By: Jing Zhao
Image courtesy of Meghan Burry
The English Society held an Ice Cream Social on September 22, 2015 in the Faculty Lounge, in Main Building at 4:00pm. All the international English students were invited to come early at 3:30pm to meet their professors and the other English students. All the professors and the students were warmhearted and willing to communicate with the international students and help them get familiar with the Canadian academic environment.
At 4:00pm, the Ice Cream Social began. There were various delicious ice cream flavours, such as chocolate, vanilla, assorted berries and so on. At the beginning, the executives of English Society Jane Vankampen and Chris Thompson welcomed all the students and introduced their plans for the coming year for the English Society. They then invited all the English students to attend their Friday meeting in the English Lounge, in Main Building. At this point in the meeting, various professors from the English Department arrived and started friendly chatting with the students. They introduced their specialties and the courses they teach this year to the students, which was very helpful to the students, particularly new ones, to choose interesting and required courses.
After the introductions, the students quickly moved into socializing as they began to  walk around and chat with others. The atmosphore was harmonious and pleasant. This social is the time to gather all English students together, which is an unforgetable experience. One international student said that through this time he makes many Canadian friends. He is so happy to attand such social. Surely, it is the time for the students to know both acdemic knowledge and causal information through friends.
Apart from the indoor activities, the English Society also prepared many outdoor games and activities, such as Bocce Ball, Crochet, Slack Lines, as well as henna tattooing. For Bocce Ball, both professors and students made a teams to play together. Luckily it was a wonderfully sunny day. Many students also tried Slack Lines, a game which focuses on balance. It is hard to walk through. Students trying this are laughing and excited. The henna tattoos attracted lots of people; even other students drop by to get one on their arms. The outside plays are interesting and relaxing in the nature.
The Ice Cream Social was short, but left a colorful memory. The English Society welcomes anyone to join, with their next meeting on Friday, 2:30 October 2nd, in the English Lounge, Main Building.