S2E22: Seattle Colleges Conversations with! International Student Pavara 'Indy' Somboon of Thailand

In this our twenty-second (22nd) episode of Season 2, Seattle Colleges host Evan Franulovich interviews international student Pavara 'Indy' Somboon of Thailand about her experience here at Seattle Colleges and about life in the United States. 

1:19 - Meet Indy!

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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  1:07  
Hey, everybody! Welcome back to Seattle Colleges 'Conversations with!', we're here with our very first student from Thailand!

Indy  1:18  
Thailand!

Evan Franulovich  1:19  
I mean, we've had a lot of Thai students at Seattle Colleges, but our first interview with a Thai student. Indy, welcome! 

Indy  1:26  
Thank you. Hi, everyone! My name is Indy from Thailand. 

Evan Franulovich  1:31  
Tell everybody where you're from in Thailand. 

Indy  1:33  
I'm from south of Thailand. So it is called [name]. 

Evan Franulovich  1:41  
And you told me before we started rolling that it's beautiful there. 

Indy  1:46  
Yes, it's so beautiful, but it's pretty hot. 

Evan Franulovich  1:49  
It's pretty hot? 

Indy  1:50  
Yeah, I would say...

Evan Franulovich  1:51  
Hotter than Seattle??

Indy  1:53  
Of course!

Evan Franulovich  1:55  
Well, how are you adjusting to the weather in Seattle? 

Indy  1:58  
I don't like hot weather. 

Evan Franulovich  2:01  
Oh, you don't? 

Indy  2:02  
Yeah. But I don't really like cold weather too. I like, like, I would say like spring weather, you know? It's not too cold. Not too hot. 

Evan Franulovich  2:12  
And we're getting close to spring. I mean, by the time this airs, it might be winter still... but yeah, getting close. You've been here how long?

Indy  2:22  
I will say almost two years. 

Evan Franulovich  2:25  
Oh, Okay. 

Indy  2:25  
Yes. 

Evan Franulovich  2:26  
So when you.... when do you plan to graduate?

Indy  2:31  
Next year. 

Evan Franulovich  2:32  
Okay. 

Indy  2:33  
Yeah, next year. 

Evan Franulovich  2:33  
And you are going for an associate's degree in what subject?

Indy  2:38  
Um, um, I mean, majoring in business. 

Evan Franulovich  2:43  
Okay. 

Indy  2:44  
Yes. 

Evan Franulovich  2:44  
And I... I'm actually making an assumption... you're here to get an associates degree, are you here on a short-term certificate, or...

Indy  2:51  
I'm planning to do... What is called? The... My... The... what is it called again?

Evan Franulovich  3:06  
That's okay.

Indy  3:07  
I'm so excited.

Evan Franulovich  3:09  
So you started in English? 

Indy  3:11  
Yes.

Evan Franulovich  3:11  
Did you start in SCIE, they call it. 

Indy  3:13  
Yes. 

Evan Franulovich  3:13  
Okay. Great. And what level did you start it?

Indy  3:16  
Five.

Evan Franulovich  3:17  
But... oh, you started at the top? 

Indy  3:19  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  3:19  
So you only had to do one quarter of English and then off to take your class. So right now you're taking just regular business classes? 

Indy  3:28  
Yes. Associate degree. 

Evan Franulovich  3:31  
Yeah. Yep, yep. Yep. Yeah. And then what's your plan? Where do you? Where are you going to continue to work on your bachelor's degree after? 

Indy  3:39  
Yeah, bachelor degree. Yes. When I finished with central Seattle College, I'm planning to transfer to university. 

Evan Franulovich  3:48  
Oh, okay. 

Indy  3:48  
Yeah, to finish my bachelor degree. 

Evan Franulovich  3:51  
Do you know which university? 

Indy  3:53  
Maybe udub? 

Evan Franulovich  3:54  
Maybe udub. Are you going to apply to multiple schools? More than one?

Indy  4:00  
Maybe in California. 

Evan Franulovich  4:01  
Okay. 

Indy  4:02  
Because I like California. 

Evan Franulovich  4:05  
Nice. Yeah. Alright, so maybe you'll apply to udub maybe a school or two down in California. So you like the West Coast of the United States? Have you had a chance to travel around the United States? 

