Oracle Online

O: What hasn’t met your expectations?

IC: Nothing in particular, but in my imagination it was different. People think that the United States is a wonderland, it’s not.

O: How did you end up coming to Hamline?

IC: Well, my high school friends go here, from Georgia, and they told me about it. I applied to several universities, and I got accepted here, so I came here.

O: What are you studying?

IC: I am studying computer science.

O: What do you like to do for fun?

IC: I like to play sports, I like computers, reading. No, I’m lying, I don’t like to read.

O: What was the hardest thing about leaving Georgia and coming here?

IC: People. People are very friendly in Georgia, so it’s like I’m an alien here. It’s not my world. Cultural shock. I don’t feel any problems now, though.

O: What was the biggest cultural shock?

IC: Not many foreign people live in Georgia. We’re all the same. We have the same culture, same history, same stuff. Here, so many students are from different countries, and everyone’s thinking differently. You can’t understand people sometimes. But it’s OK, I got used to it. I think it’s good that many different people meet each other, and learn about each other.

O: Speaking of learning, I hear you speak five different languages.

IC: I know Georgian, Russian, English, Turkish, Azerbaijanian. Azerbaijan is my neighboring country, Russia is my neighbor, Turkey is my neighbor, so I speak their languages.

O: Were the languages just something you picked up over the years, or did you have formal training?

IC: Georgia used to be part of the Soviet Union, so all the people know Russian. I just studied Turkish and Azerbaijanian for myself. And English, of course.

O: What kind of job do you want when you graduate?

IC: I want to work for DreamWorks Animation. I’ll make movies for you guys to watch and spend your money on.

O: What kind of movies are your favorite?

IC: Actually, I don’t like the Hollywood movies. I like them for my profession. I look at movies, let’s take Lord of the Rings, I look at it not as a movie, but as my profession. I like the European movies, which are not commercial movies, and have less special effects. I watch a lot of movies, for my future.

O: What is your favorite music?

IC: I listen to music a lot lately. My favorite bands are Pink Floyd and Tool. I like Indian music.

O: Do you dance at all?

IC: Yeah, I do. I like clubbing, a lot. I club every weekend.

O: What do like about clubbing?

IC: I just like dancing, and going out with my friends.

O: What are your favorite things in the world?

IC: I like soccer a lot. I used to play professional soccer, before I broke my leg. I like horses a lot, horse riding. I like the moon. I like the girls. I like a lot of stuff.

O: What was it like to be a professional athlete?

IC: It was cool. People like you when you play sports, especially on a professional level. But I was not very big yet, so I did not get all the pleasures from it. I was like 16 or 17.

O: Were you on the national team?

IC: No, it was clubs. No one is going to take you when you’re 16 years old on the national team. I had the chance to, though. I was pretty good.

O: What is the most interesting thing about you?

IC: I am CPE. Do you know what that stands for? Coolest person ever. [Laughs] Just kidding.