Moving away from home is tough at the best of times, but leaving Bermuda for the cold and snow of Canada makes the experience even more challenging. Canadian freelance writer Sangita Iyer finds out from two young Bermudian women how they are adapting to Canadian university life.

On a frosty December day when the crisp white snow blankets the earth and the pale sun peeks through the clouds, millions of Canadians dash out to the ski slopes and skating rinks to indulge in winter sports.

But a young Bermudian girl seeks warmth and solace inside one of Toronto?s biggest shopping malls. Jahnika Tucker says they are the best escape from Canadian winters. ?I can never get used to this weather, even after living in Canada for three years,? the 19-year-old said. ?At first it was exciting, I ran out with friends and played in the snow, but I couldn?t handle it after a while.

?I was staying at home and eating and putting on weight, and then I started to feel depressed. I hate winter.?

Canadian winters can be bone chilling with temperatures dropping down to as low as minus 40 degrees Celsius at times. Days are shorter and the nights so long that for Jahnika they seem like an endless spell of darkness.

But her friend Jarita Bassett, who moved from Bermuda last September, is taking it all in stride. She?s experienced her first jolt of Canadian winter, and although she may not be skating, skiing or tobogganing just yet, she doesn?t hate it as much.

?I stay indoors for the most part. And then between leaving the building and getting to the next building, you run really fast. When the wind blows in your face, you turn around so it doesn?t,? Jarita said.

These days though, surviving winters is the least of all concerns for Jahnika. She says one of her biggest challenges has been dealing with racism, something she didn?t think she?d face in a multicultural society like Canada. She lives in the city of London, Ontario, about 200 kilometres west of Toronto.

?In London especially people are racist and they actually show it. Sometimes, I?ll be shopping at a grocery store, and I?ll give them money, and they?d throw the change down or I?ll get on the bus, and I guess because I?m black, people would put their bag on the seat, so I don?t sit next to them.?

But Jahnika says although it?s hard, she?s willing to put up with short-term discomforts for long-term gains.

?The Canadian education is so good that I think it?s worth the struggle. I?m trying to make things better for me and get ahead in life,? says Jahnika. Her goal is to get a diploma in Business Insurance and pursue social work on the sideline.

She plans to move to Toronto next year, where she says she?d feel at home. ?I think people are friendlier. And I find more black people in Toronto, than in London,? she says.

Besides, she?d be closer to her friend Jarita Bassett, who?s pursuing her dreams in Toronto. After taking two months of business studies at Ryerson University in 2003, Jarita realised that it wasn?t for her.

So she went back to Bermuda, worked for about eight months, and saved up some money to study in Canada.

The 21-year old aspires to be a graphic artist someday. She says one of her biggest frustrations is that there isn?t much appreciation for arts in Bermuda. In fact, she says there isn?t even a proper art school in that country, that?s why she came to Toronto.

?Unlike Toronto, you don?t really see much art in Bermuda; its main focus is business. When Bermudians think of art, they think of a $100 million painting. But there?s so much more to arts than just money, it?s about creativity,? she says.

Sometimes they miss their family and friends back home, but they say they?re getting used to the Canadian lifestyle.

?Yeah, I think of home sometimes, but I?m not home sick,? Jarita said.

Says Jahnika: ?I don?t miss Bermuda. I don?t miss the people at all because they are too poky, they just want to get into your business and gossip. I do miss my mom?s food, and the nice soft water, but I talk to my parents every Sunday, so it?s no big deal.?

Her mother Belinda Tucker shares similar sentiments when reached via telephone in Bermuda. ?I?m slowly getting used to it, but I miss my baby. The phone doesn?t ring as often, her friends don?t visit anymore. I don?t have much to do now, I did everything for her when she lived with me.

?Now all I can do is talk to her on the phone and ask her to take care of herself? eat right, do the laundry, work hard.?

In a way, Jahnika says she?s happy to be away from home so doesn?t have to put up with such advice.

?They always tell me what to do. Don?t do this, don?t do that? I?m here and they are in Bermuda, so no matter what they say, I do what I want anyway because I?m independent.?

?Maybe a little too independent, but she has adapted really well and she?s a good kid. There are so many young people in Bermuda getting caught up in all sorts of things like, drugs, and getting pregnant. I?m happy she wanted to get good education,? says her mother.

And that education is attached to a price tag ? $30,000 Canadian a year and Tucker says she has had to make some sacrifices to come up with that kind of money. ?My husband and I used to travel at least four times a year, now we travel only twice. But we are happy as long as she gets a decent education.?

Besides, she says living away from home has helped her daughter become more mature and responsible.

?I?m amazed to see how much she has changed in the last three years,? she said. ?I?ve learned so much after moving to Canada. Before I came here, I had a bad attitude, I wasn?t a friendly person. But I?m working on my communication skills and I like being around people now,? Jahnika says.

Jahnika visits her family twice a year and says she?s grateful for everything her parents have done for her. She hopes to return to Bermuda and get a well paying job after she?s done school.

Meanwhile her friend Jarita Bassett is determined to start her own graphic arts company and promote arts in Bermuda.