The First Month: Year 5 September Recap

Hi blog readers,

Yes indeed I have been back in Macau for quite some time and despite the routine of teaching being something I have managed with a far greater degree of consistency and confidence this year, the blog seems to have been the one thing that I have not quite been able to get around to updating.  For that I apologize.  But you probably didn't come here to hear my apologize for a lack of an update.  You want to know what the start of another year looks like.

As I alluded to before, the routine of teaching is something I've managed to get a better handle on.  The transition to a new year is always filled with many new beginnings but I'm happy to know my place within the school community.  This is the first year in a while where I'll be teaching a brand new batch of students for the first time.  Because of the transition from grade 7 to grade 9, I've had the unique opportunity to re-teach the same group of kids twice.  I fully embrace teaching a new group again and if the first month is any indication, I'm in for another great year with a loveable group of students!

But classes aren't the only that hits the ground running at the start of the school year.  Volleyball is back on and this year, I've solely dedicate myself to the senior girls team.  What can I say about this group that I haven't already said?  They are a fantastic bunch and I'm so excited to start another memorable and hopefully ground-breaking year with these girls.  I've really told myself to embrace every moment this year because some of the members of the first squad (back in the junior program) I worked with will be graduating after the end of this year and unlike 2 years ago, this year it really will be the hardest set of goodbyes, as they will be leaving for good.  The marquee ACAMIS tournament rolls up at the end of October, so we are already well into the swing of things.  The first game action the girls will see is the PRC tournament at the start of October in Shenzhen, a place that despite being in Macau for 4+ years, I've never been to before.

Outside of school, I'm back to my old familiar task of running the youth group and dinner club.  This year, I'm blessed to be backed by two amazing ladies (who are also fellow teachers and Fall Break trip buddies) with a real passion for the youth and helping them understanding the how Christianity fits within the context of the experience of adolescence.  I just have a feeling that it's going to be a year of tremendous growth for the youth program and the kids within it.  Not much needs to be said for dinner club; we've got some new teachers eager with their attendance and it's been a great opportunity to get to know the new faces that have landed at the school.

Despite a busy September, October promises even more craziness.  There is are two volleyball tournaments on the schedule, along with the grade 9 Dom Bosco trip.  It'll also be the when the first set of report card comments are due.  But to start it all off, there is the much anticipated Fall Break trip to Chiang Mai, Thailand.  It's a location that I've long wanted to travel to but with no luck in finding suitable travel buddies for.  All of a sudden, I find myself going on this trip with an old high school friend, and the leading ladies from youth group.  A bit of rag-tag collection of travel partners, but I'm know it'll be a great time!

Be sure to check back again soon to see trip highlights and stories from Dom Bosco and PRC volleyball.  I'll end off this entry with the usual photo section.

This is a fine looking team, with the skills to match.  Meet the TIS senior girls volleyball competition team!

These are some of the coolest lockers I've ever seen.  They even have charging ports in them!

It's about time they put up our latest SCISAC conquest ;)

Not far from where I live is a secluded but gorgeous view of the Macau Peninsula side.

Good for when the firework competitions are taking place.

Took my first hike up to the Peak in Hong Kong.  Other things highlights during my day trip to HK included a visit to the Wan Chai Computer Centre, and dim sum!

It's like being in Portu... erm... I mean Macau.

First time up to Mount Fortress (or a name like that), offers great views of Macau, similar in a lot of ways to Guia Fortress.

The "acropolis" of Macau supposedly

I'll be seeing a lot of these ladies over the next little while.  They're my co-leaders for youth group and trip buddies to Chiang Mai!

Another Year Closing

It was another long stretch between the end of spring break and the trip to India until the end of another school year.  As we proceeded down the final stretch, the end of year festivities offers some interesting occasions and experiences.  This final segment of the year also affords an opportunity to see through things that I wanted to do this year.

Dim Sum, nothings says South China better than Dim Sum

So much seafood! Nom nom nom!

