S4E3: Seattle Colleges Conversations with! International Student Taokase Vaingina of Tonga

In this our 3rd (third) episode of Season 4, Seattle Colleges host Evan Franulovich interviews international student Taokase Vaingina about her experience here at Seattle Colleges and about life in the United States. 

1:19 - Meet Lute!

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Transcript

Evan Franulovich  0:05  
Welcome to Seattle Colleges International Programs and our show Conversations with! where we talk to people that help you understand how you too, can be an international student in the United States and why Seattle Colleges should be your first choice. We'll talk to students and staff and agents and government folks, all kinds of people about what you can expect when you're getting ready to apply or travel here, what you'll experience while you're with us, and how it can all lead to an amazing life. Don't forget to check out the Seattle Colleges International Programs website at intl.seattlecolleges.edu where you can find a treasure trove of information about the school, the programs here and best of all, fill out and submit your application. Again, that's intl.seattlecolleges.edu.

Evan Franulovich  1:04  
Hey everybody! Welcome back to Seattle Colleges Conversations with! We are here at Seattle Central College in the beautiful city. It's a beautiful day, right? 

Taokase Vaingina  1:16  
Right. 

Evan Franulovich  1:16  
It's a gorgeous day outside. Took a while, though. 

Taokase Vaingina  1:19  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  1:19  
It didn't start off beautiful. It's cloudy, start cloudy, and then not really bad. It rained on me this morning. 

Taokase Vaingina  1:31  
Oh, okay. 

Evan Franulovich  1:32  
I come from the North. Where do you live?

Taokase Vaingina  1:35  
Burien.

Evan Franulovich  1:36  
Oh, south. Yeah, it's a ways away, if you guys don't know the area. Well, welcome to the show. Our first guest from anywhere in Oceania. So I'm super excited. You want to tell people who you are, where you're from exactly, what your major is, and maybe how long you've been in the US?

Taokase Vaingina  1:58  
Okay, so my name is Taokase Vaingina. I came from Tonga, which is Polynesian. And Tongan is created off like 168 or 167 islands, and I came from one of the island called Eua. So shout out to Eua. 

Evan Franulovich  2:20  
Cool. How many people live on that island?

Taokase Vaingina  2:25  
Probably more than 1000. I'm not really sure. 

Evan Franulovich  2:29  
Okay. I think in your file, in the database, it shows that you're from the capital, but that's not true. 

Taokase Vaingina  2:38  
Is it Nuku'alofa? 

Evan Franulovich  2:39  
Yeah, that's our main land. That's the capital of Tonga. But you're from a different area. 

Taokase Vaingina  2:46  
Yeah, I came from the island. 

Evan Franulovich  2:48  
They're all islands. 

Taokase Vaingina  2:50  
Yeah, but the mainland is Nuku'alofa. 

Evan Franulovich  2:54  
So how would you get to Nuku'alofa? Would you fly? 

Taokase Vaingina  2:59  
Fly, and I use the ferry. 

Evan Franulovich  3:03  
Oh, okay. 

Taokase Vaingina  3:04  
If you stand on the beach, can you see the other island? 

Evan Franulovich  3:11  
Oh, you're close. 

Taokase Vaingina  3:12  
Yeah. But it takes two to three hours. 

Evan Franulovich  3:17  
Oh, it's quite a ways. 

Taokase Vaingina  3:18  
Yeah, by the ferry. 

Evan Franulovich  3:20  
Wow. 

Taokase Vaingina  3:21  
But if you can fly, it only takes 10 minutes. 

Evan Franulovich  3:27  
Oh, super fast. Well, I'm excited to learn more about Tonga and about you, but first, let's do a quick getting to know you game. All you have to do is tell me if you would prefer this or you'd prefer that. 

Taokase Vaingina  3:40  
Sure. 

Evan Franulovich  3:40  
Coffee or tea? 

Taokase Vaingina  3:44  
Tea. 

Evan Franulovich  3:45  
Oh, nice. Mountains or beach? 

Taokase Vaingina  3:47  
Beach. 

Evan Franulovich  3:48  
Of course, although maybe do you guys have mountains? 

Taokase Vaingina  3:52  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  3:52  
Okay. It's volcanic, right? 

Taokase Vaingina  3:54  
Yeah, volcanic. But we are made up of coral. 

Evan Franulovich  3:58  
Oh, yeah. Are you seeing the water rising? Is that a problem in Tonga? I know some nations are worried about global warming. Is that something you guys are noticing that the beaches are getting...?

Taokase Vaingina  4:16  
Not much that I know.

Evan Franulovich  4:17  
Not much yet. Cool. I'm glad. Okay, early bird, or night owl?

Taokase Vaingina  4:24  
Early bird.

Evan Franulovich  4:24  
What time do you usually get up? 

Taokase Vaingina  4:28  
5AM. 

Evan Franulovich  4:28  
Oh, early. Just to study? Do you go running, or what do you do at 5AM? 

Taokase Vaingina  4:37  
5AM is pretty first thing. And then start up the day. 