Indy  4:17  
I've been to New York two times. Hawaii. I've been a lot. I've been to Oregon too. Yeah! 

Evan Franulovich  4:27  
That's so great!

Indy  4:27  
Next month i'm planning to go to Alaska.

Evan Franulovich  4:31  
In February?

Indy  4:33  
Yes. 

Evan Franulovich  4:33  
Why February? 

Indy  4:35  
Because like it's so cold.

Evan Franulovich  4:37  
It's really cold. Yeah. And the northern lights!

Indy  4:42  
Yes, yes!

Evan Franulovich  4:44  
So I used to live in Alaska for a lot of years. Yeah, you'll love that.

Indy  4:49  
I heard it's gonna be so cold, like super cold. 

Evan Franulovich  4:52  
Yeah, February is very cold in Alaska. Do you know, are you going to Fairbanks?

Indy  4:56  
Yes. 

Evan Franulovich  4:56  
Okay. Yeah, it'll be really cold in Fairbanks. So make sure you You dress appropriately. But yeah, you should see the Northern Lights assuming the weather's good. How many days? Are you going to be there? 

Indy  5:08  
Five days.

Evan Franulovich  5:09  
Okay, that's good. So hopefully in that window...

Indy  5:12  
Yes.

Evan Franulovich  5:13  
... You'll be able to see the Northern Lights. That's really great, you've seen a lot of the United States then, that's great. 

Indy  5:18  
Because I love to travel. Yeah, and like, explore new things. And it's turned out that I like this, like, West Coast of America better. Yeah, that's why I'm planning to move to California in the future.

Evan Franulovich  5:37  
What is it you like about the West Coast? What is it? What's the feeling you get that you like so much?

Indy  5:44  
I feel like people, they are different from like, New York side to like, California or like Seattle side. People in New York, they are more busy. It just like in Bangkok, Thailand. 

Evan Franulovich  6:00  
Yes. 

Indy  6:01  
That's people are busy. But for me, I like something like, like people more nice. 

Evan Franulovich  6:10  
Yeah... 

Indy  6:10  
Yeah. Friendly, yeah.

Evan Franulovich  6:12  
Yeah, no, I'm with you. The nice thing about the United States is that it's a big country. So you can experience a lot of different cultures within that one country. Sometimes I don't think people realize it, but the West Coast is definitely got a different vibe. And the northwest part is definitely different than like California. 

Indy  6:32  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  6:33  
So yeah, that's cool that you got to see so much. What did you do while you were in New York?

Indy  6:40  
Just like, went to like, tourist places...

Evan Franulovich  6:45  
Statue of Liberty? 

Indy  6:46  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  6:47  
Did you go see a Broadway play? 

Indy  6:49  
I did! 

Evan Franulovich  6:51  
What did you see?

Indy  6:52  
Um, I couldn't, I don't remember the name. But it was so fun. It was my first time. You know...

Evan Franulovich  6:59  
It's pretty amazing.

Indy  7:00  
... In the big theater. 

Evan Franulovich  7:02  
Yeah. 

Indy  7:02  
And it's like the show was so fun. 

Evan Franulovich  7:05  
Yeah, yeah.

Indy  7:05  
I would like to go again. Yeah.

Evan Franulovich  7:08  
For sure. Yeah, Times Square. Because you know, most of the plays are happening near there. It's just an exciting part of the city to be in. I'm guessing you went to like, where the Twin Towers were, the financial district. Did you go to any museums while you're there? 

Indy  7:25  
No. Yeah.

Evan Franulovich  7:27  
Well, if you ever go back like the New York Art Museum is amazing. Guggenheim is so much. New York is probably one of my favorite cities in the US. Seattle's right up there. Of course, I love Seattle. It's really cool. But it's not New York. But if I had to go to school, I would definitely stay on the West Coast. 

Indy  7:47  
Yeah.

Evan Franulovich  7:47  
Just personally, I don't know. Well, cool. So you're in Thailand when you're a kid. You go into school. You graduated from high school in Thailand? 

Indy  7:57  
Yes. 

Evan Franulovich  7:57  
And then after you graduated, you just thought to yourself hey, and I'm gonna go study in the United States. 

Indy  8:03  
Actually, I did graduate in America. 

Evan Franulovich  8:07  
Oh, you did? 

