Peng Chen is from Nantong in Jiangsu province. The 21-year-old came to Ireland last year to study engineering at Trinity College.
“I passed an entrance examination to study at university in China, but I didn’t succeed very well,” he says. After one year of a pharmacy degree in his homeland, he took the decision to study abroad to find a more suitable study environment, and he finally chose Dublin.
“My parents really supported me. It was my wish to study abroad but at the same time it was also my parents’ decision to send me abroad,” he explains.
The most difficult thing for Chen when he arrived a year ago was getting used to a completely different culture.
“For example, the way that people talk here is not the same as in China,” he says. “Irish communication is different, and not just because of the English. I mean, at the beginning I could almost understand every single word in a sentence. But the communication was still difficult because we have different opinions about things.”
However, Chen thinks it is good to meet new people from other cultures, as he likes to share different points of view.
During his first year at Trinity he lived in Trinity Hall, a residence for the college’s students in Dartry, south Dublin. “There I met Irish and Americans guys; it was good to meet people with different backgrounds.”
Ireland is a very beautiful country in Chen’s opinion. “There is a quiet peace to life, and it is lovely and cosy,” says the young Chinese man, who has visited Wicklow and Belfast. “I also went to the north part of Ireland to surf. I just wanted to try something new, an I liked it,” he says with a smile.
The food in Ireland is another big change for Chen, and the weather has taken some getting used to. “In China it is very hot in summer and very cold in winter,” he says. “In Ireland it’s not like that. And it rains a lot.”
Despite this, he enjoys taking part in sports here, including basketball. “I joined the basketball society of Trinity College to practise it,” says Chen, who also enjoys watching movies in his spare time.
Currently he is in his second year of his engineering degree. “I’m going to stay in Ireland at least one more year to get my degree,” the student says. “For the moment. I don’t really know what I’m going to do then.
“Maybe I would like to stay to be a postgraduate in Ireland as well, but I haven’t made my decision yet.”
