"I DID consider going back to my country when the epidemic (COVID-19) emerged in China. But after all these days, I feel that it was the right decision to stay in Shenzhen," an international student from Shenzhen University (SZU) told the Shenzhen Daily during an interview Wednesday.
Karolina Maria Ruminska, who is from Poland, said that she was unsure about what she should do when the outbreak occurred — remain in Shenzhen or return home?
“So I talked to my teacher Mrs. Wei, vice dean of the College of International Exchange. They convinced me that they will do their best to ensure our safety if we decide to stay on campus,” said Ruminska.
The SZU campus was closed so that no one could enter or leave freely. They also set up a WeChat group for students staying on campus to share daily briefings on the novel coronavirus, according to Ruminska.
“The university also gives us free face masks every two days. There are also staff helping to check our body temperature every single day,” said Ruminska, adding that one of her teachers, Mr. Liu, even moved into their dormitory building to be available to solve problems any time.
In addition, Ruminska said that she is very grateful to the security guards who work in the university. One of them even helped her buy food when the outbreak was at its worst.
“When I told him thank you on WeChat, he responded ‘不用谢’ and wrote the eight Chinese characters ‘山川异域，风月同天,’ which translated in English to ‘Rivers low, mountains high, the same moon in the sky.’”
“It is a nice feeling during this hard time to know there are kind people who are willing to help even though they do not know you and you are a foreigner,” said Ruminska.
For Yasin, a Ph.D. student at SZU who is from Pakistan, staying in Shenzhen was also the right decision.
“Many of my friends went back home amid the epidemic as their families were so worried about them. My family was also aware of the situation. But I told them that everything is normal and that we are safe due to the measures taken by the university and Shenzhen government, who are carefully monitoring the situation,” said Yasin.
Yasin’s original plan was to travel around China during the Spring Festival holiday. However, the outbreak put that trip on hold. Current life for Yasin revolves around his laptop, dormitory and smartphone.
As the situation in China is improving and production has resumed, Yasin’s wish is that everything will be back to normal as soon as possible so that he can continue his quest of seeing more of the city and China.