Indy  8:08  
Yeah. Because I... on senior years. 

Evan Franulovich  8:12  
Yeah. 

Indy  8:13  
I was an exchange student here. 

Evan Franulovich  8:15  
With which program? 

Indy  8:18  
International exchange. But the name is like, SEA? So its like Thai organization. 

Evan Franulovich  8:28  
Sure. 

Indy  8:29  
Yeah.

Evan Franulovich  8:30  
So you came over for your senior year. Where did you do high school at? Which city? 

Indy  8:35  
In Poulsbo.

Evan Franulovich  8:36  
Oh, here in Washington. 

Indy  8:37  
Washington too. I came here a second time because I have close family too  in Washington. 

Evan Franulovich  8:45  
So you. Okay, so you came to the United States to study as a high school student you did your senior year? 

Indy  8:51  
Yes. 

Evan Franulovich  8:52  
Graduated with a high school diploma. 

Indy  8:54  
Yes. 

Evan Franulovich  8:54  
Did you go back to Thailand? 

Indy  8:56  
Yeah, I did. 

Evan Franulovich  8:56  
Okay.

Indy  8:57  
I did. Go back to Thailand for university. 

Evan Franulovich  9:01  
Oh.

Indy  9:02  
Yeah. For my third year of university. I decided to be in work and travel...

Evan Franulovich  9:09  
Okay. 

Indy  9:10  
... Program. So yeah. And I came back.

Evan Franulovich  9:13  
So then you came back. But when you came back, you came here. You said work travel? 

Indy  9:19  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  9:19  
So what did you do while you were here? 

Indy  9:21  
So it's just like intern. 

Evan Franulovich  9:24  
Okay. 

Indy  9:25  
Yeah, it's like internship, so you can work. Also, you can travel for three months. 

Evan Franulovich  9:30  
Oh.

Indy  9:31  
Like work for three months. Work for two, three months and travel for one month. So like total four months?

Evan Franulovich  9:37  
So where do you work?

Indy  9:38  
I worked in Thai restaurant.

Evan Franulovich  9:41  
Cool. Yeah. So did you cook or did you wait, what did you do?

Indy  9:45  
I did both actually, because I love to cook too.

Evan Franulovich  9:49  
She says her Thai food is really great. I'm excited about it, yeah. 

Indy  9:54  
So I did both. I want to do both because for my experience too. You know, and is was really fun. 

Evan Franulovich  10:02  
That is really cool. So after you were done with that amount of time did you go back to Thailand again? Or did you just stay?

Indy  10:10  
I just stayed. I just changed my mind. I feel like America is so... in America it's so exciting for me. You know, I want to explore new thing meet new people. Yeah and that just like enough to go to school here.

Evan Franulovich  10:30  
Did you do your works? Your work in a Thai restaurant here in Seattle area? 

Indy  10:35  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  10:35  
Okay. So then you just, so you didn't have to go back? You were here on one visa? And then you just switched it over? 

Indy  10:43  
Yes. 

Evan Franulovich  10:43  
So which visa were you here on? Which one? 

Indy  10:45  
Right now is a one. 

Evan Franulovich  10:47  
Now it's an F-1. But it was a...?

Indy  10:49  
It was a J-1. 

Evan Franulovich  10:50  
It was a J-1. Okay. Yeah, so some people do those kinds of things. We have people come over as an Au Pair, and maybe they like it, and they decide they want to stay. But there is a process. Can you talk about the process you went through to switch it from your J visa to your F-1? 

Indy  11:06  
So actually, I didn't do much cuz like I, I did my visa process through the agency. So I just gave my paperwork or anything. My information for the agency, so they will do the thing for me.

Evan Franulovich  11:25  
How long did it take?

Indy  11:28  
For me I will say at least around three months, but some people they take like, almost a year.

Evan Franulovich  11:34  
Oh my gosh. 

Indy  11:35  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  11:35  
So you have to plan ahead a little bit. 

Indy  11:37  
Yes. 

Evan Franulovich  11:38  
Okay. And was it expensive? Or is it the same cost as if you would have to? 

Indy  11:43  
It's not that expensive compared to like Thai? Do you know because I pay in Thai rate not in America. 

Evan Franulovich  11:50  
Oh, so you actually paid an agent in Thailand? 

Indy  11:53  
Yes. 

