I
AM INTERNATIONAL!!
Born
in Kenya; Indian by ethnicity; British by curriculum; and International by
choice. Hi, I am Hemanshi Galaiya and I am an International Engineering
Ambassador.
19
years ago I embarked on a journey called life. I was born in an Indian family
in the exotic country of Kenya; the land of the Masaai’s and yet the home to
over 100 different ethnic groups. It is one of the fastest growing nations in
the world and yet is world renowned for its wildlife. The land famous for its
world class athletes and yet the nation that gave Simba, Rafiki, Timon and
Pumba to the world. The land where the people are bound to their soils and yet
the place where we have an anti-gravity point.
The country that boosts the world with their daily tea and coffee needs
and yet the country where the best meal is home cooked ugali and sukumawiki. Kenya
as our national airlines claims is truly ‘the pride of Africa’.
While
living in Kenya I was still raised to acknowledge, appreciate and stay true to
my roots back in India. Being a hard core Gujarati, I am a total foodie and as
the entire India claims, we have both the sweetest language and the sweetest
food. My education history on the other hand was always associated with the
British Curriculum and at the end of my A-levels, I chose to embark on a
different journey; I opted to do Chemical Engineering at the University of
Sheffield – a city 10812 km away from my homeland.
One
of the first questions people ask me is why I chose this particular career. I
read somewhere that a Chemical Engineer is an individual who knows enough
Chemistry to confuse a Mechanic; enough mechanics to confuse a Chemist and
enough Mathematics to confuse himself.
Now,
I don’t mean to prude about my fantasy for complexity – in as much as it is
true. The course to me is a straight forward approach to unlocking a lifetime
full of opportunities to acquire knowledge of various kinds. It may sound
challenging – which it by the way is – but at the same time it is an experience
filled with zeal and zest. I believe that chemical engineers are a bridge
between the dreams and the realities. When someone comes up with a micro scale
idea it becomes our job to turn it into a macro scale reality; and who doesn’t
like to play fairy God mother?
The
next big question is why I chose Sheffield and in particular the university of
Sheffield. I can sum up my decision in 3 words – quality, diversity and
adventure. UOS is a hub for quality education - what more could you I ask for
when my degree would be IChemi certified and world reckoned for being top
notch. To add to that, Sheffield proudly boasts to be the host to students from
all over the world. Each day I get the chance to interact with a person from a
different part of the world and each time I learn something new about cultures,
cities and beliefs across the globe. This has proven to be one of the best
features of my university life as it is building me into both a better
intellectual and global citizen. Lastly, there is no way one can miss out on
all the adventure that UOS has to offer.
There
is something for everyone; from nature trails and hiking in the peak district ...
... to
parties and endless activities in and around the university - Sheffield has it
all.
All
in all, I would like to say that I am still somewhere in the middle of ‘the
journey called life’ and University of Sheffield is proving to be the most enthralling
chapter so far.
Images taken from www.chemicalprocess.com
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