Macau University Training Restaurant serving a pretty good rack of lamb and Bloody Mary

Ate up at the Macau Tower 3 times the last few months of the year, great food and great view

Dinner club stop

Nga Tim Cafe

Dinner club is one of the consistent parts of my life in Macau.  Not exactly sure how I came to inherit the leadership of the club after my first year but it has been wonderful running the club week to week; being able to share a relaxing meal and conversation with other teachers at the school, something I need considering how much time I spend with my students. 

Lantau Island, HK shrouded in low lying clouds

Ngong Ping Village, Lantau Island

Visiting the Big Buddha

He is big

Jumbo-sized incenses

Po Lin Monastery

Street side restaurant at Temple Street Night Market

Sai Kung in the New Territories of HK; a place I was introduced to thanks to SCISAC volleyball.  I'll definitely be checking this place out more next year.

Hong Kong Park, a park in the middle of the urban jungle

There's a tea museum and shop within the park and there's no better way to kill a lazy afternoon in HK than spending it with tea and snacks.  

This year I made more trips to Hong Kong than in any previous years, including several overnight trips.  It was not a place that particularly interested me that much once you've hit up all the major tourist attractions.  But through my trips to Hong Kong this year, I've discovered some more hidden away gems that has allowed Hong Kong to grow on me.  By comparison to Macau, Hong Kong is much more cosmopolitan and sophisticated, and it's the type of place I've sort of grown unaccustomed to having lived the past 9 years in the relative quiet of places like Macau, Kingston, and suburban Toronto.  However, I've really come to love the energy, diversity, and blending of eastern and western cultures that is showcased by Hong Kong.  Among the new places I've checked out were Stanley Market, Temple Street Night Market, Hong Kong Park, and the Big Buddha.

 
Working with young people has been always been a fulfilling experience for me.  This is not more true than with the kids from my church's youth group.  There are probably more exciting ways to spend my Friday nights or the occasional Saturday afternoons, but being a mentor an unbelievable group of kids is an experience far more rewarding and meaningful than anything else I could be doing in that time.  That is what makes it really hard to say goodbye to so many of them as they leave Macau next year.

Control studio; backstage at the House of Dancing Water

Prop storage

Boat scene dive rehearsal for the House of Dancing Water

The whole grade 9 group was invited to go backstage at the House of Dancing Water show at the City of Dreams casino right across the street from the school.  It is a breath-taking show that I've seen twice and wouldn't mind seeing again.  I don't know about the kids, but I was incredibly excited to see how a multi-million dollar show is put together.

Coolest teacher ever right?

Comics appreciation club selfie at our "field trip" to the opening weekend of Avengers: Age of Ultron

This year, I ran my first extra-curricular club.  This all started innocently enough with me watching a tv series called Arrow, based on the comic book character Green Arrow from DC comics.  Naturally, some of the students at the school also followed similar comic shows and wanted to share happenings from the shows with other students who were enthusiastic about the evolving comics film/tv media.  I had to do a little studying up on the subject material because I really didn't follow comics much as a kid.  Slowly things progressed and eventually the comic appreciation club was born.  The club turned out to be a much bigger deal to the kids than I originally thought it would be, with more and more kids coming each week.  They were enthusiastic and committed to our weekly gatherings and some even told me Wednesdays was their favourite day of the week because of the club.  The highlight was taking an unofficial field trip to Galaxy cinemas to watch Avengers: Age of Ultron.  Many of them have pandered to me, hoping I'll run the club again next year which I will gladly oblige.

Extra-curriculars and teams are the best ways really get to know the students, I love the opportunity to connect with them in a special way, outside the classroom.  Up to this year, I've only ever coached and specifically coached girls volleyball, so the profile of students I've gotten to really connect with is really quite narrow.  This comics appreciation club has been an opportunity to get to know other students at the school of a very different profile.  I can safely say that both myself and the students of the club have really enjoyed the opportunity to share something that is of personal interest between all of us.  But as of yet, I have neglected to talk about the group I've established the closest bond with.

