My first winter in Canada

I moved to Toronto in October to study for a master's degree. Everyone warned me about the winter, but I just laughed. I grew up in Hanoi, where the coldest days are around eight degrees, and I thought I knew what 'cold' meant. I was completely wrong.

The first real snow arrived in December. I woke up, opened the curtains and thought it was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. Then I went outside in my thin jacket and trainers. Within five minutes I could not feel my fingers, and by the time I reached the bus stop my shoes were wet through. A kind woman looked at me and said, 'First winter?' I nodded.

That afternoon I spent a hundred and fifty dollars on proper winter clothes: a long coat, waterproof boots, gloves and a hat that covers my ears. It was expensive, but it changed my life. Locals also taught me to wear several thin layers instead of one thick sweater, because you can take them off when you enter a warm building. Buildings, buses and trains are all heated, so the temperature changes quickly.

The biggest surprise was how people behave in winter. I expected everyone to stay inside, but the parks were full of people skating, skiing and walking their dogs. My classmate Sarah told me, 'If we waited for warm weather, we would never go out.' I joined a free skating evening and fell over about twenty times. Nobody laughed at me; they just helped me up.

Now it is February, and I have almost got used to the cold. I still miss the food from home, and I still check the weather in Hanoi every morning. But I no longer fear the snow. If you are planning to study abroad somewhere cold, my advice is simple: buy the boots first, and don't be too proud to ask for help.