Thailand Exchange: Swimming With Baby Sharks

Posted on September 26, 2013 by admin

Every week is passing by so quickly. As the days pass, I am coming to the realization that my stay here in Thailand will end soon. I am having such a great time and will miss Regent’s school and all of my friends when I leave.

School here is great but it is quite different than LCC. Considering the fact that Thailand is a tropical country, almost everything is outdoors, from the hallways to the lounges. Here at Regents, instead of an arena they have a large pool. Consequently, Regents has much more of an outdoor feel in which I have come to greatly appreciate. I enjoy simply going outside to my next class. They also have a huge campus consisting of many buildings. There is a language building, the main building, the primary school, a pre-school building, two boarding houses, and a very spacious building for the staff whom live on campus. Altogether, everything is quite different but it is quite an enjoyable change.

On Saturday, I went scuba diving with my friend Ellis and her sister Chloe. For the first time in my life I saw two baby sharks up close. This was an event that I will never forget! As we were swimming, we spotted two baby sharks. I was stunned at first; I had felt my heart rate begin to increase as the fear began to wash over me slowly but in the end, I had nothing to fear as the sharks had actually swam away from us as one of the instructors had, without fear, grabbed its fin. Not only had I seen two amazing creatures but I had also saw many remarkable types of coral and fish; in all sizes, colours and forms. I swam into many schools of fish where we saw a stingray and other amazing sea creatures! The corals were also quite mesmerizing, some actually turned into different forms as we gently touched them. Scuba diving is something that I would love to do again.

Though Regents and Thailand in general has many aspects that make it very different from what I am use to, I am loving everything. All in all, my journey to Thailand has been a great experience filled with challenging opportunities, adventures and encounters. – Kamy Roberge-Carrington ’16

Thailand Exchange: Time Passing Too Quickly!

Posted on September 17, 2013 by admin

Everyday I am learning more and more about the Thai culture, vocabulary and I am meeting new people. Thailand is a beautiful country. It is very green and has many mountains. There are many animals as well as reptiles and insects. For the first time in my life I observed a gecko in action as he discretely hunted for his prey. There are also many cockroaches and lizards! From the climate, to the food, to the culture, animals, infrastructure and much more, everything was so different from what I was used to but I love it all and was so glad to have chosen Thailand!

On Friday, our boarding group went to a mall named Bixi. At this mall we found many small Thai shops as well as the common stores. At Bixi I got the chance to see many of the traditional Thai clothing, bags and foods. Traditional Thai clothing is very colourful and has many designs varying from animals to shapes.

On Saturday, we went to a huge shopping centre, Siam Paragon, in Bangkok. At this centre, anything was possible to find. It consisted of seven stories, each having its own purpose. It had many European and American stores as well. As we drove I was able to see little parts of Bangkok that were very industrialized and busy. Every street was crowded with people. Many people drove on motorcycles, and those who didn’t fit into cars sat on the back of the vehicle as they drove to their destination. Though it is very industrialized, there are also many poor areas. There are many people who live on the streets and many others simply asking for money. It had come as a shock to see so many people living on the streets in a city that seemed very industrialized and quite developed.

On Sunday, my friend Ellis took me to an elephant orphanage! I sat on a 40-year-old elephant as he walked the green mountainous streets of Thailand. I not only experienced something exceptional but I also witnessed the ways many people unfortunately live. On the trek, we passed many slums, where people lived in very small shacks and in horrible conditions. I somehow knew that this was a reality but did not realize how serious it was.

I never thought I could build such great relationships with people that I had only known for two and a half weeks. I am having a great time here and I enjoying every second, of every minute of every day. As everyday passed, I realized that soon I would have to leave and I just wished that I could stay longer. – Kamy Roberge-Carrington ’16

Thailand Exchange: Entering a Different World

Posted on September 6, 2013 by admin

I finally arrived in Thailand at midnight on August 23 after a 24-hour flight. I knew Thailand would be hot but I never realized how hot it actually was; the heat struck me as soon as I disembarked the plane. I had never been in a country that had such a sweltering climate.

As I spotted The Regent’s School Pattaya sign ahead, where I would board for the next six weeks, I somehow knew that this exchange would be an adventure. I was half way across the globe in a country that I didn’t know and with people I didn’t know.

As I left the airport with the exchange coordinator, I finally entered Thailand. We drove for about one hour from the airport to the school, the entire time I looked out the window realizing how different Thailand was. The streets were filled with motor bikes not carrying only one or two people but rather many, the infrastructure was so different from what I was use too; everything was different. It was as if I had just entered a different world.