The junior girls get rewarded for the SCISAC championship with chocolate fondue.  Best coach ever!

So good but so expensive!

Our volleyball grade 9 grade selfie... that the boys of the grade ruined.

I took the junior girls up to HKA again at the end of the year for another friendly against our closest rivals.  Goes to show the beauty of sports in being able to against connect and build each other up as athletes and people while still maintain that competitive fire on the court.

Athletics Banquet with the Junior Girls SCISAC winning team

Ah, what a wonderful experience it has been watching these beautiful young ladies of the senior girls volleyball team grow up over the years.

My sassy team captain.  Took some time to get used to her, but I love her personality and she has been a great field general for the senior girls.

Sad to see this girl go.  She's an all around amazing student, athlete, and person.  Enjoyed every moment sharing the classes, practices, and games with her and it was special to really get to know her family as well. 

She's our head of school's daughter, someone I've taught twice, coached since grade 6, and regularly attends youth group all these years.  I've seen her grown is every facet of her life; becoming a stellar student, team captain, and a member of the worship team at church.

Personalized jerseys.  We're going to be an even better looking team next year.

So it's finally come to fruition, this idea of personalized jerseys that we've been trying to set up over the last 3 years.  Funny thing, it's so hard to use personalized jerseys in volleyball because you need 2 jersey colours (if you use a libero), so all of a sudden we're putting down an order for 40 jerseys!  It's a big team next year.

In retrospective to our ground-breaking seasons, I put together a highlight video for both teams:

Junior Girls Volleyball Highlight Video

Senior Girls Volleyball Highlight Video

I can't say what I haven't already about working with these young ladies.  They make the countless hours that I've invested into coaching them worth it.  It'll eternally remain a regret that I never pushed myself to play up to as far as my abilities would take me when I was a student, but through my teams I get to live that experience.  That in of itself makes for a great team experience but adding to that is the wonderful composition of personalities that really makes it fun to have these girls as my teammates as well.  It really is a special thing to see them work cohesively to get to the ultimate goal, and in the process, grow in their character as well.  However, managing 2 teams with 5 practices a week was a little ridiculous.  With so many SCISAC players moving up to the senior team and with almost zero turnover of players from the ACAMIS group, it made sense to continue developing the group that I`ve been working with for past 4 years.  Unity and cohesion are a big part of the success of girls teams and I know my presence will bring an element of stability to the girls of the senior team next year.  That is one less thing they'll have to worry about, because we'll be faced with a very short window until the ACAMIS tournament at the end of October, hosted once more by HKA.

So, another year has gone by and another relaxing summer awaits.  As ever, there will be new adventures that will come with the new school year.  Some will be expected and others, less so.  The beauty of both teaching and living abroad is that you can always count on each day being different from the next. 

I Have a Feeling We're Not in East Asia Anymore (India trip)

The last week-long break of the year was coming up and I had a very unique travel experience to India.  Being the furthest trip point I've taken during a school break (other than back to Canada of course), this trip offered a chance to see a very different part of Asia.  It was also special because it was a guided trip and with a reasonably large group of other teachers from TIS.

We arrived into Delhi late Saturday night and went straight off to the hotel.  No time for sightseeing as we have a super early morning the next day, to catch a train to the city of Agra where we would spend the day.  Our first stop in Agra was to a walled city called Fatehpur Sikri.  It was a magnificent site where nearly everything was built from a striking red sandstone.  Most amusing sight at Fatehpur Sikri, was a tomb for the city's elephant.  This was no ordinary elephant however; this royal elephant was given the specific task of trampling the deviants and rebels of the city's rulers.  So beloved was this elephant that he received his own tomb outside the city walls when he died.

In the afternoon, we went into the heart of Agra to visit one of the Seven Ancient Wonders of the World, the Taj Mahal.  Translating to "palace of crowns", the Taj was a mausoleum, built by an emporor for his favourite wife.  The building itself and the grounds it stands on was remarkably built to an exceptionally high degree of symmetry.  Even more remarkable still is the fact that the Taj is constructed entirely of white marble which reflects light in uniquely beautiful way.