Evan Franulovich  4:41  
All right, sounds good. Books or movies? 

Taokase Vaingina  4:45  
Movies.

Evan Franulovich  4:49  
Texting or phone?

Taokase Vaingina  4:52  
Phone, to be honest. 

Evan Franulovich  4:55  
Yeah, I think that's great. A lot of people have said phone, so I'm pretty impressed. Cats or dogs?

Taokase Vaingina  5:00  
Dog. 

Evan Franulovich  5:00  
Yeah, do you have one at home? 

Taokase Vaingina  5:03  
Yeah, back home. 

Evan Franulovich  5:04  
Cool. City or country?

Taokase Vaingina  5:09  
Country. 

Evan Franulovich  5:10  
Adventure or chill at home?

Taokase Vaingina  5:13  
Adventure. 

Evan Franulovich  5:13  
Oh, nice. Summer or winter? 

Taokase Vaingina  5:16  
Winter. 

Evan Franulovich  5:17  
Yeah? Cooking at home or eating out? 

Taokase Vaingina  5:21  
Cooking at home. 

Evan Franulovich  5:22  
Are you a pretty good cook? 

Taokase Vaingina  5:24  
Not much. I like at home, I prefer that. 

Evan Franulovich  5:29  
Sure. Well, cool. I can learn a lot about people just by asking these questions. It's pretty interesting. How long ago you got here you said, 5-6 month? 

Taokase Vaingina  5:46  
I started during spring quarte. 

Evan Franulovich  5:50  
Getting close to six months now. But you were in the US before that, right? 

Taokase Vaingina  5:56  
Yeah.

Evan Franulovich  5:56  
When did you get to the US the first time? 

Taokase Vaingina  5:59  
I came around the winter time, 2022. 

Evan Franulovich  6:04  
Okay. So it's been a few years. Where were you before you got to Seattle Colleges? 

Taokase Vaingina  6:10  
I went to North Central Missouri College.

Evan Franulovich  6:18  
Oh, cool. Is that a community college?

Taokase Vaingina  6:20  
Yeah, it is a community college.

Evan Franulovich  6:23  
What did you study there? 

Taokase Vaingina  6:26  
Yeah, I'm pretty much taking their pre reqs for the nursing program.

Evan Franulovich  6:34  
But you didn't finish the pre reqs there, you decided to come here. 

Taokase Vaingina  6:37  
Right. 

Evan Franulovich  6:38  
And how much more do you have left to do for the pre reqs?

Taokase Vaingina  6:43  
So in the fall, I will take three courses, and I left with only one pre reqs. And then for that one, I will end up doing the NAC, it's one of the pre reqs for the ADN. 

Evan Franulovich  7:01  
Right, right. And then do you plan to work a little bit? I just talked to a student who was doing nursing pre reqs, and then they ended up doing OPT for a year, like doing CNA work. Do you plan to do that as well, or are you trying to get right into the program?

Taokase Vaingina  7:19  
I'm not pretty much sure about that, but I love that, because I don't know what I'm gonna do, but that's the plan. 

Evan Franulovich  7:29  
Okay. 

Taokase Vaingina  7:29  
Which pretty much helped.

Evan Franulovich  7:34  
Is there a big call? Is there a big demand for nurses in your country? Do you have a number of hospitals where you could work?

Taokase Vaingina  7:44  
Yeah, each island have their own hospital. 

Evan Franulovich  7:49  
Right. 

Taokase Vaingina  7:49  
But the mainland, which is Tongatapu, where the capital is, there's a big hospital there. Everyone wants to work there. 

Evan Franulovich  8:01  
Sure, yeah. I used to live in Alaska. And Alaska is not unlike living on an island, because you're so far away. And I lived in Bush Alaska, so there were no roads in or out. It was like living on an island. So sometimes there are towns that don't have any clinics or, you know, they'll have to send them on a plane to get to us. It was a pretty interesting experience. I loved it. 

Taokase Vaingina  8:26  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  8:28  
Okay, so let's go back to when you were in Tonga. You were in high school?

Taokase Vaingina  8:32  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  8:33  
You did High School in which city?

Taokase Vaingina  8:37  
My island, Eua. I graduated from high school.

Evan Franulovich  8:45  
Public or private school? 

Taokase Vaingina  8:46  
It's kind of public. 

Evan Franulovich  8:48  
What's the name of the school? 

Taokase Vaingina  8:50  
Eua High School. 

Evan Franulovich  8:50  
Hey, shout out to Eua High School. Is there a lot of students? Is it a big school, small school?

Taokase Vaingina  8:58  
For me at that time, it was big because that's the only high school that we had in that island that was a college. That's the highest, that's all I know.

Evan Franulovich  9:10  
So when you graduated, how many other people were in your class?

Taokase Vaingina  9:15  
Oh, it was 13. 

Evan Franulovich  9:17  
Oh, just 13.

Taokase Vaingina  9:18  
Yes. 

Evan Franulovich  9:18  
Oh, so it's a fairly small class. 

Taokase Vaingina  9:20  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  9:21  
Gotcha. Okay, cool. That's good. So, you know everybody. 

