International Students at Whitworth: Meet Domi Vamossy

From Budapest to Spokane

Landlocked between Serbia, Slovenia, Austria, Slovakia and Romania, Hungary lies in the heart of Europe. Hungary, who proudly dates herself to the 9^th century is a beautiful nation filled with wonders, history, as well as bragging rights for the inventions of many tools we use in our modern day life.To name a few, Hungary is the inventor of the commonly used writing utensil; known as the ballpoint pen and more importantly the inventor of underwear and soap!

However Hungary is more than a nation that introduced undergarments, Hungary’s capital Budapest is one of the most spectacular and popular tourist destination within Europe and worldwide.  Hailing from Budapest himself, we are graced here at Whitworth to have one of Hungary’s finest students: Domonkos Vamossy,

As the Hungarians say;

Isten hozott!

Meet Domi Vamossy

Domi is an international student from Hungary who moved to Spokane straight from Budapest early last September. I had the chance to sit with Domi and ask him about his life growing up in Budapest and his transition here at Whitworth and the cultural challenges he faced over the past year. As we settled into our interview on a chilly April morning, we opened the interview with some warm green tea, I had to wonder why Domi, a brilliant mathematician had chosen to attend a university a continent and ocean away from his home town of Budapest. 

The answer however was quite simple.  Like most students, Domi wanted to attend a small private christian university where you could foster a relationship with your professors and with the other students and placed high importance in the values the university holds. 

"I have really good relationships with my professors and if I have a question, I know I can ask them a question anytime. Furthermore, creating connections with  the professors and advisers can really  help students use the opportunities that we have here and I believe that is really rare." 

As Whitworth currently ranks #4 for Best Values  and #9 as Best Regional University on the West Coast. it's easy to see why Whitworth would be so attractive to international and domestic students. Not to mention the ease and possibility to foster real life-long relationships with professors. With no regrets, Domi speaks fondly of his life here at Whitworth and the small cultural adjustments and barriers he overcame in his first few weeks. He jokingly mentions how the loudness in tone and volume of the  American students  has rubbed of on him especially when he speaks to those back home in Hungary.

Nostalgic for Hungary, Domi reminisces on the beauty of Budapest and his hometown which he says in on a mountain overlooking the Budapest skyline. 

Domi notes the difference between the national holidays he has celebrated here which are different in theme than to those celebrated in his home land. He states that  in Hungary, national holidays are centered around a military defeat  while in the U.S and other nations , these national holidays generally revolve around victory and being victorious. Deep in thought, Domi also observes the differences he finds between the two nation's education system and their focus.

"I see the difference quality wise. Back home they don’t focus as much on sports and other activities, because they don’t want you to engage in different clubs like they do here because they want you to do well academically. Moreover in Hungary there are less school activities and opportunities to get involved in clubs. In the U.S,  it seems that they also emphasize  focus on the individuals personality, in contrast with schools in Hungary, the focus is strictly academics"

While Domi misses his family and the traditional meals of Hungary, he emphasizes that despite these things he's not homesick as he has created a valuable network of friends and enjoys his time spent with them as well as his studies. Domi however strongly urges his friends and other students to travel and explore Hungary. 

 "From the historical sites, the streets, little café’s along the sidewalk, and shops, Budapest has a lot to offer. The public transportation system in Budapest is also fantastic and accessible,  however tourists should be wary if they do use public transportation.  While public transport is safe and handy,tourist should pay attention to the exchange rates to not be exploited by certain locals whom profit off naivety."

Domi is a Mathematical Economics major and will be returning next fall as a junior. He hopes that after receiving his bachelors degree  to move to Scandinavia and Italy for a while, and expresses interest in traveling around Asia, the Middle East and South Africa. As a history buff he holds a strong affinity for places with historical value. Furthermore With 3 languages under his belt (English, German and Hungarian), Domi is an exceptional student with  who has so much to offer for our community.

Feel free to ask Domi any questions you have regarding his life here as an international student, about Hungary or even about any shared common interest. I hear he’s an avid fan of Inter-Milan, Roger Federer and Lord of the Rings, as well as basketball and tennis!

Go Abroad!

One of the major draws of Whitworth University is its dedication to encouraging students to study and live abroad. Through opportunities like ISEP (International Student Exchange Program) as well as many faculty led programs, there are numerous options for students to find one that meets their interests as well as fulfill their requirements for their majors. I interviewed Dr. Anthony Clark from the History department, and he reiterated the importance of studying and living abroad. Dr. Clark is the Associate Professor of Late-Imperial Chinese History and the Director of the Asian Studies Program at Whitworth. While Dr. Clark has spent extensive time living and teaching in China, he has also lived in Italy, Germany, France, Taiwan, and Hong Kong.

 

                When I asked him about his interest in traveling and living abroad, he mentioned that St. Augustine wrote that “The world is a book and those do not travel read only one page.” Dr. Clark advises students to make “travel abroad one of the most important goals in his or her life.” He believes that “encountering different cultures and worldviews makes one not only more refined and cultured but also more sympathetic to other ways of engaging the world we live in.” Students can learn incredible life lessons while encountering different cultures and can also learn about themselves in the process.

