Lab Fun !

"You are still in the lab !!"

"what are you doing there ?"

yes the same questions being asked each and everytime I spend a long day in the lab, I feel sorry for those who never sees the lab as any further than a studying room !

so what do I like about the lab life ?

well lets start by this, I Started going to labs in my home university and I found myself comfortable to the whole idea of gathering in one room and building up memories as well as gaining a lot of experience from others

I tried to write down why do I like being a member in a lab not to encourage workaholic-ism but to spread awareness about our need to change our minds and start collaborating in order to grow !

so I'll leave you with my list:
 

1- The encouraging all-working atmosphere

Seriously and honestly, how much can you achieve at your house lying on your bed ? probably a high new score of sleeping hours ! when you see people are devoted to their work you start acting the same !

 

2- You get to have a warm family

Spending so much time together will bond any hating people together and you will start missing those people while you're away and have the best time when your together. we simply build families, sister & brothers :)

Miss you all !

 

3- shared meals 

No more eating alone, always with those warm people around trying different food ( if you have options to go out of campus) and enjoy a nice talk and funny situations exchanging around the table !

Maybe not this fancy but from time to time :p

 

4- free time activities

YES ! one of the best parts. at your free time you can simply socialize with other lab partners, play some video games, watch movies or listen to music together ! 

Rock festival attended with the lab members yesterday :D

 

5- Cultural Experience

I found this the most interesting, understanding mentalities from different countries (if you have non local lab partners). how they act and how they talk and dress, you get to develop a better understanding being to those outsiders. hey hey locals only doesn't mean you don't get this benefit, everyone is unique and there's alot more to learn from the person next to you!

Seriously ! learn english please it would be easier for both parties ! :P

 

NOW now, I'm not done yet ! to be fair overdoing some stuff always have a bad side that we shouldn't forget to mention !

Some people spend time in the lab more than they do in their own houses which can make them socially isolated ! Also, some health issues might arise in a result of the long sits and unhealthy snacks. okay you figure out the other stuff I don't wanna ruin the mood lol 

Today in Hanyang university; I'm part of the Software Engineering lab. The first day was a bit awkward as we have people who don't share the same language ! ( korean, chinese, urdu & arabic -me-) and english is the universal & easiest language but most of us don't speak it !  so did that stop those things I love in lab life from happening ? NO we are enjoying it ! each and every min whether its an afternoon cup of coffee or funny hand signs or simple broken English questions about each others whereabouts :)

At the end of this, if you get the chance to be part of a lab just be part of it without any hesitation ! there's always a good part out of it and a huge experience you don't wanna miss.

SMILE !

Peace,
Amna

Make it home !

Hello all !

first thing first, this post is my flag that indicates a start of my new life in Korea and an honor to the efforts I paid so far to settle down as an exchange student 

three days ago I arrived to the Hanyang University dormitory all exhausted and had one hour to spend till my orientation 

the dorm was a bit of a shock as I was used to different environment n standards and well.. I never were a dorm student since my university is in my hometown 

and the rain was really heavy from the airport to the end of the day I felt like I wanted to take a taxi back n book a ticket back to UAE even if it meant to spend a night in the airport 

being the only Arab is this university's history made it a lot worse

 (while the korean supervisors were rlly happy to have me - how sweet - ) cuz everyone else came with a friend or a group he/she belongs to and so I couldn't left myself up

I kept praying that things would get right for me and made a huge mistake by calling my mother at that miserable state !

if there's a lesson I learned from this harsh start is to always be patient, stop crying and see where it goes !

and few more minutes is what I needed in order to meet some awesome guys from Singapore & Japan who helped me feel so much better on my first day :)

Around campus looking for dinner and translating menus in streets !

and just when I thought life can't get any better, second day I met the Pakistani society in the university !

they were so nice to cook me dinner and tell me not to worry about halal food as it is available everywhere

Pakistani dinner: Chicken curry and roti  :D

I was surrounded by good people but there was another issue, once I'm separated from them I feel lonely and sad again in my room I thought it was time that I needed but ..

 

 One of my closest people said .."Make it home!" and that's what I had to do I gave up on crying, unpacked my bag, cleaned the room and asked for internet connection, organized the books I brought along and suddenly it felt like my own private heaven = ) 

Yes my lil place feels like home now :)

so right now I'm really blessed and I keep praying and thanking allah for all the little things I never appreciated back home ..

I'm thankful to have a good health, good feet to carry me everywhere, good budget, good people, good technologies and of course good friends and family who didn't forget about me = )

its already 2am and I think I should go to sleep now, tomorrow I'm hitting ansan city market and I need my energy to walk ! ^^

Peace,

Amna