Taokase Vaingina  9:24  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  9:25  
Super well. If a school is that small, when you have the group that's small, did you have sports programs?

Taokase Vaingina  9:32  
Yeah, we do have sports and other clubs, like religions. Now, they have so many clubs, but during my time, it was sports and, evangelism, really interesting spiritual things.

Evan Franulovich  10:05  
So, because you're your own country... 

Taokase Vaingina  10:09  
Right. 

Evan Franulovich  10:09  
I don't know if you guys follow sports that are more European type sports, or if you're more leaning towards American sports. For example, do you more focus on American football or European football?

Taokase Vaingina  10:24  
Oh, pretty much, I don't know the European football, but I understand American. Yeah, we're doing races and so many sports, rugby. 

Evan Franulovich  10:40  
Oh, okay, rugby. 

Taokase Vaingina  10:41  
Yeah. It's so funny because all the surrounding islands they came from each island, and they represent their schools and they went to the main island for a competition.

Evan Franulovich  10:58  
Very cool. 

Taokase Vaingina  10:58  
Yeah, and that's an amazing time.

Evan Franulovich  11:01  
So when there's the Rugby World Cup, does Tonga usually play? 

Taokase Vaingina  11:05  
Yeah.

Evan Franulovich  11:06  
Yeah? 

Taokase Vaingina  11:08  
Mate Ma'a Tonga is one of our teams that's well known. But I understand, American has their own way of football, right? 

Evan Franulovich  11:20  
Sure. Although rugby is gaining more popularity in the United States. I mean, we're not a big player, like South Africa or New Zealand or whatever, but we're getting better, slowly but surely. 

Taokase Vaingina  11:33  
Yeah, yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  11:33  
One day maybe. They'll recruit players, probably from Tonga and Fiji and these places. Well, cool. So you did High School, and when you were in high school, did you always dream about going to another country to study, or was it something that someone planted in your brain later? Or how did that come about?

Taokase Vaingina  11:54  
Like, studying here?

Evan Franulovich  11:56  
Yeah, it's a long way away. 

Taokase Vaingina  11:56  
Absolutely, yes. So for me, I didn't even plan, or I had no idea that I will end up here. So back the first time, it was an opportunity to study here. One of my mom's cousins, which I can call auntie, called and wanted to acknowledge her parents by bringing a student from our village... 

Evan Franulovich  11:58  
Oh. 

Taokase Vaingina  12:01  
...to come over, to have that opportunity to study in here. I did not want to come. 

Evan Franulovich  12:47  
Oh, you didn't. 

Taokase Vaingina  12:48  
To be honest. I lived with my mom, you know, and so many reasons for that. And I didn't really take that opportunity seriously. But everybody in my family told me to take that opportunity. I mean, everybody pushed me to come over, even my mom pushed me to come over, which is a great opportunity. 

Evan Franulovich  13:23  
Sure. 

Taokase Vaingina  13:23  
Yeah, and here I am.

Evan Franulovich  13:26  
Here you are. So you were a little reluctant, but you went ahead and put in an application. 

Taokase Vaingina  13:32  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  13:33  
You get accepted. 

Taokase Vaingina  13:34  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  13:34  
Had you ever been to the US before?

Taokase Vaingina  13:37  
Never. 

Evan Franulovich  13:37  
Wow.

Taokase Vaingina  13:40  
I went on a vacation to New Zealand. 

Evan Franulovich  13:42  
Oh, yeah. 

Taokase Vaingina  13:44  
I just want to obey my mom, you know? 

Evan Franulovich  13:49  
Yeah.

Taokase Vaingina  13:50  
And I just complete the application. Went for an interview in New Zealand, and thank God, I got accepted.

Evan Franulovich  14:02  
Yeah, so this was for Missouri, when you were doing this first part. 

Taokase Vaingina  14:07  
Yes. 

Evan Franulovich  14:08  
You had to do an interview for that school, or are you talking about your visa interview? 

Taokase Vaingina  14:12  
I'm talking about the visa interview.

Evan Franulovich  14:14  
Okay, we'll come to that in just sec. So you applied to Missouri, you got accepted, which is great, and then you had to get a visa appointment. So a lot of students are wondering, in your case, how long did it take once they issued you your I-20 to get the appointment to go to the embassy? And I'm assuming the embassy was in Tonga?

Taokase Vaingina  14:36  
Nah, the interview was in New Zealand.

Evan Franulovich  14:36  
Oh, you had to go all the way to New Zealand for your interview. 

Taokase Vaingina  14:42  
Yeah. All Tongans had to go to Fiji, that's the first time I found that the interviews can take place in New Zealand.

Evan Franulovich  14:56  
Okay. 

Taokase Vaingina  14:56  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  14:57  
But you got the choice. You got to choose where you went. You could have gone to Fiji. 

Taokase Vaingina  15:01  
Yeah, yeah. I had to choose. 

Evan Franulovich  15:03  
Right, right. But you chose to go to New Zealand. And from the time you got that I-20, how long before you went to New Zealand? Was it a month of waiting, two months?

