Peru Exchange – Life Changing

Posted on March 23, 2011 by admin

As I sat on the airplane leaving Montreal, I had no idea what to expect. Peru was completely unknown to me. Although, I was extremely nervous, I was ready to embrace the six-week adventure that stood before me. I have been here for about two weeks now and I can honestly say I’m having the time of my life.

Although I have only been in Lima, Peru, for 11 days, I have already made memories that will last me a lifetime. The minute I arrived, I was greeted with the friendliest people. Everyone here is incredibly warm and kind. Even though I don’t speak Spanish, I was amazed that it didn’t stop me from making friends. People are always happy to translate or clue me in on what everyone is talking about. The other day, I woke up and automatically said « Hola ». Peru has inspired me to hopefully be fluent some day.

In only so little time, Peru is already changing me. I cannot wait to continue my stay here. Coming up I will be participating on the rugby team and going to Machu Picchu. –Alexia Miller ’13

The Salkantay Trek – Peru 2011

Posted on March 23, 2011 by admin

There we were, a group of 21 students on a four-hour bus ride awaiting our camping destination. For most of us, the Salkantay trail possessed both wonder and a sense of “je ne sais quoi” as we, teenagers from Canada, would be trekking through the Andes of Peru, a place foreign to all of us. Many of us were excited to start the hiking part of the journey after completing a week of community service in Las Palmas, which although extremely rewarding, was also quite dirty. Of course, the definition of “dirty” was changed along with our experiences on this trip. Dirty was no longer food stuck in one’s teeth, dirty now qualified as not having showered for four days and having mud caked on one’s face. As we arrived at our campsite, we were faced with a breathtaking mountain, with snow adorning its peak. Our tents had already been set up by the wonderful, and most helpful, crew of native Peruvians, all who accompanied us on our trek. In a way, the crew was like our shadow, meeting us at the destination to set up our tents and prepare us food, well before we all arrived, and then waking us up early in the morning to serve us “cocoa tea,” a Peruvian favourite.

As the first morning of our trek began, the sun illuminated the snow surrounding us, creating a picture-perfect moment. We were all excited to begin our journey, not phased with the cold we were so used to back home. We marched together as a united force for a while, until we started to reach steep inclines. Then our group seemed to separate into three, those strong ones at the front, those in the middle, and those who were in the back of the group. Being a part of the “back group,” I am proud to say that there is no shame involved in falling behind. The teachers always made it clear to go at our own pace and not to push ourselves too much. In a way, being in the back gave me a chance to connect with different people, whether it was by telling stories, playing games such as the all too popular “Ghost,” or by our collective determination to reach the top. It was a very proud moment when our group reached the top, as we placed the stones we had picked up at the bottom of the mountain, and placed them on top of each other, a ritual designed to respect Pachamama. Pachamama is what the Peruvians call Mother Earth, she allows for some to have a safe journey through the mountains. It seems that on this particular day, Pachamama was irritated as we were walking through freezing rain for the better part of the day. However, the rain finally stopped and we all made it back to our campsite, whether on foot or on emergency mule.

The next early morning, we all groaned at the prospect of climbing steep inclines yet again. However, our group leader, Julie, who was extremely kind and helpful, informed us that today would be mostly flat, with very few inclines. True to her promise, the second day of hiking was probably the most enjoyable. The sun was out, there was a nice pool of water that we could dunk our feet into during a rest, and for the most part, the group was united. Also, the last leg of the day was spent walking through a small Peruvian village. During the walk in the village, we got a small taste of Peruvian life as we got to witness young children coming home from the local school and also see the local equivalents of depanneurs, which were surrounded by chickens. Stopping at one of the depanneurs to buy Doritos, I realized that munching on something so familiar made me happy to be away from home. We were all experiencing something new; we were a part of something eye- opening and bigger than 21 students put together. We all realized this, and we all wanted in.

Finally, the last day of our hike arrived. Most of us were tired from the long trek the day before and from the sounds of two dogs barking endlessly into the night, waking everybody up. Yes, the morning of today’s hike would be difficult, as we were walking up a very steep incline and then walking down a very steep decline. Honestly, walking up that hill was probably one of the most physically exhausting things many of us have ever done. I could hear the sounds of tears, cursing and heavy breathing as we all fumbled up the jungle path. What seemed to go on forever soon ended, as we were greeted by a high-five from Yuri, another animated group leader of ours, as he congratulated us for finishing the hardest part.