After being wonderfully hosted by the exchange coordinator and her two children for two days, I finally entered Elizabeth’s Girls Boarding House. The boarding house was quite spacious. There were two sides, one for primary and the other for secondary. The boarding staff was very nice and showed much hospitality. They did everything to make me feel at home. The girls were also very nice; many showed me around campus and introduced me to the other boarders.

Regent’s is an international school with a huge campus! It is composed of many buildings, each a different size and form. Boarders and students came from all over the world from Russia, Korea, Australia, England, Japan, Taiwan and many more! The first two days were rather quiet, boarders were arriving from different countries and everyone including me were just settling in. The night before school I was quite nervous and excited, I didn’t know what to expect. I didn’t know anyone from school and I hardly knew where I was going.

Altogether theses first few days of my exchange have been fantastic, I am so glad to have chosen Regents School Pattaya and can’t wait for the weeks ahead. – Kamy Roberge-Carrington ’16

Australia Exchange: Happy to be in school at St Philip’s College!

Posted on July 31, 2013 by admin

Although it is summer, I am still in school! Even so, I am really happy that I chose to come to St Philip’s College in Alice Springs, Australia. We started off the exchange at a school camp called Mittagundi and I had a great time there. The camp was eight hours out of Melbourne by bus. That part of the trip was horrible because no one wants to be on a bus on a windy road for eight hours straight. Once we arrived at the camp they took all of our electronics and then we were told that the following day we would be going to the snow. The next day we hiked up three hills to finally arrive at snow level very late at night. We had to set up our tents and cook ourselves dinner. We spent two days there and then we hiked back down to the camp. We spent the rest of the week working on the farm. We fed the animals and cooked meals in the kitchen. We had to cook using absolutely no electricity! After a week we returned to Melbourne for the night.

The next morning we flew back to Alice Springs where I met the host family at the airport. We went on a bit of a driving tour and the first thing they showed me was the Todd River. The Todd River is not really a river because most of the year there is no water in it. The only time that there is water is when it rains and it only rains around four times a year! People say that if you see the river flood three times then you can be called a local.

When we arrived at the house we watched a movie and ate Tim Tams. We spent a couple of days off from school but we returned to school on Monday. I met everyone and had a tour of the school. I already knew most people because of the camp except for a few kids who did not attend the camp. I also met the other exchange students. We spent the rest of the week getting used to everything and making sure we liked all of our classes.

Anina, my exchange partner has a job like most of the kids here and had to go to a meeting on Saturday. So I went out with my friend Georgia instead. We walked around the shopping center until Anina was finished. After that we watched friends play netball. When all of our friends were done playing a bunch of them were going to go bowling and so they invited us but Anina had to work so I went alone. At bowling I met another exchange student named Tamsin from South Africa. The next day Anina and her family took me on a day trip to Simpsons Gap and Stanley Chasm so we decided to invite Tamsin to come with us. We traveled to Simpsons Gap, which took about 20 minutes. We then drove 20 more minutes to Stanley Chasm, where we hiked to the center of the Chasm. Then we returned to the cafe where Tamsin and I had our first Australian meat pies! The next day we went back to school and planned our trip to Ares rock. — Emily Bekins ’15

Round Square Americas Conference 2013: Pushing Limits

Posted on May 15, 2013 by dlevy

As we arrived in New Brunswick for the Regional Round Square conference at Rothesay Netherwood School, we wondered what would come of a six-night adventure in the Maritimes. After having a delicious warm meal, we settled into tents and played games to break the ice with the delegates. The experience was extremely valuable and was made much easier as everyone seemed to be in the same boat. Right off the bat, we were pushed out of our comfort zone and were forced to tent with complete strangers. Although this was scary at first, it was a great way to make friends for the rest of the conference. None of us really knew what we were getting into, but were more than pleased to discover that there were delegates from literally all over the world.

When we woke up it was an unbelievable feeling hearing people speak Spanish, English, French, Mandarin and other languages. It was a perfect intro to our first day which included a small but educational Model United Nations. This conference was more like an introductory to Model UN that everyone seemed to enjoy. All delegates were separated into four different subcommittees. Each delegate was exposed to some of our global issues and how the UN works to solve them.

That night, we were pleased to find ourselves in tents with two to four other people that we could officially call our friends. The next morning we quickly packed up our tents and went off to YMCA’s Camp Glenburn. Camp Glenburn has a unique rustic feel and all the delegates were in awe of the incredible landscape. As soon as we got off the bus, Round Square once again pushed our boundaries as we participated in high ropes, low ropes and team challenge courses. All of these activities made us trust our fellow delegates as our hands were really in theirs. We also played a number of games to expand our horizons.

All in all, Camp Glenburn has been extremely fun and exhilarating and we look forward to the rest of the conference. – Matthew Kaspy ’14