University Life Premiere

Hello World, how have you been doing? 

A week has passed after my campus orientation. Honestly, from when I moved out of the house and to my new room near campus, I have no idea what to expect. Did I make the right decision? Is this going to be worth it? What will be Surya's first impression on me? 

Well, so far I'm still taken aback by how happy I am with my new friends and campus. Having spent my last 14 years of life going to school in Al-Izhar with a monocultural environment, I have been to wrapped up in my comfort zone. Even if I was struggling back in Al-Izhar, I was struggling and still surrounded by familiar faces. I have only been friends with people with the same religion as me, back then I only knew a handful of people with diverse religions. 

Now, I am surrounded with a multicultural environment and I am happy. Shy at first, yes, but that's normal. Surya is not the place people thought it would be. The students aren't all chinese so yes, my friend, you were all wrong. Due to the handful of scholarships that Surya's sponsors have given, I had my most pleasure of meeting friends from Papua, Kalimantan, Sulawesi, Bali, Lombok, Palembang, etc with diverse religions. And it's been an experience I could never trade. So yes, I've learnt a lot this past week, with every person I met, I learned to open up more about myself. 

The orientation was helpful in uniting the second batch of Surya University. The seniors were fun and never so oppressing like seniors tend to be. They were joking around along with us, sometimes making themselves look stupid to entertain us. It was tiring, like it's supposed too, but it's an experience completely all too different with what I get back in Al-Izhar. We felt very welcomed in Surya University. We were being scared with all the explanation about how hard the lessons are going to be, but we were also at the same time being taken hand-in-hand by the seniors, and letting us know that they offer help if we ever need them. The seniors tried really hard in uniting us by learning from their own batch. The first batch didn't unite well at first, and because of that some students couldn't get the help they need and they crumbled at the pressure of the lessons and some financial reasons. It will be different with us because of the seniors, and I am very grateful for that. 

My university life started well thanks to the orientation. I became more hopeful to brighten my future, and the future of Indonesia all-together. Thank you Surya University for giving me this opportunity to help my nation along with the brightest students from around Indonesia. Indonesia Jaya!