Monthly Archives: February 2010

On the Road

2 Things I Love: Weddings and Food

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After beachcombing, I returned to the hotel to brush my teeth and swipe on another layer of deodorant before heading out to dinner. Mid-brushing, I heard some serious drumming outside the hotel. I danced around the room a bit and then went down to the lobby to meet Helene and Je. While I waited, another workshop attendee, Melinda, showed up. She and her retired husband live in Aleppo, Syria. I invited them to join us for dinner.

When we walked outside, the drumming was still going gangbusters. Melinda said it was a wedding procession. They had just picked up the bride and were on their way to the wedding. Unable to resist, I led the gang on a quick detour in the direction of the drums.

We came upon an ornate silver chariot pulled by two gold-bedecked horses. The bride, groom and two other young women sat in the carriage. Crowds of revelers proceeded them, drumming and cheering. Fantastic! (I’m actually only awake at this moment because the wedding festivities are continuing in to the night. Fireworks. Music. Lots of car horns. It was fun while it lasted, people. Time to get on with the honeymoon.)
The spotlights made it hard to get a good photo.
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Here’s a quick video. Stupid spotlight.

After we ogled the wedding procession, we made our own procession to find a restaurant recommended by several locals. Walking at night on dark streets in Mumbai is dangerous business. Rickshaws and cars whip around the dogs, pedestrians and each other; chunks of concrete dot the path; gaping holes appear out of nowhere; who knows what you might step in? We finally got to Mahesh Lunch Home and ordered way too much food. Everything was delicious, and Melinda gave our doggy bag to a beggar on the way back to the hotel. (That’s Al and Melinda, who live in Syria, on the left. On the right, Je, a teacher in the Philippines; Helene, a French teacher at my school; and me.)
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After dinner, the waiters brought this selection of breath-freshening treats, including little “jimmies” that tasted like Good-N-Plenty candy. Some of you may be impressed at how I was able to make my usual goofy expression without forehead wrinkles. Thanks God for the iPhoto editing tool!
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On the Road

Beach Blanket Bingo and Other Sights at the Mumbai Seaside

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When I woke up Friday morning, I felt stiff and sluggish from Thursday’s long flight and late arrival. I just wanted to get through the workshop and come back to the hotel for a rest. Typical extrovert, though, I soon felt energized from my interactions with other workshop attendees. By the end of the day, I was ready to take on Mumbai. Unfortunately, a politician is in town for a big speech, and the locals suggested sticking close to the hotel or risking hours in bumper-to-bumper traffic.

Another teacher staying at our hotel mentioned a walk on the beach. Beach? My colleague, Helene (French teacher at VIS), and I arrived at midnight and then boarded a bus to the workshop first thing in the morning. I had no idea the Juhu Beach was right around the corner from our hotel! Yippee!

As soon as the workshop ended, Helene, Je (a teacher in the Philippines) and I took a stroll on the beach. This was like no beach I’ve seen before. In lieu of funnel cakes and sno-cones, vendors hawked grilled corn, chana masala, chopped dried fruit in little newspaper packets, and many other snacks I couldn’t identify. In the absence of an arcade, gamesters could aim BB guns at a balloon display. In the place of rollercoasters and nausea-inducing spinny rides, children (and adults) climbed aboard the manually operated 4-car Ferris wheel and a carousel of miniature cars. Ladies offered to henna our hands. Men tried to sell us maps of India, and then said, “You’re breaking my heart!” when we declined. And throngs of people cruised the beach, some with shoes in hand as they splashed in the surf.

The brilliantly colored and bedazzled saris wafted in the breeze, sometimes dragging in the water if the young lady was too enamored with the boy on her arm to notice her waterlogged hem, and sometimes caked with sand if the woman was plopped on the ground digging holes and burying her children’s squiggly toes. One big group of ladies sat in plastic chairs and on mats, apparently playing a Bingo-like game. The leader shook a plastic bag full of tiles, and then she would pull one out and announce something. Youngsters rolled around the sand nearby.

As the sun set, I watched a little fishing boat pull in to shore. The water was full of trash, and the salty sting of ocean breezes was replaced by the slight scent of sewage. But no matter. The beach, any beach, nourishes my spirit.

Strolling on the beach.
More Strolling

Beach Crowds

Ladies playing some kind of game at Juhu Beach.
Ladies Playing a Game

Snacks and Rides at Juhu Beach.
Chana Masala

Grilled Corn

Yummy Looking Fruit

Beach Rides

Fishermen row ashore.
Fishermen

On the Road, Teaching

PYP-ing

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Another weekend, another workshop.

This time, I’m in Mumbai, India, for training in the Primary Years Program, which is the elementary school component of the International Baccalaureate. So far, it’s mostly stuff I had already learned when a trainer visited our school earlier this year, but I think tomorrow’s sessions will get a little more in-depth.

I met teachers who are working in India, Syria, the Philippines, Hong Kong, China, Sri Lanka and Poland (where he said it’s presently -20°C!), and I really enjoyed hearing about their experiences. I even saw a familiar face: Gavin – a Kiwi we met on vacation in Turkey when we were gearing up for the 2005 job fair. Turns out he was working at Shanghai American School, and he encouraged us to pursue jobs there. Of course, the rest is history. He and his wife work in Hong Kong now. I know I say it all the time, but I just love when paths cross unexpectedly in this international teaching world.

