LAVINIA BRYDON, LISBURN ROAD, BELFASTI share a flat in a big house on Marlborough Park South with two friends. It's unusual for our street - most of the houses are big family homes, so we're a bit different. I'm aware that I don't fit the demographic of the area, but I don't feel like an outsider.
There's a really nice community spirit here, especially on a Saturday because of the nearby park. So many families go there; it's a really nice atmosphere.
We're off the Lisburn Road, a really cool road. At the lower end, near us, the Lisburn Road has a small family vibe, while at the top end it has more of a student vibe. It's the sort of neighbourhood where people usually take the time to smile and make a "lovely day" comment, even though in general everyone's busy with families and work.
We have a spacious flat, which lends itself to parties, and as flatmates we have an interesting range of friends to invite over. It's a detached house, so it's not too noisy, but the noise police did come out once. It wasn't even for a party. It was a karaoke session, which maybe says a lot. I'm from north Wales, which is very rural and community-based, and then went to university in Dublin, which also felt community-oriented because I had so many friends, and then I came to Belfast for a master's and then work. Here you can walk down the road and know you're going to meet a friend.
I don't think I'll be here forever, but that's what I'd miss if I left. I was surprised when I arrived at how friendly the city is. It's on a very human scale. I'm more knowledgable about divisions in the city now, but I'm not aware of it on a day-to-day basis. It doesn't have any bearing on me.
Back home, people wonder how I got from north Wales to Belfast, and if I'm aware of the tensions. I work with the Mandarin Speakers Association, so I see a different side of the city. I'm an arts projects co-ordinator, so we try to build bridges between the communities, and art is an accessible way of doing that.
Like the South, Northern Ireland isn't used to ethnic minorities, but it has its own issues to deal with. People think of the divisions still, but you can't be that limited when you describe a city: there are so many elements that go into it. There's more to a place than the headlines.
In conversation with Davin O'Dwyer