This is my second year of being a host family with the IHP. We learned from our mistakes last year and this year we met our international students at the airport with a welcome sign, What a difference we feel this time. We really feel bonded to our students and I think they to us. I would encourage all of the hosts to try if possible to greet your student at the airport or as soon as possible after they arrive. We have had a great 1st week with our students. Hope the rest of you hosts have lots of fun with your students as well.
August 2, 2007
Recently, my wife and I had the privilege of hosting a Chinese family in our home for several days. The wife/mother, Jing, has been a visiting scholar at UVA for the year and her year is drawing to a close. As her family, husband “Max” and 16-year-old daughter “Angel” were come to the US for a month-long visit, she very much wanted her daughter to have the experience (even if briefly) of staying in an American home. The pleasure was truly all ours! Angel is an excellent pianist, and she provided beautiful classical music on two evenings. Max, a real lover of flowers, enjoyed browsing the yard with camera in hand. Jing provided a variety of traditional dishes representative of Guangzhou cuisine. This family enriched our lives, and I look forward to another such adventure in the days to come!
Tom Leland
June 19, 2007
I recently returned from China after leading a team to teach English at Yunnan Nationalities University in Kunming. Upon visiting the University for the third straight year, I felt as though I was seeing good friends again. The faculty in the Foreign Language Department (English) and students there are always hospital. Their kindness toward us and their willingness to be engaged in the classroom always makes leaving very difficult.
The weather in Kunming is always pleasant — which helps explain why Chinese refer to Kunming as the “Spring City.” It also helps explain why westerners enjoying living there part of the year!
One of the highlights of the visit was being asked to help judge an English-speaking contest one evening at the University. There were 24 contestants. While some of the contestants were excellent in their English and a few less proficient, I and the team had nothing but admiration for all of them being willing to speak in such a contest in front of native English speakers! They showed poise and ability.
Other highlights of the trip included a visit to a Buddhist Monastery in Dali, a Sunday morning visit to a church in Kunming, a visit to a special education school where the team made a financial gift to help buy uniforms for the students, a trip to the Great Wall and Summer Palace (Beijing), a meal in a Chinese home spending one-on-one time with
the students who really energized us, and simply enjoying the warmth and openness of the Chinese people.
The faculty made me promise I would bring a team back next year — a promise I look forward to keeping. It was a fabulous trip!
Tom Leland
President, IHP
April 26, 2007
I attended the Spring social and concert last Sunday at the International Center. I enjoyed the very personal guitar performance, international food, and opportunity to meet new people. I met an international student from Turkey which excited me since I have traveled to Turkey.
Leanne
April 23, 2007
Lorna Sundberg International Center’s 2007 Spring Colloquium
Posted by virginiaihp under Upcoming Events1 Comment
You are invited to join us for the final event in the Lorna Sundberg
International Center’s 2007 Spring Colloquium:
“Encountering Tibetan Religion: Monasticism, Tantric Ritual and
HolyMountain.”
Nicolas Sihlé, Assistant Professor
UVa, Department of Anthropology
Thursday, April 26th, 7pm
For more information and to read a bio, visit our event URL:
http://www.virginia.edu/iso/ic/programsandservices/springcolloquium.html
A dessert reception will follow the event, so join us for a post-lecture
and performance chat with Nicolas Sihlé. RSVP appreciated but not required.
The Lorna Sundberg International Center is at 21 University Circle, two
blocks from the intersection of Rugby Rd. with Grady Ave. Limited parking
is available behind the Center.
For more information: 434-924-7980, intlctr@virginia.edu,
www.virginia.edu/iso/ic
April 16, 2007
I became involved in an International Host Program 6 years ago at a college in Maryland. I have been so enthused about this type of program that before moving to Charlottesville 2 years ago, I contacted the UVA IHP for information and readily became an UVA IHP community host.
During these 6 years, most of my students have been undergrad exchanged students. It has been such a rewarding experience to be a part of these young students year in an American college. Not only have I been able to help them make the transition upon arriving in USA, but also have established lasting friendships and frequent communication with them upon their return to their home country.
The most exciting part of being a host parent is the sharing of cultures and ideas. The international students are so eager to learn and experience all they can while studying here. I became counselor, travel companion and “Mom” to them. They always felt welcome in my home and knew they could call me whenever they had a problem or needed advice.
