On a list of quintessentially Canadian experiences, going to a hockey game is sure to be near the top, so what better way for Syrian refugees to get accustomed to their new surroundings than a night at the rink?
That’s exactly where the Kurdi family spent their Friday night, taking in a game in Vancouver between the UBC Thunderbirds and University of Lethbridge.
“They are very happy and excited,” said Tima Kurdi of the family members who joined her in Coquitlam from war-torn Syria at the end of December.
Since their arrival, the family has been adjusting well to their new surroundings, said Rocco Logozzo, Tima Kurdi’s husband. The children have even begun playing pickup hockey in the cul-de-sac outside the family’s home.
“I’m sure they’re going to break a window soon,” Logozzo said with a laugh.
The Kurdi family was thrust into the international spotlight earlier this year, when three-year-old Alan Kurdi’s lifeless body was photographed on a beach in Turkey. The child died, along with his brother and mother, when their boat sank in the Mediterranean while trying to reach Europe.
Though the children don’t speak English fluently yet, they’ve found a cultural touchstone in the game of hockey, Tima Kurdi said.
“When I look at him cheering I ask him, ‘Do you understand?’” she said. “He said, ‘Of course.’”
They’ve already begun asking when they’ll get to go see their next game -- maybe a Canucks game at Rogers Arena, she said.
If the family does go to a Canucks game, they’ll hope it turns out better for the home team than Friday night’s game did. UBC lost 4-1.
