Prince George, B.C. –   A little rain hasn’t deterred hundreds of international post-secondary students from gathering outside city hall for the seventh Annual Welcoming Party this afternoon.

It includes students from both the College of New Caledonia (CNC) and the University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC) and features free food, music, and traditional games.

From left, Japanese exchange students Asuka Molimoto and Amiri Suzuki – photo 250News

“I look forward to this event and every year it gets bigger and better. The thing that I like about it is it really shows Prince George sort of evolving into a multicultural community and there’s no question that we are,” said Prince George Mayor Lyn Hall.

“You take a look at the diverse demographics that are here today and these students come from all over the world.”

That diversity was partly represented by Asuka Molimoto and Amiri Suzuki, both UNBC exchange students from Japan.

“It’s a nice city, the people are so kind,” said Molimoto, who added the draw of a small university with smaller class sizes is what brought her here. “I don’t like the big city.”

Today’s event has been organized by a joint committee including the City of Prince George, UNBC, CNC, the Immigrant and Multicultural Services Society (IMSS), the Multicultural Heritage Society, School District 57 and Tourism Prince George.