I wandered back into the park for a table tennis outing, arriving around 9:00 am.  It looked like the regular group of players had been there for a while, as well as some new faces (at least to me.)  They immediately got me playing. I ended up hitting with 8 different people. I’m still a novelty while they examine my grip and how I play. The park was full of people. The other two TT tables were constantly busy. Several women were hitting badminton cocks back and forth. Kids were toddling around, chased by their grandparents.

I noticed one guy enter the park carrying a basket. In the basket was a large plastic bowl. I couldn’t see what was inside until later, when he pulled out a large turtle and set it on a small table. He was treating it like a pet, taking it to different parts of the park, and showing it off.

I met Judy at 11:30 at the apartment. We went over to the Yashow Market to shop for some things for Judy’s music classes. We didn’t find what we needed, but did enjoy a few bargaining battles with the vendors on some other items. Then we walked next door for lunch at Cantina Agave (Mexican food.) Next was Dragonfly Spa for Judy, and swimming for me. We met back at the apartment later, finishing up schoolwork and watching a couple of “Lost” episodes (we’re getting near the end.)

BISS INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITION DAY! We have a very full half-day ahead of us. I’m going with Judy and she has to be at school around 7:45am. We arrive a little early and Judy begins getting her stuff in place. Students are picked up at home by their regular buses and delivered to the school. The International Parade begins around 8:30. Students and staff (and husbands) walk as a group across the stage when the country is introduced. The national anthem for each country is playing as the group begins to walk. It’s an impressive ceremony watching groups parade with their flag, most of them wearing the traditional clothing of their country. The Australians and the Americans only have t-shirts. I’m not sure what the national attire of our country is?

We’re “geared up” for International Day.

Amanda, 4th grade teacher, and her son Lucas. She made the clothes

India

China

Korea

After the parade, each grade level has a musical performance. It’s a cute picture as each group sings, dressed in their costumes. There are a couple of traditional Chinese dances thrown in. After the musical performances, there are games (sponge throw, etc.) run by the different grade levels. The money earned will be donated to various children’s charities.

Pre-K and Kindergarten

The Latvians sang some of their National Songs. It’s all one family except the tall girl in the middle and the tallest boy. The rest are the family of Ruta and Sandis, BISS teachers. Ruta made the clothes, and the girls floral head wreaths.

There is also a food tasting. Parents from each country group have tables set up and serve traditional foods. We end up focusing on the Indian foods. Man, I love the curry rice and samosas.

Exhibition Day ends at 1:00 pm. The students get back on their buses and leave. Judy puts away her stuff and we head home. After the early morning wake-up and a day in the sun, our naps are really great.

Several of the male teachers at BISS and husbands get together for an evening of poker. I actually end up winning tonight, ending on the plus side. We have a great night of trash-talking.   It’s definitely different when it’s flavored with Australian, British, Canadian, and American accents.

After last night’s long night of interviews (I got home at 11:00 pm), I’m really slow getting up. No school today for me, but Judy’s gets away on schedule. She has a couple of recorder groups playing today at assemblies.

Grade 3 recorder choir

After catching up on some computer stuff, I head out to the park for some table tennis. The regular park group is still around and I managed to play for a couple of hours. Before we finish, they tell me I need to arrive earlier. I tell them I’ll be back Sunday at 9:00 am (they were talking about 8:00 am, but I said no.) When we finish, I walk down the alley to a small noodle shop, and get a spicy noodle dish for lunch. After the noodles, I walk to the Marriott, and get in a swim session. After the swim, I walk back to our neighborhood spa, and get a foot massage. When I finally get home, I’m ready for a nap.

Judy, Shannon, and Laney (new 3^rd grade teacher from Australia) taxi over to Lily Nails after school for an end of week pampering. Dom (Shannon’s husband) and I get our summoning call around 7:00 pm. We’re told to head to Sanlitun for dinner. We end up meeting at the Blue Frog, and enjoy some great burgers.

Shannon’s “Aussie” green & gold nails for Exhibition Day tomorrow.

