Vietnamese students shaken
Two Vietnamese international secondary school students based in New Plymouth have mixed reactions to the increasing rate of coronavirus affecting New Zealand.
Cousins Danny and David Nguyen left their respective parents’ homes in Ho Chi Minh City and returned to Francis Douglas Memorial College (FDMC) at the start of the term in January.
Danny, 17, a Year 13 student, has been enrolled at FDMC for two years, while David, 14, a Year 10 student, has been at the school three years.
They both live with home stay parents Paula Baker and Brendon Slingsby in New Plymouth.
In an emailed reply to Daily News questions, David said he was not feeling anxious, and was okay with being separated from his family.
Danny said he felt in danger because of the increasing number of positive tests for the virus in New Zealand that he was learning about from daily news updates and talking to his parents.
Both said they would feel safer in Vietnam because of the lower number of cases there.
‘‘We realise New Zealand has more virus cases than in
Vietnam,’’ they wrote. ‘‘However, we hope this will improve.’’
The students said they were both in daily contact with their parents in Vietnam who were safe and have been in lockdown for the past three months.
The students said they had not seen their parents since they were back home at Christmas.
They will return to Vietnam at the end of the school year in November.
Their daily routine in New Plymouth is full with school work and doing chores around the house, such as stacking firewood and gardening.
They both run and walk for exercise and get plenty of sleep and eat healthy food.
FDMC and Sacred Heart College international student director Margie Smith there were 18 international students from Asia enrolled from Year 7 to Year 13 at the two Catholic secondary schools this year.
‘‘These were all long-term students and we wrote to the parents and agencies to ensure if any students wanted to be repatriated,’’ Smith said.
‘‘It was decided it was best for the students to stay in New Plymouth and the students were happy to stay on.’’
Ten short-term stay international students were flown back to their homes at the end of the first term, she said.