Evan Franulovich  11:53  
Ah, okay. Gotcha. 

Indy  11:55  
Cuz it's easier to communicate. 

Evan Franulovich  11:57  
Of course. 

Indy  11:58  
Yeah, so it's... which made me under... and which made me understand more about the process that I will change my visa. 

Evan Franulovich  12:05  
Right. 

Indy  12:06  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  12:07  
Well, I gotta be honest, I'm a little surprised that you did level five of our Intensive English Program since you did your senior year of high school here. And then you've done some work here, because your English is quite good. So you did a test? Which language test did you take to determine your English level? 

Indy  12:25  
Which language test? 

Evan Franulovich  12:26  
Like did you take a Duolingo Test? 

Indy  12:28  
Duolingo.

Evan Franulovich  12:28  
Oh, you took Duolingo. 

Indy  12:29  
So it's pretty basic.

Evan Franulovich  12:31  
Okay, gotcha. And but you score pretty well. I mean, the level five is our highest level. So you did one quarter and then you just started taking? Did you? If you're a level five, you also get to take college classes at the same time? 

Indy  12:45  
Yes. 

Evan Franulovich  12:45  
Did you take some other classes? 

Indy  12:47  
ISD classes? 

Evan Franulovich  12:50  
Cool. And how? How are you finding classes like a lot of students I talked to overseas, they want to know what it's like to be in an American classroom, you went to a Thai classroom at a university. So how are American college classes compared to like, say Thai college classes?

Indy  13:09  
I will say, the university that I went in Thailand, it already fixed that if you majoring in business, they will have like subjects that you have to study already. But from here, I can pick which one that I'm interested to study. So which is like, better. Yeah,

Evan Franulovich  13:32  
I like that as well. That's pretty cool.

Indy  13:34  
That's why I wanted to study here. Even in high school, you also can pick which, which one which subject you want to study. 

Evan Franulovich  13:41  
Yeah. 

Indy  13:42  
So I think those things will help like, student will, like, get more experienced and know what they want to do in the future, easier...

Evan Franulovich  13:55  
Yeah. 

Indy  13:55  
... And like, they already fixed what you have to study. 

Evan Franulovich  13:58  
Right. 

Indy  13:58  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  13:59  
And just to be clear, for those of you who aren't too familiar with the way things work here, there's a framework, so you have to take so many credits of sciences, but you get to pick your sciences, maybe you love astronomy, or you like chemistry or whatever they may be, you have to take, you know, 12 credits of business, but you get to choose which business classes so sometimes there's some flexibility there. They're usually a flat framework. But yeah, that's one of the things I like about the system here as well. So why Seattle Colleges, though, you were in Poulsbo. You said, I know that there are a number of universities and colleges around the Seattle area. Why did you choose Seattle Colleges?

Indy  14:45  
Cuz before I get into this college, I study in... study English. Near Seattle College too, and I met my friend. Who is going to Seattle College too. 

Evan Franulovich  15:01  
Sure, sure. 

Indy  15:02  
Yeah. And he like, told me that like, this college is like, it's cool. You should like, come here or something. I was like, yeah, why not? Because I'm planning to like, go to university too or college too. 

Evan Franulovich  15:19  
That's great. So you were talking about business? So are you so your family has their own business? 

Indy  15:26  
Yes. 

Evan Franulovich  15:27  
So do you eventually want to go home and run that business? Or do you have your own ideas for what you'd like to do?

Indy  15:35  
In the future I would like to open my own business in America and also learn my parents business in Thailand. So i wanna to do both. 

Evan Franulovich  15:46  
Yeah. What kind of business? Would you be interested in? Maybe running?

Indy  15:51  
I would like to open my own restaurant. 

Evan Franulovich  15:55  
Yeah. 

Indy  15:56  
Yes.

Evan Franulovich  15:56  
Cool. Now, did you know... Did you consider I should ask, we have a culinary school here at Seattle Colleges, one at South and one at Central? Did you consider that program? 

Indy  16:08  
Yeah, at first. I was in culinary program. 

Evan Franulovich  16:12  
You were okay. 

Indy  16:14  
But I feel like I changed my mind. 

Evan Franulovich  16:16  
Okay. 

Indy  16:17  
I want to be like business woman.

