South Africa Exchange: Spirit and Camaraderie

Posted on March 5, 2013 by admin

This exchange gets better and better with each passing week. Boarding school is an experience in itself. There are, and for me this is extraordinary, lots of sports. Playing basketball in blistering heat, with a light so bright that sunglasses are practically required equipment, is fantastic. Students show up en mass to cheer us on. There is a lot of spirit and camaraderie.

After playing a losing match on Saturday, the Van Biljons took us to Tiaan’s (Dirks Brother) farm, which is unlike any farm I’ve ever been to in Canada or Europe. Africa gets under one’s skin, that’s for sure.

The next day, we go to Rhino & Lion Park. We see African lions, African wild dogs and many other Lion King characters. I am enthralled, and rave about the African great five animals. I later learn that there are wonderful zoos in and around Montreal, which I, the third of four children, never visited. I am only mollified when I realize that no zoo anywhere else in the world will ever compare to this somewhat modest African reserve. In addition, I get to pet white lions and tiger cubs. This transforms an almost-but-not-quite ordinary afternoon in a small park into a major adventure.

A nice basketball victory jump started the weekend. Saturday, the Van Biljons organized a braai, which we call a BBQ. I love being part of this. This welcoming trait is one of the reasons that I feel so at home so far away from my own home. The braai is so much fun. We hang around the pool. I can tell that leaving South Africa won’t be easy.

Back to school for another week, which really does not seem like a chore at all. This says it all. – David Elbaz ’15

Student Exchange Thailand: The Meaning of Service

Posted on March 1, 2013 by admin

After a week and a half in Thailand, I began adjusting to the 12-hour time difference and the huge culture change in this beautiful foreign country. I have been staying in the boarding house at the Regent’s School and have met other boarders from many different places around the world from Russia to Lithuania. On February 16th the school had a 10- day break for their half term. During this time they offered a community service project trip to northern Thailand near the popular city of Chiang Mai. As an exchange this brought an amazing opportunity to travel the country more and I was excited to see cities other than Pattaya.

Once we got to the Ban Maelid School, our home for the next five days, we were greeted by about 100 young Thai students bowing at us as we passed by them in the cars. We got to meet the kids briefly and then toured the school. First, we were shown the bathrooms which were Thai style, meaning the showers were buckets of cold water that you pour onto yourself, and you had to squat for the toilet. This was a huge change and it was somewhat good news to hear that we were sleeping on the classroom floors.

Spending five days at this school was life-changing. We got to rotate between four activities throughout the day. The first was learning the students’ language and culture known as Karen, the second was teaching the children English, the third consisted of a P.E. class where we played sports with the kids, and the last was helping the community construct a water tank which included building a cement wall. Everyday surpassed the last as the kids were so friendly and eager to learn, and the staff were so welcoming and hospitable. It was very difficult to communicate with the students because we didn’t speak the same language, but I still had the opportunity to make many friends.

It was hard seeing the villages the students live in because it seems so unfair how these kids deserve so much but have so little. Yet despite this they are always so happy. I learned how skilled they become at inventing fun activities to do with their friends to pass the time while simply using rocks or sticks.

On our last night we had a bonfire with the small group of Ban Maelid students that board at the school. After eating, everybody started dancing and we got to experience traditional Thai dancing. It ended up being a huge dance party around the fire pit and everybody was having fun doing the Gagnam Style and the Macarena!

The following day we got ready to leave and had to say our farewells to the Ban Maelid family. As we said goodbye to the students, they gave us tons of bracelets and letters that they made and it brought tears to most of our eyes. It was sad leaving, but it made me realize how lucky I was to have done this trip and it didn’t truly feel like I was doing community service but more like I had been given the gift to meet these wonderful and unforgettable people. –Sarah Humes ’15

Student Exchange Tasmania: Different “Beasts” – Literally

Posted on March 1, 2013 by admin

This past weekend was honestly, INCREDIBLE! I would say the overall theme was…. animals, but really different animals. We visited a zoo on Saturday and a seahorse and platypus well on Sunday. I had the chance to see some great Tasmanian animals and learn so much more about their lifestyle.

The zoo is about a five-minute drive from ‘my’ house. Ashley’s mom, Rachel, dropped us off and together we walked around in the hot sun on a self-guided tour. There were plenty of birds, all from Tasmania and very colourful. There were also, emus, lambs, sheep, alligators, monkeys, wild dogs and my personal favourites, kangaroos and a Tasmanian devil!! The kangaroos were especially cute; we had the chance to feed them and the next thing we knew they were following us and jumping around to go wherever we were going. The Tasmanian devil is a whole other story. I don’t know what I was really expecting but I must say it was adorable. It kind of looked like a tiny black bear. While we were observing it, an employee was feeding it a wallaby bone, which was actually a little disturbing. Although it seemed like a lot of animals to me, the zoo actually had a limited number because of some policies that made it difficult for them to receive and cage animals in their zoo.