Taokase Vaingina  15:12  
Yeah, probably. I can say two to three months. 

Evan Franulovich  15:19  
Oh, okay. 

Taokase Vaingina  15:20  
Yeah, because I just found out that they already send it to my email, but I never checked, you know? 

Evan Franulovich  15:26  
Oh, sure. 

Taokase Vaingina  15:27  
And then, yeah, I found out, but I'm pretty much sure that it took two to three months.

Evan Franulovich  15:32  
Okay, so you flew to Christchurch, or where did you go? Which city? 

Taokase Vaingina  15:39  
To Auckland. 

Evan Franulovich  15:41  
Oh, of course. So the embassy would be there. So you went to Auckland, and then you went to your interview. How long was your interview? Did it take very long?

Taokase Vaingina  15:52  
No. This was my first interview. 

Evan Franulovich  15:54  
Yeah? 

Taokase Vaingina  15:56  
Yeah, I was nervous at the same time, because I was standing in the queue and there were three people in front of me, and everyone knows if the person in front of you got accepted or rejected. So the three in front of me got all rejected. 

Evan Franulovich  16:18  
Really? 

Taokase Vaingina  16:18  
Yeah, I was shocked. 

Evan Franulovich  16:21  
Were they all from Tonga as well?

Taokase Vaingina  16:24  
Yeah, I was the only Tongan in our line. I felt like I will get rejected, but thank God I didn't know that I would get accepted. 

Evan Franulovich  16:41  
What kind of questions did they ask you?

Taokase Vaingina  16:46  
They asked about, if after my school, am I gonna go back? That's the only question that I remember. She asked me, what I'm gonna do after I'm done studying, will I go back to Tonga? I told them that I will finish school, but if there is any other opportunity to pursue, I will love to take it. 

Evan Franulovich  17:30  
Sure, sure. 

Taokase Vaingina  17:32  
Yeah.

Evan Franulovich  17:34  
And you got your visa on your first try, they said, 'Okay, you're good.' 

Taokase Vaingina  17:37  
That's my first try. Yeah, absolutely.

Evan Franulovich  17:40  
So did you have to wait in Auckland till they got your visa done, or did they just mail it to you back in Tonga?

Taokase Vaingina  17:46  
No, because they found out that I will go back to Tonga the next week, I had to pick it up.

Evan Franulovich  18:00  
Oh, you did have to pick it up. So you went home and came back again? 

Taokase Vaingina  18:04  
No, I had to pick it up before I went because I need the passport.

Evan Franulovich  18:08  
Sure. Yeah, of course. Oh, so did you have your family in Auckland? Anybody you could hang out with?

Taokase Vaingina  18:15  
Yeah, it was my auntie and all my cousins are there. 

Evan Franulovich  18:23  
That's cool. 

Taokase Vaingina  18:23  
All of my mom's side and my dad's side. 

Evan Franulovich  18:27  
Excellent. 

Taokase Vaingina  18:28  
It was my second time in New Zealand.

Evan Franulovich  18:34  
Wow, that's cool. So you get a trip out of the deal. You got to see your family. That's so great. And you got your visa, which is cool. And once you have your visa, then you start preparing to leave. 

Taokase Vaingina  18:46  
It was funny, because I was interviewed in October, and then I planned to come here around December. 

Evan Franulovich  19:00  
Oh, not a lot of time. 

Taokase Vaingina  19:04  
So I went back to my island. It's hard to say goodbye. 

Evan Franulovich  19:09  
I'm sure. 

Taokase Vaingina  19:09  
Absolutely. 

Evan Franulovich  19:10  
Yeah. 

Taokase Vaingina  19:10  
And then come. 

Evan Franulovich  19:13  
Were you nervous? 

Taokase Vaingina  19:15  
I was, because I came alone, and that's my first trip to the United States.

Evan Franulovich  19:24  
Good for you. That's awesome. So did you have to go back to Auckland to get to the United States? Or did you go to Sydney, what's the way to get to the US? Is there direct flights from Tonga?

Taokase Vaingina  19:36  
No, there's no direct flight from Tonga to here. 

Evan Franulovich  19:39  
Okay. 

Taokase Vaingina  19:40  
In my flight, I went to Fiji and I spent eight hours there.

Evan Franulovich  19:46  
Sitting at the airport, or did you go to the beach?

Taokase Vaingina  19:50  
Just the airport. 

Evan Franulovich  19:51  
Okay. 

Taokase Vaingina  19:52  
And then Fiji to LA.

Evan Franulovich  20:00  
Los Angeles. 

Taokase Vaingina  20:05  
Yeah.

Evan Franulovich  20:10  
It's a long flight. 

Taokase Vaingina  20:11  
Absolutely, it was 15 to 16 hours.

Evan Franulovich  20:14  
And then there's all the time zone changes. So by the time you arrive in Missouri, you must have been a little disoriented.

Taokase Vaingina  20:24  
I left around 2am. When I got picked up, it was 2am.

