student last year. I did not expect how deeply I would fall in love with this amazing city.
I’ve read the book Life of Pi and was touched by Pi’s unique experience: floating in the sea, together with the tiger Richard Parker, suffering from fear of death.
This book brings me closer to Pi, a brave, intelligent boy with a good sense of humor. If I did not choose to come to Canada as an international student, there would be no way of knowing how Pi and I would relate.
I came out of my comfortable zone wanting to find a more fitting quality of life here in Canada, only to find I’ve encountered a number of challenges associated with acculturation. I am like Pi, who cannot turn to families for help since none of them are around.
The pressure from cultural shock, language barriers and academic knowledge gap undoubtedly made my new life full of challenges. I realized that people’s confidence is usually based on familiarity with their surroundings. Without the familiarity, I have a feeling of constant fear in my daily life.
Read the rest of Life of Pi – A story of an international student in Hamilton in the Hamilton Spectator.
