When I became an international student in Dubai, many life issues changed. I do not live with my family anymore, so I have to learn how to do things by myself, how to live in harmony with others and how to move to other areas. Being a student of a foreign country makes individuals acquire a lot of things therefore, at the first period of acclimatization, it can be difficult to attain new activities as it occurred to me. I encountered three main effects of being a foreign student: the first one is being apart from family; the second is adjusting to the city and the last one is “making friends.
The main cause that disturbed me most in the Dubai as a foreign country is the fact of living without my close relatives and the family home to which I accustomed through all the years of my life. This means that I did not find my new accommodation pleasant. In the past it was pleasant when mom cooked for me or when she made my bed. Also, dad took me to school, and when classes finished, I returned to my premises and made myself completely comfortable. Nevertheless, being a foreign student means to live in a dormitory or rent an apartment as my parents did.
My brother or I would have to take care of messy rooms, cooking and dirty dishes. I actually learned new things, such as cooking simple dishes, in a few words; I learn how to be independent and organized. Another effect of living abroad is that I have to find the way around the city and get familiar with roads and directions, for example, to get to grocery shop, for example. Therefore, I learned the main parts of the city. Few times I got lost, but then I found a way back home.
If one does not have a car, he or she needs to learn how to get around in buses, with taxis or by walking. For this I needed to find out about bus routes or typical costs for taxi usage. Accordingly, I started to plan the time it takes me to get from house to university or other places and the costs of transportation in total. This forced me to plan my time better. Over nearly two years, I learned how to plan my activities in a better way. The last cause of my new student life is communication.
At the beginning, I found myself feeling lonely to some extent since arriving in a new city this implies I almost did not know anyone. I was lucky because some friends from my city came afterwards. I learn how to communicate in a different language and culture. It is important to be communicative, to start making friends and to meet many people. Presently I have many friends with whom I can “party. ” Following this way, it was much easier for me to settle down of as a foreign student. Sometimes friends help me in various situations.
For instance, one of my close friends took me to Jiu-Jitsu club where I acquired the fundamental techniques of self-defense, even more importantly it keeps me fit and greatly influences my quality of life because of frequent training and exercising. Also, friends sometime provide me with transport; once they helped me in the awkward situation when I ran out of money. Therefore, I made a lot of friends, with whom I can have an admirable time to spend and learn a lot of helpful things. Leaving my house and going to Dubai in order to study is an experience of my life that cannot be compared to any other experience.
I learned how to be organized, independent and communicative. It is slightly difficult to live without parents in another city, but it teaches me how to live my life well and how to recognize the full value of what I have, like family, belongings and moral values. Additionally, I started to appreciate the things I achieved during my life practice because I recognized that my goals are not achieved effortlessly, that they required a lot of efforts and work. In conclusion, being an international student is magnificent.