Evan Franulovich  20:27  
Well, Missouri is very different than Seattle. Tell us about your experience in Missouri.

Taokase Vaingina  20:39  
It was funny because I remember I came in the winter time, which is December, and my cousin picked me up and on our way to their house, I told them, 'Man, why all the trees are dying?' 

Evan Franulovich  20:52  
So cold. 

Taokase Vaingina  20:55  
There's no leaves, you know? 

Evan Franulovich  20:57  
Yeah.

Taokase Vaingina  20:58  
They were laughing at me and told me it's their winter, and there's no leaves. 

Evan Franulovich  21:04  
That's right. 

Taokase Vaingina  21:05  
Yeah, it was a kind of great experience. 

Evan Franulovich  21:10  
I'm sure. 

Taokase Vaingina  21:10  
Yeah, pretty much, that's the first time I experienced the winter. 

Evan Franulovich  21:15  
I'm guessing so. 

Taokase Vaingina  21:16  
Yeah, see the snow and the movies became a reality.

Evan Franulovich  21:24  
And how did you find a Missouri like, were the people nice? Were they curious about you? I mean, did they even know that you were from another place?

Taokase Vaingina  21:33  
Yeah, so I went there, like I said, I live with my auntie, and I lived alone in her house, close to school, but there were Tongan people around and the people were so nice. And also, different kind of people, they were so nice. I went to church there. 

Evan Franulovich  22:01  
So there's a small Tongan community in that area of Missouri? 

Taokase Vaingina  22:09  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  22:09  
Interesting.

Taokase Vaingina  22:10  
Yeah, in the Trenton, Missouri. 

Evan Franulovich  22:13  
Okay. I'm not familiar with that city. 

Taokase Vaingina  22:16  
Yeah. So in our city, there was a Tongan community surrounding there. I felt home for the first time.

Evan Franulovich  22:29  
But in the end, you end up leaving. In the end, you end up coming to Seattle. So what prompted the transfer from Missouri out to Seattle?

Taokase Vaingina  22:39  
Say it again. Sorry.

Evan Franulovich  22:40  
Why did you make the transfer instead of finishing there?

Taokase Vaingina  22:48  
I was staying there alone, and I just wanted to come to my uncle. 

Evan Franulovich  22:55  
Okay, so you have family in Seattle. 

Taokase Vaingina  22:59  
My dad's side, yeah. So my mom's first cousin, she sponsored me, and I appreciate everything, she payed for everything, even the house, the car that I drive, everything. But, it's time for me, and then my uncle wants me to come. And then that's why I left it.

Evan Franulovich  23:28  
Well, welcome to Seattle. We're glad you're here. You went through orientation. How did you find orientation? Was it useful? 

Taokase Vaingina  23:38  
Yeah, it was pretty much useful for me, because I get along with so many different cultures, different faces. And then in our first day, it was pretty cool, all the stuffs were presenting their major, and what they were teaching in here. They were friendly, I like it.

Evan Franulovich  24:06  
Cool. So you you started classes. What were your first classes that you took that quarter? Were they really specific ones you had to take? Or did you get to choose?

Taokase Vaingina  24:21  
Pretty much I had no choice. I had to take only what they offer. 

Evan Franulovich  24:24  
Okay. 

Taokase Vaingina  24:25  
So I took some pre reqs in Missouri. 

Evan Franulovich  24:33  
This was here? 

Taokase Vaingina  24:35  
Yeah, I'm talking about the three courses that I took in here. So statistics, biology, and culture. 

Evan Franulovich  24:51  
Okay. Was it a two credit class?

Taokase Vaingina  24:56  
No, it's all five credits. 

Evan Franulovich  24:59  
Okay, cool. And of those, which was your favorite class? Which one did you really enjoy?

Taokase Vaingina  25:06  
Pretty much, I can say statistics.

Evan Franulovich  25:09  
Oh, yeah? I never hear that. That is so funny. Why did you like statistics? Everybody usually complains about statistics because it's so hard.

Taokase Vaingina  25:18  
Yeah, it took a lot of my time.

Evan Franulovich  25:23  
I'm sure it did.

Taokase Vaingina  25:24  
That's why I'm so interested in that course. Because it takes time to calculate, and all those things. And also, biology. 

Evan Franulovich  25:35  
I loved biology when I was a kid. 

Taokase Vaingina  25:38  
Biology will be second because, you learn about the plans and all those things, yeah.

Evan Franulovich  25:48  
So do you find that when you're in the classroom, the way the classroom is taught, the way you know, people sit in class or come to class, is it a lot different than what you were used to in Tonga, or is it very similar?

Taokase Vaingina  26:01  
Pretty much is just like the first time, but in here here, I get familiar, because the first time I went to Missouri College, I was so shocked, like back in Tonga, if you a have question, you have to raise your hand. 

Evan Franulovich  26:22  
Yeah. 

Taokase Vaingina  26:23  
Raise your hand and wait until the teacher is finished, and she will ask what's your question? 

Evan Franulovich  26:31  
Sure, yeah.