I have cooked traditional American food for them, and even though most of them couldn’t cook very well, they cooked their country’s traditional dishes for me. Each holiday became a time of sharing traditions of each county.
It has been very rewarding to have communication with some of the student’s parents and be thanked for looking after their daughter/son. and how comforting it is to know that someone is there if they need advice and help, and be part of an American family. It has been a very rewarding experience not only for me, but also my family and close friends who have welcomed and accepted each of my international students without prejudice.
Pat Bean
April 13, 2007
Hello! My name is Karishma Desouza. I am a rising fourth year student at the McIntire School of Commerce. I am originally from India but lived my entire life in Qatar. I joined the International Host Program’s sub-committee — ‘The Student Consultant Committee’ in April 2005 and became the Undergraduate Student Representative to the Board in April 2006. Here are some thoughts on IHP and my experiences at the University of Virginia.
When you watch T.V. and surf the internet, you can develop an image or a perception of what the United States is like and I did. Then, I came to the United States when my brother joined the University of Illinois at Chicago — and my perceptions were confirmed.
This was because a lot of the movies represented the Mid-west region of the U.S and big cities. This gave me confidence coming to UVA for the first time in the Fall of 2004. However, I was soon shocked at how different the lifestyles and attitudes of people can be. Advice #1 – Don’t make a decision until you have experienced college. (more…)
April 10, 2007
I am so happy that the IHP has a blog. I hope it is alright if we post a tribute to the 5 young women from Malaysia who are graduating this May. It’s hard for Cliff and me to face the fact that it has been 4 years and that they will be leaving us soon.
We remember well that hot, humid night in August when we arrived at 10:30 p.m. at the C’ville airport to pick up the student we had chosen to host that year. She arrived with 3 other girls, and they told us there was a 5th that would be arriving in the next day or so. Well that was the beginning of the fun — Cliff carrying all that luggage up flights of stairs in the no-air conditioning, no-elevator Dobie Hall and shopping, shopping, shopping, and more shopping. I knew the 5th girl had arrived when I heard all the commotion a few aisles down on one of our shopping marathons. Then is was delivering fans, then quilts when the weather turned cold, and the ISO ice cream social, the president’s welcome reception, Thanksgiving, Halloween, trips to the dentist, invitations to dance troupe performances, emails with parents, and more.
We felt like the mom and dad with their 5 beautiful, smart, talented daughters. We loved every minute, we love all of them, and we wish them the best of the best forever. We are so lucky to have known them.
With love,
Lisa Eorio & Cliff Maxwell
April 8, 2007
I had a great experience with the International Host Program, and I really encourage any student coming to Charlottesville from abroad to join it, because there is so much to be gained on doing so.
My local hosts and me “clicked” immediately, they were very helpful and gave me a hand with the process of settling down to live here (for instance, when I was in dire need of a fridge, they took me to the store, gave me advice on what to buy and helped me carry my new acquisition home. I’ve no idea of how I could have done that without them, since, being new to the country, I didn’t have many connections back them).
But even more importantly, they provided me with an opportunity to talk about how I was making the transition, what things I missed the most from home, and which things were more useful to help me adapt to the new language and environment, always with a smile, a friendly face, and a legitimate interest to know more about me and my culture.
Although this is based on my personal experience, I know that this description fits well with all the local hosts that belong to the IHP (some of which I had the opportunity to meet later on), and therefore I see no reason to miss such a great opportunity, even more valuable at a time during the first months after your arrival) when the feelings of cultural
isolation, loneliness and homesickness ar at their peak.
Eventually, I adapted remarkably well to Charlottesville and the U.S., I met tons of interesting people from all over the world and now I often think of this place at my second home. But I’ll never forget the support I got from my hosts at first. We have remained in touch regularly during all these years, and I am sure that we are going to remain good friends long after I leave Charlottesville.
Cristian Carlos A Bodo
April 8, 2007
Recently I had the privilege of meeting and sharing lunch with a visting scholar from China, Dr Chunyu Dong, who teaches philosophy at Beijing Normal University. In light of the fact that I will soon take a team of English teachers to Beijing and Kunming, I am interested in improving my knowledge of Mandarin and Chinese culture. Dr. Dong, who is a delightful individual, has offered to meet with me once a week to help me with my needs. Because of time I am spending with him, my confidence level for the trip will be greatly enhanced.
Tom Leland