After the morning hill, we spent the rest of the day hiking through what seemed to be a jungle, as there was plant and insect life all around us. Tiptoeing through large red-footed millipedes and equally large green caterpillars, we finally made it down to flat land. With our feet hurting and our legs buckling under us, we walked through a construction zone and past an extremely large waterfall, which seemed to be the source of the large river to our left. My friend and I momentarily stopped near the waterfall to feel its mist surrounding our bodies, which was extremely refreshing. The smell of mint filled the air, as there was wild mint growing in the area. Finally, after walking for a while longer, we met up with the rest of the group who was enjoying lunch. After finishing my soup and as I was about to dig into my main course, the teachers informed us that we had a choice: either we walk another 10km to the campsite, or we take the train immediately. All of us, except for two strong souls, not leapt but bounded at the opportunity to ride the train. Scarfing down my meal in record time, we boarded the train and relaxed during the 20-minute ride. We had finished our trek, and Macchu Picchu lay just around the corner. That night was spent celebrating as we all high fived each other and gave each other knowing smiles. Yes, we Montrealers had done it; we had completed the Salkantay trail!

Looking back, I’m proud that we all had the courage and strength to pull through. Not only am I proud of us as a group, I’m also proud of how we all came through as individuals during the trek. In a way, the best of everyone’s individual traits shone through, which not only made for a strong group, but for very good company during the hike as well. Although it was difficult—very difficult at times—if I had the chance to do it again, you bet I would. —Isabelle Thibault ’11

Community Service Reflection in Lima, Peru – Duke of Edinburgh Gold Trip 2011

Posted on March 23, 2011 by admin

Ever since I was first introduced to the concept of community service in grade 7, I have attempted to draw a closer connection to why students were asked to allocate 15 hours minimum every year to help their community. With so many community service opportunities available to students, as well as such a busy extra-curricular life, it seemed to me that students often felt unattached to the reasons behind their efforts. When I was told that as part of my Duke of Edinburgh Gold trip I would have to complete four days of grueling community service in a small community named Las Palmas, I had no way of predicting that this experience would mark me and radically force me to rethink my preconceived notion of what it meant to help another.

The day after our arrival in Peru, we met students from Markham College, in Lima, who had volunteered their time to help us perform our community service, building a set of stairs upon a steep hill, which would allow the members of said community to reach their houses and get around with ease. It all seemed like a valiant effort on our parts. The arrival of the Canadians would improve the lives of the people in need. Little did we know that the next fours days would probably have a larger effect on our lives than of those people in Las Palmas. Upon our arrival at the work sight, we debriefed, talked about the needs of the community and what we expected to gain from our experience and, very soon after, we commenced what I’m sure was the most grueling work any of us had ever undertaken.

Our stay in Las Palmas challenged us to reconsider our reasoning behind why we chose to take part in this project. Working alongside the locals who took pride in the work that we were to accomplish in the next few days, we gathered sand and stone, carried enormous bags of cement up steep, sandy hills, made concrete and poured it into molds that we had previously created for the stair, prepared the platform for the stairs, etc. I can honestly say that this was the most demanding work that we had ever undertaken and although many of us questioned why we had accepted to perform such exhausting work, there was a single moment that for many of us, made it all worthwhile. After the first series of steps were built and dried, the students from the nearby school, all under the age of 10 years, joined us to relish in our accomplishments. Amazed by our work they began to run up and down the stairs with a look of sheer joy plastered on their faces.

I am sure that all of the students lucky enough to go on this trip will never forget their experience and how much they were affected by the chance to help a community in need. The work was not pretty nor was it prestigious, but never have I taken part in something so gratifying. It was so evident to us how much the community had appreciated our work and although our time was limited, how much our relationships with the people we encountered will sculpt our upcoming years.

Looking upon those steps on the last days, I could not help but feel a sense of pride, not only in our work, but in our attempt to learn about a new culture, to unquestioningly be prepared to undertake any of the work that needed to be completed, but most importantly, I was proud in our readiness to leave all comfort zones aside in the effort to create something so much bigger that a few flights of stairs in a small community in Peru. –Noah Schouela ’11

Dernière visite à Paris…

Posted on February 21, 2011 by admin

Cette semaine était généralement très amusante. Samedi, je suis allé avec Pierre, Capucine et Hélène visiter le wagon dans lequel a été signé l’armistice. Après, nous avons visité le château de Compiègne. À mon avis, les autres châteaux que j’ai vus étaient plus intéressants. Nous sommes aussi allés à la soirée qu’ils organisent chaque mois. C’était tellement amusant et une bonne manière de rencontrer des nouvelles personnes.