Sunday was very exciting as we went to Beauty-Point to see platypus and seahorse wells. We also had the chance to see echidnas, which were actually just crawling around as we walked into their room. The seahorse and platypus well was really interesting because I got to learn about their habitat, diet, genetics, class and so much more. I was even given the chance to hold a seahorse!

Anyway, this was another amazing weekend and I honestly can’t believe how quickly my trip is going by. —Leah Salzman ’15

Student Exchange: Settling Into Life in Tasmania

Posted on February 25, 2013 by admin

Another fantastic week in Tasmania! There must be some unspoken Tasmanian rule about being hospitable: my host family and schoolmates have helped me feel quite settled and comfortable in a short period of time. At school I am starting to make some really good friends, which makes the days even more enjoyable.

I started my new schedule (separate from my exchange) at school this week.I am attending some really interesting classes—some with grade 10 others with grade 11 students—such as textiles, cooking, photo media and advertisement. In fact, Thursday, I had a cooking class where we made rice pudding and “toad in the hole,” a Tasmanian dish that consists of a sausage with a sort of salty pancake around it (kind of like pigs in a blanket). I am taking French here, too, which has been entertaining, and actually helpful. Since we are learning the basics, it’s kind of like a review. All the classes have been great and I love having the chance to experience some different courses than those I take at home.

One of my extra-curricular activities is basketball. Playing on an exchange school basketball team is proving to be another great experience. This is not only a sport I really enjoy; I am also happy to have the opportunity to become friends with the girls on my team. We even won our first game on Thursday, 42-4!

This week I participated in the school’s swimming carnival, where students from each house (there are four) compete by age and category. I swam in the under 16, 25-meter breaststroke, backstroke and freestyle. Other people also did 50-meter and 100-meter races. Everybody wore their house colors and cheered on their teammates.

Overall, this past school week was amazing and, I am looking forward to the exciting activities we have planned for this weekend.—Leah Salzman ’15

Student Exchange: Appetizing Tasmania!

Posted on February 18, 2013 by admin

I have now been in Australia for one week and three days. My experience has been incredible and has exceeded my expectations. I landed in Hobart, Tasmania on the 7th of February where I was greeted by Ashley (my exchange) and her mom. We then drove two hours to Launceston (after 33 hours of traveling, I fell asleep about ten minutes into the car ride!). Once we arrived in Launceston, I met the other members of the wonderful family: Craig the dad, Taylor who is 12 and Payton who is 5. The Brown family was (and is) so welcoming and kind; from the very beginning they made me feel at home. Well, not exactly … the sun was ridiculously strong and seeping through the windows, which, wasn’t exactly like home, neither was the huge garden with endless vegetables, fruits and herbs. Oh, and the homemade pizza we had for dinner; that was nothing like my usual Domino’s!

The next day, I started off with a nutritious breakfast of Milo and Tim Tams (chocolate and more chocolate!!), and a relaxing day, which was followed by an amazing weekend. When Saturday came, the first stop was the farmer’s market, an outdoor market that consists of roughly 50 stands where people were selling fresh foods. I tried new and delicious vegetables and fruits, homemade raspberry ice cream and cheeses. The fruit here is unbelievable and we always have tons in the house (e.g., nectarines, apples, peaches, cherries, strawberries and apricots). During the afternoon Ashley and I went into town and browsed some of the local shops. Sunday was yet another beautiful day spent outside in the sun. We went to the ‘Festivalie;’ a three-day festival that occurs once a year in Launceston. Food stores from all over Tasmania set up stands to sell their provisions while people enjoy entertainment, such as dancing, singing, acting and more. Not only did I get to watch tons of performances but I also tried some great local Tasmanian food such as sausage, chocolate-covered raspberries, pancakes with ice cream, and ginger beer. To end the weekend, Sunday night while we were sitting on the porch, believe it or not, there were wallabies and kangaroos sitting and hopping in the backyard!

Finally Monday came and it was time for me to go to school. I was nervous, excited and hot in my LCC uniform. School has been nothing but fantastic from the people to the classes and the environment to the activities. For the first few days I joined Ashley in all of her classes. Their timetable is very different than ours. They have double periods (two of the same periods, back-to-back) for a total of 90 minutes, and therefore, they only have three subjects per day. In addition, the senior school alone (there are different campuses for middle and senior school) has seven buildings, each containing different classrooms. Therefore, we are fortunate enough to walk outside to get to all of our classes. Also, for lunch, we can eat wherever we want with whomever we want! I have eaten lunch outside everyday so far which I really do appreciate. I am looking forward to what next week will bring and I can easily say I am having heaps of fun! –Leah Salzman ’15