Evan Franulovich  16:20  
Not so much as a cooking. 

Indy  16:21  
Yes. 

Evan Franulovich  16:22  
Alright. That's cool. That's really good. And will you always stick with Thai food? Or do you think you'll branch out into maybe offering other types of cuisine?

Indy  16:36  
Hmm. I will say, I want to do like fusion like, oh, yeah, mix off like Thai food and like other like, food you know? 

Evan Franulovich  16:50  
Yeah, sure. That's pretty popular.

Indy  16:52  
I want to do something like, like, different from like, Thai restaurant here. You know, because like, mostly Thai restaurant here, the menu and the stuff is kind of like, kind of same, but it's not that same same. But like, I want to do something different. 

Evan Franulovich  17:07  
Alright. Well, let me know because I'll definitely want to eat there. But I mean, there are a lot of Thai restaurants and I've talked to other students from other parts of the world. And sometimes they have a hard time finding their culture food, but tons of Thai restaurants. Is there one in particular that you really think is really amazing Thai restaurant. Want to give a shout out? 

Indy  17:34  
I would say the restaurant that I used to work.

Evan Franulovich  17:37  
They have really good? 

Indy  17:38  
Yeah, they have like, What can I say? It's not like, base normal Thai restaurant. They are like fine dining. Thai food. Yeah, it's really cool. I think like how they like serve the food. They have like, something decorate in the food and it's look better. It looks like look good. And the test is good, too.

Evan Franulovich  18:05  
Well, what's the name of that restaurant?

Indy  18:06  
Noi Thai restaurant.

Evan Franulovich  18:08  
Okay, there you go guys.

Indy  18:09  
They have many brands in like, they have like in Seattle, in Oregon. 

Evan Franulovich  18:15  
Oh, okay.

Indy  18:15  
Hawaii too.

Evan Franulovich  18:17  
Oh, I will look for it. My family from Oregon. So I go down there quite often. Have you met a lot of other Thai students here at? 

Indy  18:24  
Yes, yes. There are many Thai students here. Yeah.

Evan Franulovich  18:31  
Do you guys have like a club? Like a Thai club? Or do you have?

Indy  18:35  
Because I will say it's not that... a lot of Thai people in here.

Evan Franulovich  18:40  
Sure. 

Indy  18:40  
So that just like less than 10 people i would say.

Evan Franulovich  18:44  
But you're not all alone. 

Indy  18:45  
Yeah, but we're like friend group that we hang out together. 

Evan Franulovich  18:51  
Sure. 

Indy  18:52  
Chit Chat.

Evan Franulovich  18:54  
So when you're here you have, well you said you've been here a couple of years now. So finding the classes that you need, how has that process been? You know, you get to pick and choose. But maybe sometimes classes or like the class you want might not be available but have you found it difficult to fill your schedule? Have you found it pretty easy to fill your schedule? Have the advisors been able to help you fill your schedule?

Indy  19:22  
Oh the advisor is like, helped me a lot. Because like I don't really understand like the system in like America school too much. So the advisor give me an advice like how how can I do thing or a manage thing. Yeah, and but for me, sometimes I find it hard to make my schedule fit together all the classes. So I would recommend you guys to like plan ahead, to like which class you want to take in this quarter and make to time, like, blend together.

Evan Franulovich  20:02  
Yeah, I think that's good advice. Yeah, the more you plan and the more you can build time in, because, you know, sometimes, you know, getting into seen advisor, there's a lot of students. So you know, you want to make sure you have enough time built in so that you can get in and get the invitation. 

Indy  20:18  
Yeah, cuz I also, sometimes I do my schedule at the last minute. And all the classes like full, I was like, what am i gonna do? What classes am i gonna take? So I have to pick the class that I, I really, I don't really want to take that class. But I have to.

Evan Franulovich  20:37  
You have to keep a full schedule. That's right. 

Indy  20:39  
So you guys plan ahead. 

Evan Franulovich  20:40  
But the nice thing about going to Seattle Colleges, we have three campuses, and sometimes you can take a class at another campus. Have you done any classes at south or north?

Indy  20:48  
Not yet. But I would love to.

Evan Franulovich  20:51  
Keep that in mind...

Indy  20:52  
Yeah, cuz I will like meet new friend, new people. 

Evan Franulovich  20:55  
That's true. 