                                                                    St. Augustine of Hippo

                When I asked Dr. Clark what difficulties he faced when living abroad, he responded that one of the greatest challenges is to “truly experience another culture on its own terms.” He observed that Americans and other foreigners often go through a “Disneyland” experience while they are abroad and see what they want to see, try what they want to try, and never truly attempt to learn about the culture around them. This limits the potential of their learning experience because they only look at the entertainment value around them rather than focusing on the fascinating cultures in front of them.

Dr. Clark also mentioned that he had other difficult times when he stayed in a Tibetan village that didn’t have a bathroom, in Chinese villages that were remote and caused him medical problems, and in European cities where language barriers were intimidating. While he encountered these difficulties, he explained that the trials he faced “enriched me and taught me the universal goodness of human nature” While facing difficulties abroad, the world truly shows the compassion that people have for one another and the great extent that people will go to in order to assist people that they don’t even know.

                He mentioned that while living in China he experienced “Deep kindness and generosity.” He then retold a story of how he visited an impoverished village and encountered a poor villager who had a rare certificate of merit that he received from the government in the 1950s. Dr. Clark described the certificate as the most prominent part of the villager’s home. After Dr. Clark complimented the certificate, the poor villager removed the certificate and presented it to him as a gift. Dr. Clark kindly refused the gift but was touched: “I was a total stranger and yet he was willing to give me his greatest treasure.”

                                  Dr. Clark giving a lecture during the Whitworth in China Program

Dr. Clark’s experiences abroad have not always been easy and have presented various challenges; however, the lessons that he has shared show that living abroad can truly open people’s eyes to the world around them and also be blessed by what they experience. He encourages students to open themselves to other cultures in order to learn more about the world and more about themselves. I encourage you to speak with Dr. Clark about his experiences when he returns to campus this fall.  I also encourage you to take a class from him. He will also be teaching The Pacific World (HI 102), Modern China & East Asia (HI-346), and Senior Seminar in History (HI-498).

 

 

Living and Learning in Costa Rica

Central America

Costa Rica

           Central and South America are world renowned for their people, food, beautiful scenery, and culture. While Americans are known to visit some areas in Central America for vacation, to live abroad in this part of the world is a unique experience. Dr. Patrick Van Inwegen, a professor of political science at Whitworth, has spent the last year abroad teaching at Whitworth’s Costa Rica campus. I recently interviewed Professor Van Inwegen to learn about his experiences living in Costa Rica, which has been his first time living abroad. He provided me with his experiences and also included his advice to students.

Professor Van Inwegen said that he has enjoyed his time spent in Costa Rica and shared some of his favorite memories of traveling to Manuel Antonio National Park, eating churros on the streets of Havana while watching street performers, adventuring near Rincon de la Vieja (a volcano), zip-lining, traveling to Guanacaste (Northern Pacific side of Costa Rica), and seeing wildlife like the Quetzal in Montverde Cloud Forest and the sloths of Manuel Antonio National Park.  He also described the scholastic benefits of living in Costa Rica for both him and his students. He has been able to further his research in revolutionary history by interviewing people in Nicaragua about their experiences, traveling to revolution museums, and visiting sites that are historically significant to different uprisings and revolutions.

Quetzal

 

Havana

 

Professor Van Inwegen acknowledges that he has learned valuable lessons about what it means to live and thrive abroad. He shared that living abroad has greatly altered his sense of “arbitrariness of norms” and has learned how “influential social pressures can be.” He explained that an area that he specifically learned this was in the field of dress. Costa Ricans have a unique sense of style and dress, and he mentioned that it is odd feeling out of place with North American clothing.

 While he enjoys living abroad, he did mention that there are difficulties in living in an unfamiliar part of the world. He mentioned that a difficult part of living in Costa Rica was differentiating between what he expected about Costa Rica and the reality of living there.

  “Going to a remote place, you expect not to have hot water showers. When the water turns off in a suburb of San Jose or the power is intermittent, that has been frustrating. The frustration is compounded by the cultural differences in getting answers to questions and figuring out how to solve problems. In the US we have a sense of who we need to talk to solve problems, but we don't in a new culture. It is kind of like the lack of street signs and house numbers here. In the US, if you need to find a business, you look up the address and then go based on that. Here, you can't because they don't have addresses; it is all relational - 100 meters from this school.”

                        While undeniably, there will be difficulties when traveling or living abroad, Professor Van Inwegen encourages students to travel as much as they can while they are young and have the opportunity:

"Now is the time to do it. Every year you wait will make it much more difficult to travel. You don't have any money, but that is the best way to travel. You do have time, fewer attachments and commitments, an adventurous spirit, a positive attitude, an open mind, and you're healthy. Those won't all change, but many will make it more difficult to travel, the older you get (and not just retirement and old-age old, but next year old)”

                He also encourages students who are already planning on traveling abroad to think about their own culture before they leave and to question why you uphold the values that you do. If you have a strong understanding of what has influenced you and your beliefs, Van Inwegen asserts that you will be more likely to be understanding of the different beliefs of others that you encounter. If you know that you yourself have had unique experiences and therefore have a different perspective in the world, then you will be able to value the opinions and beliefs of others because their beliefs have gone through the same process.

Professor Van Inwegen will return to Whitworth’s main campus in the fall, and I would encourage you to meet with him and talk about his experiences in Costa Rica as well as his advice for living abroad.

A fun, little known fact about Professor Van Inwegen is his wife, Victoria, was Miss Spokane.