Jeudi était ma dernière visite à Paris avec le Lycée. J’étais un peu malade, mais c’était quand même sympathique. Au début, nous avons fait un peu de courses et j’ai acheté des cadeaux pour ma famille. Après, la cousine d’Hélène est venue la chercher. Après le déjeuner, Katja, Fabianne et moi avons visité l’Arc de triomphe. C’est un endroit magnifique, mais le temps n’était pas très agréable, alors j’étais un peu déçu. À côté de l’Arc de triomphe, il y avait des breakdancers qui ont fait un spectacle superbe. Nous sommes montés dans l’Arc de triomphe mais la vue n’était pas très bonne. Il y avait trop de brouillard, nous n’étions même pas capables de voir la ville.

Généralement, mon séjour dans ce lycée était incroyable. Les élèves ont été gentils et j’ai bien aimé le temps que j’ai passé ici.—Samuel Ergina ’12

The Value of an International Perspective

Posted on February 17, 2011 by admin

Our gym has been adorned this week with 20 flags from various Round Square member-schools attending the Junior Round Square Conference. Most participating schools are from Canada, the USA and South America. However, some are from as far away as Denmark, South Africa, and Singapore. The flags are symbols of difference and diversity in schools in different countries with unique histories, cultures, languages and orientations.

A core objective of both LCC and the Round Square is to open students’ eyes to the broader world and create a sense of comfort with diversity and a genuine interest in developing an international perspective. This requires a focus on language skills, an appreciation of cultural traditions, as well as an awareness of key international historical and current events.

I cannot emphasize enough how important it is for each of our students to seek to know more about diversity at home and abroad. If education can be looked at as a tool kit, every student needs the tools to be a craftsman for success in the future. In addition to a comfort and interest with diversity, each needs another important set of tools: an awareness of major events in the world and major international trends and current events. Our world has become completely entangled and interdependent. We all need to be informed and take positions on a host of issues well beyond our back doors. For teenagers, there’s no time for “duck and cover” or avoidance because the issues are too complicated, and the world will catch up to them.

This past weekend we all saw amazing images and footage of the culmination of a people’s revolution in Egypt; swarming throngs of everyday people demanding their voices be heard after 30 years of living under conditions of virtual martial law with very limited personal freedoms. The resilience of the street protestors reflected a fantastic example of the depth of the desire for democracy. The events in Egypt send a powerful signal to other countries that have never had a democratic tradition.

Consider for a moment, what the impact will be on many other old monarchies and strongmen in the region of the Middle East & North Africa. Already since the weekend and the resignation by Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak, people in Tunisia, Yemen, Bahrain and Iran have openly protested in the streets even though their governments frown on it. In several other countries without democratic traditions, rulers are nervous.

Note that authorities in those places did everything in their power during the past three weeks to make sure that their citizens could not witness the elation of the ecstatic freedom street dance in Cairo. In those authoritarian countries, state-run television refused to show the images of the Egyptian street protest and, in Iran in particular, Persian-language BBC International was scrambled to prevent the flow of information. State control and limitations on the Internet and cell phone networks have also prevented the sharing of images and ideas from Egypt.

But you know as well as I do that governments cannot shield their people from the truth. In this day and age, the images and information will eventually surface. They will surely see the images of the Egyptian peoples’ democracy dance, just as the Chinese people did following the events in Tiananmen Square in Beijing the late 1980’s.

So how do the events in Egypt impact relations with Israel? What are the broader implications for the region? What is Canada’s role in all this?

Students may have no idea how to approach these complicated questions – and if they’re in grades 7, 8, and 9, that’s probably excusable. However, if they’re in grades 10, 11 and certainly Pre-U, I believe they should take a view, form an opinion, and quite simply, care. Our times mandate it.

So I offer students this simple piece of advice: pay attention to world events or risk being marginalized in the long term. So maybe we all should take a fresh look at those diverse flags again in our gym and see them as a starting point. Interesting, aren’t they?! —Chris Shannon, Headmaster