From Asia: Here I come

September 20

I’ve got a big trip coming up. I’ll be leaving for Asia in a little over a week to represent Augsburg at IIE fairs in HCMC [Ho Chi Minh City], Vietnam, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Beijing. I’ll also be doing some individual visits with families and visiting several high schools. In total, I’ll be traveling for 19 days. There’s an excitement about planning for a trip like this…I wonder who will I meet? What connections will I create? Will I sleep? What new foods will I try? And then there’s the sadness in leaving my 2 1/2 year old daughter for such a long time. Finding a balance in all of this is something that I am still learning.

In Ho Chi Minh City, Machado spent time with Ana and Mr. Piet, the parents of ’08. She also experienced the energy of a city of 8 million people and 5 million motorbikes.

From I’ll Take a Bird’s Nest To Go, Please.

October 5

There are over 5 million motorbikes in HCM alone. Until you have the opportunity to see what 5 million motor bikes in one city looks like you almost can’t even imagine it, but let me help you try by sharing the advice that I received from a colleague before traveling to this country for the first time. When I told him that I would be going to HCM city he looked me straight in the eye and said, “Do you know how to cross the street in Ho Chi Minh City?” And I replied, “No.” (Obviously…but a rhetorical response seemed necessary.) And with a no-nonsense look on his face he told me, “You just close your eyes and walk.” I grinned. A big grin. I found this commentary humorous. He just looked at me and said, “I mean this seriously.” He was right.

This year Augsburg welcomed 18 new international students from countries such as Bangladesh, Bhutan, Vietnam, Pakistan, Argentina, Ecuador, Sweden, Slovenia, Indonesia, Nigeria, Norway, and Canada. Some international students hear about the College through friends and relatives who have studied in Minnesota or are Augsburg alumni. Machado is able to meet potential students and their families on her recruiting trips and to help them begin or complete the college admissions process, which can be very daunting for an international student.

From Sharing Augsburg with Vietnam

October 8

One student knew about Augsburg because a friend of hers studied abroad in Minnesota and told her, “Augsburg is the best “University” in the area.” This particular student gave me her completed application to Augsburg and told me that she is taking one year off after high school to do community service before beginning her pursuit of higher education. She understands Augsburg. Many students talked about their deep interest in becoming an “Auggie” because of their conversations with a recent graduate of Augsburg who is from Hanoi. They have learned about student life and Minneapolis through emails with her and are “very impressed.” Augsburg’s alumni understand Augsburg. Our international presence is growing and I am proud.

The post Augsburg Admissions World Tour — Asia appeared first on News and Media.

In addition to teaching, the Pfaffs are setting up a fitness center for UIC staff and faculty and are organizing a “fitness challenge” between Augsburg and UIC. She writes, “The AUGGIES are in trouble since the Chinese do not like to lose. I know Carol Enke (Augsburg’s Faculty/Staff fitness coordinator) does not like to lose either so LET THE CHALLENGE BEGIN!”

The Pfaffs have been exploring the city and areas around Zhuhai. Those who know Joyce will not be surprised to learn that she and her husband are staying very active, biking around the city and hiking with a fellow Minnesotan (carrying sticks to fend off the monkeys) outside of Hong Kong.

Yesterday we ventured out to purchase new bicycles. We decided we could not live here for 4 months without wheels, so we made the big splurge. It cost us less than $100 for both of them. We had plenty of help and ended up with 2 very nice, brand new, single speed, fully loaded (basket, bell, lock and kickstand) bikes that have got to weigh 50 pounds each. We went for a 2-hour ride today and both agree that without our bikes we would never be able to see and explore many of the things our new home city of Zhuhai has to offer.

In an Oct. 12 message to her colleagues, Joyce wrote, “We begin our second week of classes today. We (Doug is my teaching assistant) have 2 Fitness classes. When I introduced Doug as my TA and also my husband all of the students laughed, so at least they understood some of what I was saying. I am working on talking slowly (not easy for me), repeating myself and using very simple terms that are easy to understand. I realized early on that I could not use words like “abdominal muscles” and need to say “stomach” instead. The students were listening very intensely but not understanding me.

The first day of classes my class list was printed in Chinese so I had no clue on how to take attendance. Luckily the only person in PE who can speak some English was free and he came in to help me take attendance. Since most of the students have English names, I was able to write those down so things should become easier. My students are actually very nice and extremely polite (as I had originally expected). There are 25 students in each class so that makes is easy.”

ABOUT UIC (from her blog)

UIC (United International College) is a 4-year liberal arts college founded jointly by Bejing Normal University and Hong Kong Baptist University. It is located in Zhuhai, China (just East of Hong Kong and North of Macau). All classes are taught in English. The school begins its fourth year in the fall of 2008 and will have approximately 3,300 students enrolled. This fall 1,200 new first-year students are expected, and they will be graduating their first class of 270 students in the spring of 2009.

At present, the majority of students come from mainland China, but the intention is to recruit more international students to realize a goal of about 50/50 (international/Chinese). The student body is approximately 60% female and 40% male. Although UIC has 13 different majors, 50% of the students are majoring in business.

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