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Campus Candid: Nikos Papantoniou
Jessica Trenchik / Features Editor
This week’s Campus Candid, one of CSU’s international students, is Nikos Papantoniou. Nikos, originally from Cyprus, is a senior and business major here at CSU.
Nikos has been attending CSU for about two and a half years. He made the decision to come to CSU with the help of a service that his government offers to help its citizens learn about colleges in the United States.
After narrowing it down to several choices, Nikos made the final decision to come to CSU because CSU was then on the quarter system and the dates for the beginning of the fall semester aligned with Nikos’s release date from the army.
Nikos served in the army for two years and two months. In Cyprus, every male is required to enter the army one week after graduating from high school.
While serving in the army, Nikos received specialized training in the use of RPGs and explosives. Nikos decided to attend college in the United States because in Cyprus “you really have to know English.”
According to Nikos, virtually every job available in Cyprus requires an employee to be fluent in English. After graduation, Nikos says he might “go for a Master’s degree,” but he is still unsure about his plans.
If he decides to return to Cyprus he says that his three brothers “own a big supermarket back home, so I’ll probably work with them if I go home.”
Adjusting to life in the United States “was really hard in the beginning” says Nikos. “When I first came here my English was really bad and I didn’t have any friends,” he states. At first Nikos wanted to return home to Cyprus and attend a university he was accepted to there.
However, with the support of his family and his advisor, Cathy Anderson, he was able to adjust and is now quite happy here. “Now it’s fine,” says Nikos. “I go to school. I make good grades. I pass my classes. I know a lot of people.” Nikos comes from a rather big family.
He has three brothers and three sisters, one of whom is his twin. On the weekends, Nikos and his friends “basically get together and party.” Sometimes they go to the clubs in Auburn. Also, Nikos likes to go to Marietta where “once a month they organize Greek festivals.”
According to Nikos, “There are some Greek people up there who own Greek restaurants,” as well as a Greek band that travels across the country. One of Nikos’s hobbies is boxing. He began boxing in Cyprus where his brother’s friend owned a gym.
This friend encouraged Nikos to try boxing, which Nikos soon found he was good at. In fact, he was a three-time champion back in Cyprus.
As for other hobbies, Nikos says, “I go fishing sometimes and hunting.” Nikos especially enjoys fishing at night with spotlights and harpoons. Rush Hour is one of his favorite movies. “I like funny movies. I want to laugh,” he says. Nikos doesn’t have a particular favorite television show, he just says, “I like MTV. They have good music most of the time.”
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