Taokase Vaingina  26:32  
But that's pretty much the only new thing that I can see. I'm not saying it's a bad thing, for me, it's new. 

Evan Franulovich  26:44  
I'm sure.

Taokase Vaingina  26:47  
So when the teacher's like talking and explaining things if anybody's confused or didn't understand about what he's talking about, then they will stop it right away. 

Evan Franulovich  27:02  
Amazing. 

Taokase Vaingina  27:03  
Which is amazing, just stop it right away. I don't understand this and that, and this and that. And for me I took time to adjust.

Evan Franulovich  27:23  
Sure. Feels a little uncomfortable, but you're getting used to it. 

Taokase Vaingina  27:26  
Yeah. But now, I'm getting used to that.

Evan Franulovich  27:31  
So you're on a small break right now, you are taking classes during the summer quarter? 

Taokase Vaingina  27:35  
No. 

Evan Franulovich  27:36  
Oh, you didn't? 

Taokase Vaingina  27:36  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  27:36  
So you're on a vacation quarter. 

Taokase Vaingina  27:36  
Yes. 

Evan Franulovich  27:36  
So what have you been doing?

Taokase Vaingina  27:36  
Yeah, just go around.

Evan Franulovich  27:36  
Just being a tourist, whatever? 

Taokase Vaingina  27:36  
Right. 

Evan Franulovich  27:36  
Nice. And then you'll get back started when fall comes around. 

Taokase Vaingina  27:43  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  27:44  
All right, very good. 

Taokase Vaingina  27:47  
When fall comes, I will. 

Evan Franulovich  27:50  
Well, it sounds like you have a huge family. A lot of people, has anybody planned to come see you here when you graduate, or have they already come to visit you?

Taokase Vaingina  28:04  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  28:05  
Really? 

Taokase Vaingina  28:05  
I believe. 

Evan Franulovich  28:07  
It's so far. 

Taokase Vaingina  28:08  
Yeah, maybe my family, my mom, she wants to come over and visit.

Evan Franulovich  28:18  
Yeah. Do you have brothers and sisters? 

Taokase Vaingina  28:21  
I only have one brother. 

Evan Franulovich  28:24  
Oh, so just two of you. Is he older or younger? 

Taokase Vaingina  28:26  
He's younger than me. 

Evan Franulovich  28:28  
What's he doing right now? 

Taokase Vaingina  28:30  
He's now in Australia. 

Evan Franulovich  28:32  
Oh, studying?

Taokase Vaingina  28:34  
No, he's working. 

Evan Franulovich  28:36  
All right, cool. Shout out to brother. 

Taokase Vaingina  28:38  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  28:40  
Well, that's cool. So when you're here, do you live near the school? Because you go to Central. Do you live in the central area? Or do you have to transport? 

Taokase Vaingina  28:56  
I use the bus and train. 

Evan Franulovich  29:01  
Yeah. 

Taokase Vaingina  29:02  
And for now, I decided to take classes in South Seattle. 

Evan Franulovich  29:12  
Right. That would be closer to Burien, for sure. 

Taokase Vaingina  29:14  
Which is closer, but I had one class there and one class in here.

Evan Franulovich  29:20  
Okay.

Taokase Vaingina  29:21  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  29:22  
So you're only here, a couple times a week maybe. 

Taokase Vaingina  29:25  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  29:25  
Oh, that's not too bad. 

Taokase Vaingina  29:27  
Two times a week.

Evan Franulovich  29:30  
So you've been to the South Campus.

Taokase Vaingina  29:33  
I took one class in spring quarter in South Seattle.

Evan Franulovich  29:39  
Well, so you can kind of compare the campuses South and Central. 

Taokase Vaingina  29:42  
Right. 

Evan Franulovich  29:43  
Which do you like better from a campus perspective?

Taokase Vaingina  29:46  
Um, I like Seattle Central.

Taokase Vaingina  29:51  
They're very different campuses. 

Taokase Vaingina  29:56  
So friendly to me when I first. I love the environment.

Evan Franulovich  30:03  
So have you made a lot of friends, both international and domestic.

Taokase Vaingina  30:10  
Both, we had planned to go somewhere, but we didn't make it.

Evan Franulovich  30:16  
Right. There are some student activities. We have the international ambassadors that create activities for international students. Have you participated in any of those activities?

Taokase Vaingina  30:28  
Pretty much my first spring, I wasn't looking for other clubs like that. I was focusing on school at that time. But maybe in the future. I love to participate in their sports and all those things, but I haven't gotten time to participate. 

Evan Franulovich  30:51  
Right. 

Taokase Vaingina  30:51  
Yeah, but maybe in the future.

Evan Franulovich  30:53  
I know nursing is very busy, but I know that in the winter, they have a Halloween party, which is really popular. It's super fun. It's here at Central. In the winter, they take a bus load of people up to do tubing in the snow, and that's really fun, and it's really cheap. So keep your eyes open for announcements for those activities. A lot of students, when they get here, you know, they look for ways to help pay for school. They apply for scholarships. Have you done any scholarship?

