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Vietnamese exchange student reflects on time in Canfield
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Neighbors | Emily Gianetti.Foreign exchange student Ha Le posed in front of the Canfield Cardinal on the message board at CHS..Le is returning to her home in Vietnam only to return to the states in the fall to attend the New York Institute of Technology.
By EMILY GIANETTI
For 18-year-old Ha Le, the start of a new school year at Canfield High School was also the start of her school career in America and the beginning of an adventure that would be her first year in the United States.
“It’s a great country with great people,” she said. “It’s famous for its education and many of my friends are here. I just wanted to come and see how it went.”
Le hails from Hanoi, the capital city of Vietnam and a place she said is identical to New York City, with plenty of skyscrapers and taxis and, of course, tons of people.
So it was a shock to Le when she arrived in Canfield and got her first taste the suburbs, with their lack of tall buildings and public transportation.
“Everyone drives and there aren’t really people walking on the roads,” she said of her first impression.
Although Canfield may be slightly different than the urban environment Le expected, she grew to love it.
“I like it here because it’s small, people know each other and it’s not as busy.”
She moved in with the Foley family, including daughter, Maeli, a high school freshman. Le and Maeli became as close as sisters.
Le thought highly of America before she arrived, having had American teachers at summer camps, making it easy for her to befriend other students. However, she said, the first day was still difficult.
“It was scary. Everyone was staring at me, like, ‘She’s new and she’s international,’” Le said with a laugh.
As for finding classes, “I was lost. I had the map and I was still lost.”
English was the hardest for her at first, but since it was something she had been studying for 10 years, she improved quickly. To her “the knowledge is the same, so if you can understand the language, then it’s really not a problem.”
Le was an active student in Vietnam and continued that willingness to participate while in Canfield. Drama Club, where she worked as a costume fitter, was her favorite and where she made the most friends.
She also got to visit New York City with the Rotary Club, where she sneaked into a store during Abercrombie’s Press Day, cutting a whole line of VIPs, and meeting the newest Abercrombie model.
“He’s now on every bag that Abercrombie gives out.”
She saw Times Square at night, with all its lights and sound, an experience she summed up in two words: “Love it!”
Le attended Prom with a friend.
“Prom is so American,” she said excitedly. “The music, the dance, the food.”
Prom marked the last big event for Le at Canfield High School. The thought of leaving made her “half happy and half sad.” She was happy to go home to her beloved country and see her parents and friends. But Le was sad to leave the place where she made so many new friends and got her first taste of America.
Le will return to America in the fall to begin her first semester at the New York Institute of Technology, but will not be returning to Canfield.
Afterward, she said, even she doesn’t know where life may take her.
Her love for Vietnam may bring her back, but in the meantime, there are other things to do.
“I haven’t gotten to go to California yet,” she said with a smile.