Life in Foreign Campus

Nostalgic in New York
'Bhenge more ghorer chabi, niye jabi ke amare…

Abdullah Al Mamun Chowdhury

Nah, no one is coming to take me away. I was listening to Rabindra sangeet at BSA (Bangladeshi Students Association) club room, the common meeting place for the Bangalee students in the campus (of City College of New York). No one is here today except me and myself.

I'm not supposed to be in here either as it is summer vacation now. I work in a pc-lab which is open throughout the year. So, more or less I come to the campus almost every day. I'm about to do my lunch so thought of coming to club instead of going to cafeteria, as it is much cool and silent than café. Besides, here I can listen to my favorite Rabindra sangeets.

The room is big enough for us to place a couch, a computer table, microwave, fridge, bookshelf, and a carom board (yeah we play carom during club-hours!). At the corner there still lies the banner of the last cultural show that we had on April.

There are some Borsho Boron pictures hanging on the wall. Girls in sharis, boys in punjabis and fotowas. Aah! We had so much fun in those days. Actually the distance between Bangladesh and USA couldn't stand in front of us to bring all the traditions, customs, and cultural values over here. We are proud to represent our Bangalee culture and tradition in the campus.

As recognition of its service and dedication during the last few years, BSA has won the certificate of excellence, certificate of Best Cultural Show of the year and the Best Cultural Club of the year. Really it's a great honor for us to be recognized by a faculty that produced nine noble prize winners throughout its long journey.

According to a study CCNY stands as one of the 10 best Universities of USA based on the number of graduates acquiring the top rank of renowned companies and government positions as well as personal achievements. So no wonder that students from all over the world gather here to extend the limit of their knowledge.

To tell the truth, sometimes its seems to me CCNY contains more international students than locals. Our bio-medical, architecture and engineering programs are world famous. Most of the Bangalee students go for Engineering (civil/mechanical /electrical/environ mental/computer/chemical) major. Few in some other divisions, but engineering & bio-med. surely lie above all other.

The campus is big, though not big enough to use shuttle bus to go from one building to another. Still it is huge. It is like 2nd home for many of us. That's why some of us don't mind staying here (campus) overnight before the finals. Though CCNY don't have its own dormitories (most of the public universities of NY don't have dorm), but the university remains open 24 hrs. So, we don't face problems staying overnight.

The surrounding beauties are amazing too. To watch the sunset from the topmost floor or to watch the beauty of the world at 5am is something beyond anyone's imagination. Sometime I stare at the moon when I'm tired of studying and I wonder: how could anything be so exquisite, so delightful, so glorious (subhanallah)! Is it really the beauty of the moon that attracts me or the sign of the new day that's beginning?
I don't have the answer for it.
(From New York)

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