Taokase Vaingina  31:26  
I did the scholarship application, and unfortunately, I didn't got accepted. 

Evan Franulovich  31:31  
Okay. 

Taokase Vaingina  31:32  
But I will try again.

Evan Franulovich  31:35  
Try again. By the way, if you're a student at South... 

Taokase Vaingina  31:39  
Right. 

Evan Franulovich  31:40  
...you can also apply for the South Foundation Scholarship. So they have the district wide Foundation scholarship that anybody can apply for. But South Campus also has a special one just for South students. So you might want to look into applying for that scholarship as well. If you continue to take classes there, you'd be eligible for sure, if you're not a student at South you can't apply, but if you are, it's worth it. And what about things like Phi Theta Kappa? Have you been involved with that at all?

Taokase Vaingina  32:10  
Not in here, but I got one from Missouri. 

Evan Franulovich  32:12  
Oh, sure.

Taokase Vaingina  32:13  
But I don't know if it still works or not. 

Evan Franulovich  32:18  
You could talk to the people that run that organization. 

Taokase Vaingina  32:25  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  32:25  
I just talked to one of the students who's going to be the president. Her name is Sophia. She's from Myanmar, and you could talk to her. She would be great to help you with that. What about working on campus? A lot of students look for jobs. Have you looked for jobs? Are you not interested in working?

Taokase Vaingina  32:46  
I would love to work. But like I said, I didn't really focus on that. But maybe be in the future. I look forward for that. Yeah,  fall is coming up.

Evan Franulovich  33:05  
Yeah, I think a lot of positions come open because a lot of the people had graduated in the spring and summer. So yeah, there should be some jobs available for sure. Usually, if you ask around, like the International ambassadors or the people that work at the front desk or at the information office, they kind of have their ear out, so they listen for that stuff. You can talk to them, and they might have some suggestions. Get that job, it's pretty fun. Yeah, it does help some students like just the extra spending money, and helps pay for tuition or whatever. It's good stuff. And we pay really well in Seattle, I think they're making more than $20 an hour. So it's worthwhile if you can get a job, even for like 10 hours a week. It's pretty cool. 

Taokase Vaingina  33:50  
Okay. 

Evan Franulovich  33:51  
So you are here in Seattle, which is a super exciting city. What do you do for fun?

Taokase Vaingina  34:01  
When I was in Missouri, I came for a visit in the summertime. And I love to do hiking. 

Evan Franulovich  34:09  
Oh, yeah. 

Taokase Vaingina  34:10  
I love the place.

Evan Franulovich  34:11  
Are you talking about going up into the mountains?

Taokase Vaingina  34:15  
My cousin took me to Lake 22, It was pretty. 

Evan Franulovich  34:24  
It's very nice. 

Taokase Vaingina  34:24  
Yeah, climbing the mountain was so cool.

Evan Franulovich  34:28  
Yeah, Rattlesnake is another one that's really popular with international students. Check that out. But we have national parks on all three sides of us got the Olympics, got Mount Rainier, North Cascades, lots of great hiking. 

Taokase Vaingina  34:44  
Very cool. 

Evan Franulovich  34:47  
Do you have a car?

Taokase Vaingina  34:50  
Not in my name but my cousins.

Evan Franulovich  34:54  
So if you wanted to drive up to Mount Rainier, you could go? 

Taokase Vaingina  34:57  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  34:57  
I highly recommend. 

Taokase Vaingina  34:59  
It's really cool.

Evan Franulovich  34:59  
It's really cool. Do you hear that? It's Trivia Time. Trivia Time is the part where we ask five questions about the Seattle Colleges, the area, or whatever. If you get them all right, you're on our wall of fame. If you don't get them all right, it's a tragedy. You'll probably just cry yourself to sleep. All right. Question number one: You are in the state of Washington, just to the north of us is a whole another country. What is the name of that country? 

Taokase Vaingina  35:28  
Canada? 

Evan Franulovich  35:29  
Yes, it's Canada. That's great. Okay. Question number two: Seattle is known for its sports. We have a number of professional sports teams. One of them is a professional American football team. Do you know the name of our football team?

Taokase Vaingina  35:54  
I know Missouri, the Chiefs. I'm sorry, no. 

Evan Franulovich  36:02  
It's the Seattle Seahawks. Yeah, go see a game. Right now baseball season is in full swing. Have you been to a baseball game yet?

Taokase Vaingina  36:11  
Never had the chance. 

Evan Franulovich  36:12  
Highly recommend it. It's fairly inexpensive. It's very American culture kind of thing. Even if you don't understand the game, it's still fun to go. Do you guys have baseball in Tonga? 

Taokase Vaingina  36:22  
No, we don't have baseball.

Evan Franulovich  36:24  
All right. I know that it exists in some parts out there, American Samoa, that kind of stuff. Cool. Question number three: Every state in the United States has its own capital. Washington, DC is our national capital, but each state has its own capital city. What's the capital of Washington? 

Taokase Vaingina  36:46  
Seattle?

Evan Franulovich  36:47  
No. 