Indy  20:55  
Yeah, I would love to do that, too.

Evan Franulovich  20:57  
Yeah, you're here at Central but North is just a fast subway ride. And, you know, sometimes if you can't get into the class you want here at Central, you can sometimes find them at the other campuses South a little further away. Doable, you just have to build in time to get there on a bus, Are most of your classes on Monday, Wednesday or Tuesday, Thursday or?

Indy  21:18  
Tuesday, Thursday. 

Evan Franulovich  21:20  
Tuesday, Thursday. 

Indy  21:21  
This quarter. Tuesday, Thursday. 

Evan Franulovich  21:23  
That gives you a little bit of free time on the other day. I mean, you're studying, I'm guessing what do you do with your spare time around the Seattle?

Indy  21:32  
Cuz I have like a lot of Thai people around me. 

Evan Franulovich  21:36  
Yeah?

Indy  21:37  
So I love to hang out with them. Like party, we went to like many plays like Leavenworth.

Evan Franulovich  21:46  
Leavenworth is cool. Yeah. Together. Yeah. Do you hang out with other international students? Do you have friends? Like other parts of the world? Yeah,

Indy  21:54  
I do. I do have friend from Hong Kong. 

Evan Franulovich  21:58  
Oh, yeah. 

Indy  21:58  
Nigeria, Laos. Like she also speak Thai. Oh, and Vietnamese of course.

Evan Franulovich  22:08  
Lots of Vietnamese students here. Yeah. What about domestic students? Sometimes, you know, Seattle is a very international city. So sometimes it's hard to tell who's international news domestic. Because you know, people looking and be like "Oh, yeah, she must be from Seattle". But you're international? Do they find you curious? Do they ask you a lot of questions? What? What kind of reaction do you get from the domestic students?

Indy  22:31  
Um, those people like to think I am Filipino. And I told them that I am actually Thai. Like, I don't look really Thai. 

Evan Franulovich  22:46  
You don't think so? 

Indy  22:48  
I think, I do. What do you think? 

Evan Franulovich  22:51  
Well, I think you look Thai. But clearly, some people think you must look have kind of a Filipino look. I dont now. It's funny, like a lot of people if you ask Americans like where is Thailand? They'd be like, well, I'm not sure exactly where it is. But I think it's somewhere in Asia. They get an idea of it. 

Indy  23:12  
Also, like how I, they can see me from like, how I interact with people. They like Thai people. They like to smile. Like to like they are friendly.

Evan Franulovich  23:26  
I would agree with that. 

Indy  23:27  
Yeah. And sometimes some people can tell that I am Thai because like, because like you smile a lot. You're like, so friendly. Something like that. 

Evan Franulovich  23:37  
Yes. 

Indy  23:37  
Yeah.

Evan Franulovich  23:38  
That's true. Yeah. Wow. That's really cool. What's been your biggest culture shock, though? You know, there's a lot of fun things going on. But you must have ran into something or he's like, wow, I was not expecting that in America.

Indy  23:56  
I will say in when I was in high school. 

Evan Franulovich  23:58  
Oh, yeah.

Indy  23:59  
Yeah. So it was my first time and I I read a lot of like, people write on a website about like, experience when they was an exchange student. 

Evan Franulovich  24:12  
Oh, yeah. 

Indy  24:13  
And my, my experience is like, some of American friend, they come, they came to me and asked me like, do you ride elephant in your country?

Evan Franulovich  24:26  
Do you ride elephants? 

Indy  24:28  
And I was like - no. 

Evan Franulovich  24:31  
There are elephants. 

Indy  24:33  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  24:34  
People don't just ride them around. 

Indy  24:35  
Yeah, and also, one more culture shock is that American people they eat dinner so early. 

Evan Franulovich  24:45  
That's true compared to Thailand, yeah.

Indy  24:47  
Yeah, cuz in Thailand, we usually eat dinner like around 8-9pm. But here 5pm they starting to have like dinner already. I was like that's so early.

Evan Franulovich  25:01  
That is very early. So have you found that you have changed to start eating earlier? Or you eat the same as when you did in Thailand? 

Indy  25:10  
Now I changed. 

Evan Franulovich  25:12  
You become an American? 

