Duke of Edinburgh: Gold Winter Trip

Posted on February 28, 2012 by admin

From February 16 – 19, ten grade 11 students attended the Winter Duke of Edinburgh Gold journey. It was definitely a challenge, hiking and snowshoeing 44 km and dog-sledding 70 km within such a short span of time, and yet it was all so rewarding.

The part of this journey that remains so vivid in my mind is having the opportunity to hike through the sunrise. On the third day, we had to wake up at 4:00 am in order to accomplish our hike to arrive at the dog-sledding on time. Walking with flashlights when we commenced our hike and then slowly but surely seeing the sunrise is not only a memorable but also a beautiful experience.

Perhaps waking up at that hour was not ideal, but accomplishing such a unique hike was definitely worthwhile. After all that hard work, we spent two incredible days with the dogs we were dog-sledding with. The entire journey was one I will never forget and I am so proud to have completed it.—Caroline Ballard ’12.

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Australia: New Experiences

Posted on February 28, 2012 by admin

For just over a week, I have been living like a true Australian. So far, I have had the opportunity to visit the CBD of Melbourne, attend a footy game and appreciate Australia’s outstanding nature.

Here I am at Carey Baptist Grammar School, a partly outdoor school in the middle of the summer, while back home there are temperatures of below zero degrees! I have learned many new things about a country that used to seem so foreign to me. I now feel like I belong, having done nearly everything that an Australian would do on a daily basis.

My host family did a very good job at giving me a warm welcome to this country. On the very first day, it was a pleasant discovery to taste Tim Tams, which are incredible Australian cookies! On my second day, I went to school and made many new friends. My teachers were extremely kind to me as well. After school, on my third day, I had the opportunity to experience some of the beautiful nature of this country. I went to Studley Park and enjoyed the view of massive and stunning trees as well as exotic flowers.

On the Friday of my first week, I had the chance to attend an Australian “footy game.” This sport is mainly played in Australia and is similar to rugby. However, in contrast to rugby, to pass the ball to a teammate, you are allowed to throw or kick it. In order to score a goal, you must throw or kick the ball through goal posts. It was my very first time even hearing about this sport, and I thoroughly enjoyed watching a game. The game I attended was a preseason game in which three teams played: the Hawthorn Hawks, the Richmond Tigers and the North Melbourne Kangaroos. That night, each team versed each other once. In the end, they each had one win and one loss. I loved this experience!

On the weekend, I visited the CBD, Central Business District, otherwise known as downtown Melbourne. While I was there, I went biking along the Yarra River. Just two days later, I went kayaking on the Yarra River! Both activities were very amusing and exciting. I found it quite interesting to travel to downtown Melbourne from the bike path and waterway as there were things that caught my attention from kayaking on the Yarra River that I had not noticed when I was biking along it.

All in all, this has been a most amusing week and I am keen to know that there is much more to come. I have yet to see a kangaroo or a koala, but by the end of my six weeks, I will surely have done it all!–Matthew Kaspy ’14

Round Square: Every Day a New Adventure in South Africa

Posted on January 25, 2012 by admin

Waking up to a poolside breakfast followed by 18 holes of golf under the hot African sun seems like a suitable way to start off your day. Well, it’s how I begin most of my days here in South Africa. The air is warm, the sun always shines and life is good.

I am 23 days into my journey and have already seen more animals than most people would in their entire lives. From leopards, lions, elephants, hippos, crocodiles, and rhinos, to even small creatures like snakes, lizards, and turtles, not to mention hundreds of different exotic birds. You name it and there’s a good chance I’ve encountered it in one instance or another.

The family I am living with is wonderful and I’d like to say that I am ever grateful for them taking me into their home. I am treated with great hospitality and living on the luxurious side of life. Even though I am living in a high-class community, I am very aware of the social and economic problems that surround me. South Africa is actually one of the most affluent countries in Africa, but it is still a developing country. About a quarter of the population is unemployed and lives on under $2 a day. Crime, sexual assault, and corruption within the government are major issues that face South Africa.

I began school at St Stithians College on January 16. St Stithians College is a Methodist, all boys’ school. The campus is over 105 hectors, and holds almost 3000 students. It may be hard to imagine, but it is over 226 football fields in area. Some students board in dorms on campus, while others live quite close. Apart from the fantastic classes and teachers, St Stithians provides a variety of sport teams and clubs that are open to everyone. I have the privilege of participating in the Chess Club, Photography Club, the Music Club, the Track and Field team, and the Fitness team. St Stithians has been very welcoming to me and the other few exchange students. There are two boys from Columbia and one from England who I’ve been spending quite a bit of time with. The four of us are going on a special trip to the Apartheid Museum tomorrow, the first of many places that we will be visiting.