Taokase Vaingina  36:49  
Capital of Washington?

Evan Franulovich  36:51  
Yeah, starts with an O. 

Taokase Vaingina  36:56  
Like what?

Evan Franulovich  36:58  
It's all right. It's Olympia, Washington. 

Taokase Vaingina  37:00  
Olympia, okay. 

Evan Franulovich  37:01  
Just south of here, about an hour. You can take a train to get down there. It's cute little town, it's nice. Go check it out. All right. Question number four: If you're a student here at Seattle Colleges, as an international student, in order to maintain your visa status, you have to take so many credits. How many credits do you need to take? 

Taokase Vaingina  37:23  
12.

Evan Franulovich  37:23  
Yes, 12 it is. So be sure you get those in there. All right. Last question, what was the last movie you saw in the movie theater?

Taokase Vaingina  37:39  
What is the last thing you saw on Netflix or Hulu or something like that? 

Evan Franulovich  37:44  
War Room. That's all I know.

Evan Franulovich  37:47  
War Room? Was it good? Or is it good?

Taokase Vaingina  37:50  
Yeah, it helped me.

Evan Franulovich  37:52  
All right, check it out, guys. That's cool. Well, that's great. Good job. Didn't get them all, but that's pretty good effort. We usually end the show by asking our international students to say a few words in their first language. I've never heard Tongan, and I'm guessing most people out there in the world, don't even know where your country is, let alone what the thing sounds like. So maybe you could do 15-20 seconds in your first language? 

Taokase Vaingina  38:19  
What am I gonna say? 

Evan Franulovich  38:20  
You can say hello to your family back home, or you can give encouragement to other students that are going to high school there, that are thinking about maybe coming to the United States or going to a community college. 

Taokase Vaingina  38:32  
Malala late, that's our greeting. *Taokase's message in Tongan*

Evan Franulovich  39:17  
Wow, cool. Thanks so much for that. That's awesome. I don't know if you can understand other languages on the nearby islands, can you understand Fijian? Is it so different? 

Taokase Vaingina  39:26  
No. 

Evan Franulovich  39:28  
Have you ever been to Hawaii? 

Taokase Vaingina  39:44  
I've never been to Hawaii.

Evan Franulovich  39:51  
All right. Interesting. I loved it. And the very last question, you are a veteran now you've been not just to this school, but to another school. You've been in the United States for a while now, what advice would you give to students in your region about coming to a community college or coming to the United States, or if they are already accepted, like, what should they think about? What kind of what kind of wisdom would you give them? 

Taokase Vaingina  40:16  
In our language, or?

Evan Franulovich  40:17  
In English. 

Taokase Vaingina  40:18  
Okay. So as an international student, the thing that's really hard, is the visa. Yeah, in the interview, don't be nervous, just do it and pray to God. If God wants you to come, he will make the way easy, so easy just like he did to me. And I encourage each and everyone just look for it, just to apply. First look at it over and then there's all the steps that you need to complete in the application. It's easy, just focus on it, and then read it, and then you will receive it, if you seek it.

Evan Franulovich  41:14  
Good advice. I love all that. Nice, very good. Well, it's been great to get to know you. I haven't seen you since orientation. Nice to see you again. Thanks for coming all this way just to do this interview. Really appreciate it. So fun having you. Guys, if you're out there, we're here every Wednesday, you can tune in, listen to interviews with students from all over the world. Get some really great information about what it's like to be a student, about coming to the United States, whatever. It's a good place to get information for fun. Don't forget to like, share and subscribe. We really appreciate that. Thanks again. It's Labor Day weekend, this is being recorded just before Labor Day weekend. Do you have big plans for the weekend? 

Taokase Vaingina  41:56  
No, not much.

Evan Franulovich  41:57  
Well, there'll be a lot of people out on the road, because people are going everywhere, so be careful if you're driving around.

Evan Franulovich  41:58  
Yeah, thank you. 

Evan Franulovich  41:58  
All right. 

Taokase Vaingina  42:00  
Last words. 

Evan Franulovich  42:02  
Oh, sure. 

Taokase Vaingina  42:08  
I just want to thank you for including me in your podcast and the opportunity. 

Evan Franulovich  42:16  
Of course. 

Taokase Vaingina  42:17  
I really appreciate studying here. And shout out to everyone! Come over, check it out.

Evan Franulovich  42:23  
Yay, come on over. We'd love to have more people from out there, far in the ocean. That would be great. All right, guys, take care. Bye-bye.

Taokase Vaingina  42:32  
Bye-bye.

Evan Franulovich  42:35  
Conversations with! is painstakingly crafted for you by the Seattle Colleges International Programs department and supported by the lovely folks here on our campus. This show is produced and edited by me, Evan Franulovich. We welcome your emails and questions about coming to Seattle Colleges. Please reach out to us via our website or just give us a rating and a review on Apple podcasts as this helps others discover the show. Also, don't forget to follow us on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok or YouTube at Seattle Colleges Intl. And be sure to check out all of the shows here on 'Conversations with!' Thanks for listening, and we'll see you next week.