Indy  25:13  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  25:14  
Well, that's cool. That means it's Trivia Time. So now we asked five questions. These are fun. Don't worry if you get them wrong, we won't ridicule you or anything like that. These mostly have to do in Seattle Colleges or the state of Washington. So you've been a big traveler. So your first question is, what is the capital of the state of Washington?

Indy  25:43  
Washington, DC.

Evan Franulovich  25:44  
No. 

Indy  25:45  
Oh, Washington, right? You mean Washington State?

Evan Franulovich  25:47  
The state of Washington? Yeah. The capital of the United States is Washington DC. So that's good. The state that you're living in. Be like a province, you know, whatever. What do you guys have provinces in Thailand? 

Indy  25:59  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  26:00  
So it be like a province. So what would be the provisional capital or the state capital of Washington? You know? It's a tough question. Starts with an O. It's Olympia. 

Indy  26:16  
Oh, Olympia! Oh!

Evan Franulovich  26:20  
Yep. That's our capital should go down and check it out. You can catch an Amtrak train. Or do you have a car? 

Indy  26:26  
Yeah, i do. 

Evan Franulovich  26:26  
You can just drive it be easy.

Indy  26:28  
I wonder if... I don't know.

Evan Franulovich  26:32  
A lot of people don't know. A lot of people that are from Washington don't even know. So don't feel too bad about it. Okay, but let me ask you this. Since you do like to get out and about. There are three national parks surrounding Seattle. Can you name one of them? 

Indy  26:47  
Mount Rainer? Yeah... 

Evan Franulovich  26:47  
Yeah.

Indy  26:51  
Oh, Olympia? 

Evan Franulovich  26:53  
Yeah. The Olympic National Park. 

Indy  26:54  
Oh, Olympic. Yeah. Olympic.

Evan Franulovich  26:55  
It's off to the west. And then there's one to the north. It's about maybe an hour away. It's the North Cascades National Park.

Indy  27:05  
North Cascades... 

Evan Franulovich  27:06  
Beautiful. 

Indy  27:07  
Oh, I never been there.

Evan Franulovich  27:10  
Well, Mountain Baker is there. Really great snowboarding in the winter. There's lots of snow. So it's a really great place to go. Now, if you keep going north, you run into another country. So your third question is what is the country directly north of the United States? 

Indy  27:27  
Canada. 

Evan Franulovich  27:28  
Yeah. That's really great. Now have you been to Canada? Have you gone and checked out? 

Indy  27:40  
No, but I would love to go. 

Evan Franulovich  27:41  
Check it out. Yeah, yeah. You can go into the IP Office and they'll help you change your I-20. So that you can travel. I don't know if Thai people need a visa to travel to Canada or not. 

Indy  27:54  
They do. 

Evan Franulovich  27:55  
So you can apply for a visa tourist visa and then just go check it out. Because the train in, You can drive but the train goes right up to Vancouver.

Indy  28:03  
It's like so close. 

Evan Franulovich  28:04  
So close. 

Indy  28:05  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  28:06  
You would be there in just a couple of hours. Yes, very good. Alright. Fourth question. Now Seattle Colleges has three campuses. Each campus has an animal associated with it. What is the animal associated with Seattle Central College? 

Indy  28:22  
Tiger?

Evan Franulovich  28:23  
That's tiger. Nice. Good job. Alright, your final question. What was the last movie that you saw in the theater? 

Indy  28:35  
Thor. 

Evan Franulovich  28:36  
Thor? 

Indy  28:37  
Yeah. Oh, actually Avatar.

Evan Franulovich  28:42  
What is it?

Indy  28:45  
In Thai we call it Avatar.

Evan Franulovich  28:46  
Avatar.

Indy  28:48  
The blue guys the big blue guys. Avatar.

Evan Franulovich  28:57  
I'm deaf. So Avatar. Yeah. Did you like it? 

Indy  29:01  
I love it. 

Evan Franulovich  29:02  
Yeah, that was the water one. Right?

Indy  29:03  
Yeah. I have been waiting for this. This one for so long. 10 years, yeah.

Evan Franulovich  29:12  
Yeah, that was visually that was an amazing film. Like I just yeah, it was wild. 

Indy  29:19  
They did a good job. 

Evan Franulovich  29:20  
They didn't really great.

Indy  29:20  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  29:21  
Crazy how they make it so real. Well, cool. Do you go to a lot of movies?