It has been quite the experience so far, with over a month to go. I learn new things everyday, and am grateful to be a part of Round Square. Who knows what I will do next? Every day is a whole new adventure. – Liam McMahon ’14

LCC’s Girls Hockey & Basketball Teams Journey to Boston

Posted on December 20, 2011 by admin

Lower Canada College’s girls hockey and girls basketball teams recently travelled to Boston on a trip that included four days of touring, bonding and some games against local area teams hosted at Pingree School. While both teams had an opportunity to share some time together, their differing tournament schedules also necessitated the pursuit of distinct itineraries. (See photos)

Following an afternoon check-in at their hotel on Thursday afternoon, both teams headed to downtown Boston where players had an opportunity to browse the various shops and boutiques of Newbury Street, followed by dinner at the original ‘Cheers’ near Boston Common. The next morning, both teams headed out early for a full day of activities and games. The girls hockey team visited the New England Aquarium, where they pet sharks and kissed sea lions–developed a flash mob dance routine, had clam chowder in a bread bowl for lunch at Joe’s followed by cannoli for desert from Mike’s Pastries in Little Italy. Their afternoon also included a tour of the Holocaust Memorial and an afternoon reprieve at Quincy Market. After a full day of touring, they headed out to their first tournament match against Marblehead High School, where they played a closely fought match against a tough opponent.

Meanwhile, the basketball girls had started their day out at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, followed by an extensive tour of Boston College, with the day culminating in a basketball game against Pingree School.

On Saturday, both teams spent the bulk of their days playing exciting, competitive hockey and basketball against local teams. Once again, the hockey team broke out into their dance routine, much to the entertainment of the local crowd, while Desiray Desousa impressed us all during the skills competition with her 100-km/hour slap shot! The day ended with both teams having dinner together at the Cheesecake Factory in Danvers.

On Sunday, the hockey team started its day with a march up to Bunker Hill, followed by an extensive tour, on all decks, of the still active 1797 battleship, the USS Constitution. The hockey team then headed back to Little Italy for lunch at ‘Lucia’s’, and ended their Boston Expedition with a final ‘flash mob’ dance routine at Boston’s Quincy Market, which was full of holiday shoppers. (See video) Meanwhile, the girl’s Basketball team toured the New England Aquarium and ended their day with some shopping at Quincy Market.

Players and coaches had an outstanding time. There was a lot of laughter and many lifetime memories were forged. Both teams represented LCC exceptionally well. A very special thanks goes out to our bus driver at Coach Canada, Franco, who was always accommodating, pleasant and professional. – Christian Auclair, Girls Hockey Team Coach

Discovery Day at the Montreal Neurological Institute

Posted on December 13, 2011 by admin

Last Tuesday, LCC’s grade 11 enriched physics and chemistry class went to the Montreal Neurological Institute for an exciting day of seminars and presentations given by doctors, researchers and grad students. Along with approximately 300 students from Montreal-area schools, we participated in the annual regional edition of the TD Discovery Day. The Discovery Day is a program funded by TD Bank that gives students from across Canada, who are interested in pursuing careers in health sciences, the opportunity to visit hospitals and also talk with doctors and other health care professionals to get a better sense of what the field is actually like.

In the morning, upon our arrival, we sat down in a large auditorium at the Neuro to listen to the chairman of the Discovery Days program tell us about the goals of the program. She then introduced the first keynote speaker, Dr. Phil Gold, who talked about his career as a doctor and about how he got into medicine. After that, we attended our first seminar session, of which there would be two. My first seminar was called “Anatomy of the Human Brain,” and it proved to be very interesting. It was taught by four McGill neurology students and for an hour and a half they lectured about the brain and the various functions of the different cortexes, or zones. At the end of the seminar, we even had the chance to touch a real human brain and see what the different cortexes actually look like in real life. That was really cool!

After lunch, we attended our second seminar, which was given by a speech pathologist who spoke about speech impediments and, more specifically, how to treat them. We got to see and touch all of the various devices that speech pathologists use to do their jobs, such as artificial larynxes and text to speech converters, which was very interesting. When that was over, we returned to the auditorium for a final keynote. It was a panel of five health professionals who talked about their jobs and listened and responded to questions asked by the audience. This was cool because we got to hear about the daily lives of real health professionals and ask them questions about their jobs.

At the end of the day we returned to school, wiser, more experienced, and, for some of us, more passionate about what we want to do with our futures. — Giulian Etingin-Frati ’12