Our last stop in Agra was to Agra Fort.  Just downstream of the Yamuna river, Agra Fort was another nexus point of the Mughal empire from centuries past.  Just like Fatehpur Sikri, the fort is built almost exclusively of red sandstone and combined with the fact that we were visiting at around sunset, made for beautiful lighting of the ancient fort.

After returning to Delhi on the same day, we had another short rest before yet another super early morning to board yet another train, this time taking us up to Hardiwar, where we would be shuttled up to the Himalayan mountain range to Camp Snow Leopard which was organizing our tour.  We spent the most of the rest of the trip at their main camp.  The camp was located just up the bank from the Ganges (or Ganga in Indian) river.  If you've heard of the Ganges river before, it probably because it's one of the influential rivers of the world both because of it's scale, ecological and cultural importance much like Amazon or Nile River.  The primary religion in India is Hinduism and in Hinduism, the Ganga is a sacred river.  Hindus believe that the waters of the Ganga flows from heaven down to Earth, and seeing as how the waters drain from the melted snow and ice from the Himalayas, this belief makes a degree of sense.  Bathing in the Ganga river is said to cleanse a lifetime's worth of sins and therefore Hindus across the world will make a pilgrimage to the banks of the Ganga at some point in their lives.  The Ganges is also notorious for being one of the world's most polluted rivers (not at our camp point, as it is well upstream), after passing through major cities such as Varanasi and Calcutta. 

During our time at the camp, we partook in several adventure activities.  We zip-lined across the Ganges a few times, there was also multiple trips on the Ganges itself for some intense white-water rafting adventures, and a hike through the mountains and valleys at the base of the Himalayas.  One evening we even had the chance to stay a night on the beach.  To stay that you sleep on the banks of the Ganges and woke up to join in with a yoga class is something very few people can claim to have done.  Being in a quiet region of India also afforded us the chance visit a smaller towns like Rishikesh or tribal villages to check out authentic Indian culture as our guide describes.

When our time in the Himalayan countryside had come to an end, we ventured back to Delhi (on another early morning train ride) for a final day of adventures.  We visited a few markets and shops in the city before heading to the airport to journey back home.  It was quite the unforgettable trip and I am very grateful to have seen a part of the world that is distinctly different from any other place I've been to before.  That is the beauty of travel; a point I've grown very fond of over the years I've worked abroad.  I've heard and read about so many of these places in the world but to actually be in that place is adds so many different dimensions to our understanding of a location.

So now another year winds down.  But not before a few more local adventures.  The end of the year is always a busy time.  As teachers we simultaneously are juggling three things at the end of the year: continuing to plan for the current school year, planning & setup for the upcoming one, and putting together all the year-end events (exams, graduation, athletics banquet, and other milestone acknowledgment events).  You'll hear back once more from me before summer is upon us.

Fatehpur Sikri, Akbar's former capital

Fine sandstone details

Public square within Fatehpur Sikri

The inner citadel

Vendors on the streets of Agra

India's renowned traffic mayhem.  Took 30 minutes to get through this intersection.

Gateway to the Taj Mahal

Taj Mahal

Designed with a high degree of symmetry in mind.

Agra Fort

Kind of reminded me of Minas Tirith from Lord of the Rings, only redder.

The view from the top of Agra Fort, looking down to the Taj Mahal

Bovine taking over the town

The town of Rishikesh

Sunset on the Ganges

Evening prayer on the Ganges, a site of great importance to the Hindus

Bathing in the sacred waters of the Ganga

Sights from the mountain trek.

Usually I'm not big on admiring my own pictures but this one really stands out for me.

Crossing one of the many streams that drain into the Ganga.

How many people get to say that they've zip-lined over the Ganges River?

Yoga pose at dawn on the Ganges.  How much more Indian can you get?

The snow capped Himalaya mountains

The starting point of the Ganga.