There are so many occasions in our life to celebrate from birthday to anniversary, new job, new relationship, new home, new life, etc. Those moments are perfect ways to keep memories and share with friends and family my thankfulness for what happened.
One of the best celebrations I have been to is my College Graduation in 2018.
I finished my Culinary course from NSIA (North Shore International Academy) in April 2018 but the graduation ceremony was held a few months later, in November that year.
Let me tell you why I was excited about it.
I love cooking but never thought of becoming a professional chef. After many incidents, I decided to choose Culinary Art to study in New Zealand. I started working in restaurants when I was at school to gain experience and enrich my gastronomy knowledge.
After 2 years at NSIA school, I got certificates and became a certified chef - a new milestone in my life. Until now I am happy with my choice and believe that I am on the right path.
In my practical class
By the time I finished school I also paid off all my debt. It cost me almost $33.000 nzd for a 2-year course. That was a huge amount of money to me and for many other young people. I didn’t think I could do it but thankfully my family and friends encouraged me a lot by lending money and supporting me in difficult times.
Most of my weekends were for work at that time to earn my living and cover my tuition fee and pay my debt. And now looking back I am grateful for all the hard work I have done.
Hair cut at midnight
The night before the big day, I came home at midnight after work (well it's chef’s life 🙃) and my flatmate helped me fix my hair since there was no time to go to the hairdresser.
My family was in Vietnam so only my friends and flatmates escorted me to the ceremony. It was held in a historic Auckland building - The Mercury theatre which is 111 years old now. I know it is quite old compared to a young country like New Zealand.
The theatre was originally built in 1910 as New Zealand’s first purpose-built picture and performing arts theatre. At that time it was named The King’s Theatre, the grand opening was on 28th November 1910.
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Everyone gathered at the theater early though the official ceremony started at 11 am. My classmates traveled from different cities to Auckland with their families and friends. There we met again and asked about their lives after leaving school, some got good jobs, some were still struggling with their choice of career, some got married and got pregnant.
All graduates wore gowns and sat in different sections for different majors. For many of us, it was the first time they had a chance to wear a gown so I saw the excitement in their eyes and their smiles. For me, it was the second time since I graduated from university in Vietnam in 2012 but I still felt so much proud.
The ceremony began with a speech by one of our tutors then everyone stood up to sing New Zealand anthems.
An interesting fact is New Zealand has two national anthems, one is God Defend New Zealand (in the Maori language: E Ihowa Atua); and another one is God Save The Queen. The Maori anthem was presented first then the English version.
Photo credit
To be honest, it was the first time I sang anthems that were not Vietnamese. It was pretty interesting to us as international students.
The Head of each Faculty went on stage to congratulate and handed a paper roll which was supposed to be a Record of Learning (but it was just an empty paper as the real one was taken by students before) to students’ hands. It looked exactly like in movies I had watched and inspired me a lot to achieve my educational goals.
After each faculty, there was a short break with a music performance by student or guess. When the ceremony was finished, all of us enjoyed light-canape lunch at the theater. All food and drink were prepared by NSIA tutors and students.
Photo credit
In the afternoon, I and a few of my fellows headed to my workplace, Oyster and Chop located in Viaduct Habour. It is a famous restaurant for seafood and the best steak in town. The manager was so generous as to gift me a bottle of champagne to toast our graduation.
In front of my workplace- Oyster & Chop restaurant
Drink a toast
Among many celebrations in my life, graduation is one of the most memorable ones. It marks down a new phase in my life, a new journey, a new career with high hope of the best experience and challenges.
**”All of our dream can come true if we have the courage to pursue them” **- Walt Disney.
Thanks for reading my post till the end! Have great weekend everyone 😃
Photos taken by my friends
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