A Yu, an international student from Uganda at ZJOU. [Photo/zhoushan.cn]

Editor's note: Zhejiang Ocean University (ZJOU) in Zhoushan is attended by nearly 300 international students each year. These international students have witnessed the development of Zhoushan and play an important role in promoting Zhoushan culture to the rest of the world.

A Yu, the Chinese name of an international student from Uganda at ZJOU, said that after the COVID-19 outbreak earlier this year, she felt she was well cared for by ZJOU.

During the winter holiday this year, she visited friends in Wuhan, the city in China most severely hit by the epidemic, which went on lockdown on the second day of her stay there.

"Over the first few days, I was too afraid to tell my teachers about the situation," said A Yu, "However, my teachers reached out to me and were worried about me after learning that I was in Wuhan and told me to be careful."

She said that her teachers talked to her almost every day asking about her mental and physical health.

A Yu was also looked after by teachers and students at Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST), where her friends study.

She said HUST's teachers and students sent meals to her and her friends every day.

Recalling her days in Wuhan a few months ago, she said she wouldn't have been able to get through it without emotional support from her teachers and other students.