UAE students stranded in Sri Lanka yearn to go back ‘home’

Niloufar Saleem, Staff Reporter

Coronavirus has brought about too many restrictions in everyone’s life, and while most of us are battling the virus and trying to adapt to what is now known as the ‘new normal,’ a few others cannot wait to fly back to their beloved country, UAE.

Students studying in UAE universities have not been able to attend face-to-face classes and have passed from one grade to another, graduating on screens and virtually hugging their friends.

The young and vibrant lot cannot stress enough about how the virus has not only brought so much damage externally but conveniently taken away the prime of their lives, making them lockdown graduates and bringing about a mental rundown for them to deal with.

In an exclusive interview with Gulf Today a few students from UAE universities, stranded in their home country, shed light on how they are coping with the current scenario, expressing their remorse for not being able to experience the hustle and bustle of a regular classroom.

The beautiful young Nadha Naseer Ahmed, who is a BSBA-Economics senior year student in the American University of Sharjah, is stuck back home in Sri Lanka, eagerly waiting to be back.

“Always under stress without the stress relief of hanging out with friends has been such a huge challenge. I feel like the pandemic has stolen what was supposed to be ‘the best years of my life.’ In addition to panicking about the pandemic and being in repeated lockdowns here, coming back would be a breath of fresh air that I’m majorly looking forward to. I miss the simple things like walking to class and using the walk to clear my head, getting karak on karak street, visiting you guys in the weekends and I even miss the pin drop silence of dorms in the weekend after everyone has left to their homes.”

 Cute Nadha posing as she waits for things to return back to normal.

We cannot agree more with Nadha and secretly hope her heartfelt wishes do come true, and soon.

On the other hand a vibrant young lad, Naadhir Naseer Ahamed, doing his BS-civil engineering, sophomore year in AUS, has let his tasteful humour make the best of the chaotic scenario.

“Happy to come back when Sri Lanka defeated Covid but it rose again like a 3-headed dragon, and spat on my plans,” says Nadhir, leaving us with a smile on his take on the situation, which is funny but absolutely ironic.

Another student, Arshed Azver, doing his BS-Mechanical engineering Junior year in AUS, spoke on how although he wasn’t the very  social kind even before the lockdown and the regulations kicked in, he definitely misses the regular college life but chooses to look at life with the lens of gratitude.

“Me being the antisocial guy I didn’t mind coming back home to Sri Lanka initially. But coming here made me realise I’m better off there as I’d have been alone and could’ve focused on my studies and myself more.

‘There’re just too many distractions here. I’m still grateful for being with my parents in these tough times.”

Arshed spoke a few but powerful words of wisdom when he subtly suggested that we should be grateful for the scenario, come what may, and we absolutely understand the fact that this is easier said than done.

Kudos to such young people for having given us an insight on how to patiently and mindfully handle a situation that we have no control over that too with absolute simplicity.

It is with simple things that the most powerful messages are conveyed, and what better example than this.

On the other hand, we cannot wait for our next exclusive on students, which will hopefully be on how they are returning back to normalcy and embracing life to the fullest, as it should be.