Daily Life, Laos

Shakespeare for Dummies

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There’s not a lot going on in this sleepy hamlet of Vientiane, so when I get word of anything remotely interesting coming to town, I jump on it. Last night, a little crowd gathered in a small conference room at the Novotel to see Daniel Foley, who has performed his show “Shakespeare for Dummies” in more than 60 countries as part of his Performance Exchange project.

Foley shuffled on to the makeshift stage, held up a drink and told the audience, “We’ll get started in just a minute …” He pulled off his slacks to reveal a pair of jodhpurs and then wiggled in to a fitted velvet jacket with lace trim, and the transformation was complete.

The first half of Foley’s presentation featured random facts about life in Shakespeare’s time, interspersed with theatrical interpretations of historical events and bits from the Bard’s plays. He asked for volunteers and must have heard my psychic message: “Pick me! Pick me!” I was brought on stage to be Juliet. Mike, the husband of our school nurse, was singled out to be Romeo. Foley told me to kneel on a satin-slipcovered chair (aka the balcony), look longingly to the back of the room, and recite those famous lines: “Romeo! Romeo! Wherefore art thou, Romeo?” So I did. Then he asked me to add a bit more drama, so I hammed it up with some drawn-out r-rolling and gesticulations. Then he asked, “Where did this play take place?” and the audience answered, “Verona!”

“Well, Romeo and Juliet must have had Italian accents then!” he exclaimed.

So I said my lines again: “Rrrromeo! Rrrromeo! Where-a-fore art-a thou, Rrrromeo?!” Mike then parroted Foley’s recitation of the “But soft, what light through yonder window breaks?” speech in a cheesy Italian accent and over-the-top gestures. We got a lot of laughs.

Mike must have made a good impression because it turned out to be The Mike Show for the rest of the evening. He took the stage again and again to play a Roman soldier, act out a speech from Othello, demonstrate stage combat, and more.

We all filed out of the conference room for a fancy buffet dinner, followed by a Shakespeare quiz, which Foley warned we “couldn’t win!” He tossed out lines, and the audience tried to guess the play. I knew ONE quote from Macbeth and a few from various comedies. Luckily there were several Shakespeare scholars in the room eager to show off their knowledge. During the Q&A, I did a few mental eyerolls when people asked pretentious questions framed in such a way to spotlight their obvious superior intelligence.

Mike and I asked Foley for a photo after the show, and I had to snicker when the deputy ambassador from Burma hopped up on the stage to pose with us.
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On the Road, Teaching

Gettin’ Tech-y with my BFFs

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When I was in high school, our technology lessons involved writing binary code to create an animation of a launching rocket. Not very practical stuff. Today’s youth are digital natives who could probably launch a real rocket if they had the tools. They surf, tweet, post, click, e-mail, IM, SMS, download, upload, google, install, search, blog, vlog, glog, bookmark, comment, moderate, network, tag, RSS, link, and create. And then they go to school.

In the classroom, teachers often face systemic and psychological barriers to using technology. Maybe the internet connection is weak. Maybe the school or country has banned useful web-based applications. Maybe the computers are old and slow. Maybe there ARE no computers. And maybe we just feel intimidated. After all, we are the digital immigrants in this scenario.

In Shanghai, I was fortunate to work with many tech-savvy teachers. I saw first-hand how seamless integration of technology in the classroom translated to motivated, enthusiastic, inquisitive students. Once you’ve seen the power of 21st-century education, you just can’t go back to the ol’ chalk-and-talk approach.

My excitement was piqued again this weekend at Tech Train 2010, an EARCOS weekend workshop at the International School of Bangkok. We focused on blogs, wikis, digital storytelling, Creative Commons, global collaboration, and personal learning networks. The two-day workshop culminated with a “speed geeking” session, where we showcased our final projects. My head is buzzing with ideas as I head back to Vientiane. My biggest challenge will be NOT to try everything at once.

As if all that weren’t fantastic enough, one of the workshop leaders was Tara Ethridge, an inspirational techmeister librarian and former Shanghai American School-Pudong colleague, AND three of my favorite people were among the attendees: Amy and Kathy, who still work at SAS, and Colleen, another former Pudonger who is now elementary librarian at Saigon South International School. Amy, Col and I participated in the “next steps cohort” to build our tech repertoire, and Kath bravely attended the “beginners cohort,” where she launched a blog. Way more exciting than launching a 2-D rocket!

Here, Col, Amy and I collaborate on a digital storytelling project.
Digital storytelling

Tara’s husband, Dale, and daughter, Sojo, were hanging out at school. Sojo told us all about her upcoming show, which she is creating, producing and starring in. She sang “Good-bye, Friends” and demonstrated her robot moves.
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Arriving at ISB for our second day aboard the Tech Train.
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We had such a great time catching up! Saturday night, Tara met us at our hotel to go out to dinner, but we never ventured past the hotel’s 27th-floor club lounge, where we took advantage of free appetizers and cocktails for almost three hours. We were even treated to a colorful display of fireworks, reminiscent of our days in China.
The gang’s all here: Tara, Kathy, me, Colleen, and Amy.
at the lounge