Day two on the RMS Empress of China. I’m cramped into a small room with many people. The smell is horrendous, it is as if we are cattle. Regardless, for 122 yuan I am on my way to Canada. I find it funny that I leave my home in China to leave the flooding, but now I am in the middle of water! I am coming to Canada to live with my Husband. It has been 20 years since I’ve last seen him. I miss him greatly. I would have come to see him sooner, but the head tax set out by the Canadian government is just too much money! I simply do not have 250 yuan laying around, not to mention an additional 122 for the boat. I’ve chosen to come now because I have found a way around the head tax. I, Lin Cheng, am coming to Canada as a ‘student.’ It’s brilliant!
