Before I left Korea, the preparation process was not easy because of the corona virus. Even when I arrived in Canada, I experienced self-isolation until my Covid-19 test result came out without knowing the exact date that the result would come out. On the day when my self-isolation period ended, however, I forgot the previous difficulties since I realized I was really in Canada where I had dreamed about, and this place would give me a whole new world from that moment.

New Life in the Dormitory

When I arrived at the dormitory in the Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John’s (MUN), I was surprised that there was no bathroom in the room. Instead, there was a shared washroom and toilets for people who lived on the same floor. Three shower booths were divided, but it was hard to adapt to taking a shower in an open place. Furthermore, some washrooms were not separated by gender. My floor’s washroom was divided for males and females, but my other Korean friend’s floor only had a unisex washroom. It was quite shocking for me because at Chonnam National University, the dormitory building is completely separated by gender. Actually, I have showered in that washroom once, but it was not as bad as I thought, and the experience made me realize again that I was abroad.

I liked the diversity in my dorm, Paton College, which was full of various people and lifestyles. However, during the coronavirus situation, living with many people is a little hard. When I got an email that I had to take a rapid antigen test since several people got infected with COVID-19 in my dorm building, I was really scared. My roommate and I immediately went to the health center at the university and took the rapid test. I wrote a short paper about my state, took a test and waited about 15 minutes to get a result. Fortunately, both of our results were negative but this incident made me more cautious.

Life with Corona in Canada

Corona still affects the lifestyle in Canada as well as in Korea. When I arrived in the country, all the courses were online because the corona situation was bad. Thankfully, after a few weeks, many classes changed to face-to-face ones, and I was really excited to participate in the classes. The Vax Pass was also needed whenever I visited other facilities inside and outside of the university. When my friends and I visited a Korean restaurant and a beer pub downtown, we had to show our vax passes. The first time I entered the gym at the university, I had to show my vaccination state as well.

The lifestyle in Canada is both similar and different to Korea at the same time. The daily life at the university is not distinct from Korea, but I definitely met new friends from various countries and cultures, and I have been living and communicating in Canadian ways which I never experienced in Korea. The experiences that you get from traveling are not the same as living as a student in a foreign country. So, if you are thinking about whether or not to go abroad as an exchange student, I will say, “Please take a chance without overthinking.”

By Jo Ye-rin, Overseas Correspondent