Indy  29:27  
I usually watch it Netflix.

Evan Franulovich  29:29  
Netflix. Very popular. Yeah. Do you guys have Netflix in Thailand? 

Indy  29:33  
Yeah, we do. 

Evan Franulovich  29:34  
Yeah. I don't know how international it is. I know we would sometimes watch Netflix when we lived in China. But you had to have a VPN because...

Indy  29:42  
Oh, yes. 

Evan Franulovich  29:43  
Firewall. We did get to watch movies. Wow, really good. Nice. Well, we're getting near the end of our time. So one of the last questions I always ask is, you know, you've been here two years, you went to high school. So you're very international now. What advice would you give to the Students back maybe in your region, not just Thailand. But maybe Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam. What would what advice would you give those guys if they were thinking about coming to the United States? Maybe they're thinking about Seattle Colleges. Hopefully they are. But yeah, what would what would be your sage wisdom that you would give to those kids?

Indy  30:20  
Like, first of all, don't feel scared to like, leave your country, you know, because I am sure that you will get new experience, you will explore new thing. You will meet a lot of new people, which will help you in the future like opportunity, something like that. 

Evan Franulovich  30:44  
Yeah, yeah. 

Indy  30:45  
And I would say like, you should try don't be scared because some people they just like, be scared. 

Evan Franulovich  30:53  
Go for it. Now. Were you nervous when you flew over?

Indy  30:57  
I was nervous. But I feel like, it's the only opportunity. Like once in life, why not? You know?

Evan Franulovich  31:07  
Yeah, were you alone? Did you come by yourself? 

Indy  31:09  
Yeah.

Evan Franulovich  31:10  
Wow. And it was at your first well, it couldn't have been your first time flying. 

Indy  31:15  
Yes. 

Evan Franulovich  31:16  
It was? 

Indy  31:16  
No.

Evan Franulovich  31:17  
You'd been around. 

Indy  31:18  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  31:19  
Wow. That's pretty brave. Yeah, so yeah, don't be scared guys. Just get out there. Give it a shot.

Indy  31:23  
Don't think too much. You know?

Evan Franulovich  31:25  
Yeah, just go for it. If you can do it, just go for it. And then this is season two and then season two. I'm asking if you'd like to maybe say a few words in your native language. Maybe a lot of listeners who have never heard Thai before? And you know, maybe they just want to hear what that sounds like something you can say to the kids back home or maybe to your family or whatever you want to do.

Indy  31:57  
(Indy's advice in Thai)

Evan Franulovich  32:06  
That's awesome. That's great. Yeah, it's beautiful language. I don't speak at all. It sounds very similar to Lao. 

Indy  32:14  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  32:15  
Very similar. 

Indy  32:15  
Yes. 

Evan Franulovich  32:16  
Yeah. I got to visit Laos before COVID hit and it was wonderful. 

Indy  32:21  
Yes. I've been there once, too. 

Evan Franulovich  32:23  
Yeah?

Indy  32:23  
Yeah. It's kind of same culture.

Evan Franulovich  32:26  
Yeah, I think very similar. Yeah. In you, they eat very late in Laos as well. We would find ourselves going out to eat, nine o'clock at night. 

Indy  32:35  
Yes, yes.

Evan Franulovich  32:37  
But it was great. Because in that part of the world, it's so hot that you want to wait...

Indy  32:42  
Super hot. 

Evan Franulovich  32:43  
Let the sun go down and then go out and eat. 

Indy  32:46  
Yes.

Evan Franulovich  32:47  
Well, very good to meet you. Thanks so much for coming on the show.

Indy  32:50  
Thank you!

Evan Franulovich  32:51  
It was so great. If you get here and you're from Thailand, maybe you guys can track her down and make some new friends. Yeah, good luck. Are you have big plans for spring break? Which is after this quarter. Are you going to do any traveling? 

Indy  33:09  
I will study, actually.

Evan Franulovich  33:12  
Probably good idea. Get your studying done. Alright. Well, good enough. Thanks so much. See you guys next time here. 

Indy  33:18  
Thank you!

Evan Franulovich  33:23  
B-Bye Bye!

Indy  33:23  
B-Bye Bye!

Evan Franulovich  33:24  
'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, that's 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.