Today is a class day for me at BHSFIC. I follow my usual Thursday schedule, which includes me arriving in time to sign in and then eat lunch. It’s a great time to sit and visit with the faculty. After lunch, I have a couple of hours to kill. Thought I might have some of the guitar club guys around, but they’re off campus, taking AP tests. For my 10^th grade music elective class, we do some discussion on the Baroque period. For the 2^nd half of the class, I try out some teaching steps for “Happy”. I need to find out what works and what doesn’t before I attempt it with the 11^th grade classes next week. The 11^th grade classes next week are combined into one period, so with 35+ students in the class, I have to know my stuff. On top of the combined classes, after not meeting for a month, I’m going to be observed. This is going to be exciting.

After school today, the staff is hanging around to interview prospective students for BHSFIC. The Chinese government is limiting schools like ours to only 60 students per grade level. Last year, they accepted 83 students. The government is concerned that too many students are looking to leave China for educational opportunities in the US.

The faculty is split into two large groups, the Chinese teachers, and the “native English speakers.” Then we’re split into teams of two for the interviews. Our job, as native English speakers is to determine each student’s level of English fluency. We spend the evening (15 to 20 minutes with each candidate) just talking informally with them about their goals, hobbies, etc. Since the classes are taught in English, a student who struggles with the language has no chance of meeting the difficult curricular demands of all the AP classes.

The Chinese teachers are simultaneously interviewing students in other classrooms around campus, trying to figure out if they’re Beijing #4 material. The school places a huge emphasis on AP math & science classes. Scott (my partner) and I interview 11 students, and with four teams working, there must have been 45+ students here tonight, along with their parents. Part of my informal discussion was to ask about a student’s outside interests. Many of them had violin or piano training, but had stopped in the last couple of years, to focus on preparation for the Jun Cao (not sure about that spelling). It’s the Jr. High version of the Gao Cao (HS test whose scores are used to determine university placement). Their test score is one of the first criteria everyone checks to determine if they belong here or not. If they don’t score well on the Jun Cao and get into a “good” HS, they won’t have a chance to get into a top university. That’s a lot of pressure for 8^th and 9^th graders, and even younger as they (and their parents) set themselves up for a successful life.

When Lilly, our ayi arrives, I head out to Metro for my weekly grocery shopping trip. I meant to start out early today, but couldn’t get myself in gear. When I get back to the apartment, I unload the groceries hurriedly, and head back out to the train. I’m supposed to meet Graham for lunch.

Graham’s wife Deb is a teacher at BISS. They’re from Australia and she’s finishing her 2^nd year at BISS. She has accepted a job at a school in Phnom Phen, Cambodia. The two of them adopted us and showed us the “ropes” of the local cuisine and neighborhood. They helped us discover some interesting foods that were really cheap. Graham works at the British International School as a teacher’s assistant, four days a week. He has Wednesdays off, and we’ve been promising to get together for lunch all year. For whatever reason, it hasn’t happened, but it’s happening today.

We take the train to Sanlitun, and settle on the Blue Frog. They serve great burgers, and I get one with Sichuan peppers to spice it up. It kinda like a Chinese version of a jalapeno burger. We have a great time sitting and talking about traveling in China. Deb and Graham have traveled all over Asia, and I’m trying to get as many good ideas as possible before they’re gone. He has some great “learning” experiences to talk about

After a really long lunch, we walk back to the train. I get off at the station near the Marriott and walk over for a swim session. I’m hoping to burn off a few of the calories I enjoyed back at the Blue Frog. Back home later, I start getting materials ready for my class tomorrow.

Now that I have some table tennis (TT) gear, I need to figure out where to play.  Checking around on the internet, I find mention of several large clubs, but none are near me (as least that I can find.)  I decide there’s no sense traveling and then getting my brains beat out in a club.  I’m gonna find a local park and let some of the locals wear me out.

I walk across the street, into the neighborhood, to a badminton gym.  I thought they might have a few tables and players.  There was a table, but no players.  A few months back, someone mentioned seeing some tables in a park just outside a UHN gate on the other side of the complex.  I walk there next, and sure enough, there are three tables, and people playing on all the tables.

I walk over and sit on a nearby bench to watch.  Within moments, one of the players gestured to me, inviting me to play.  I pulled out my racket and gave it a try.  It took me some time to adjust to my new racket (it’s really good, but different.)  I held up pretty well.  No scoring, just hitting.  I played with seven or eight different players.  They were all curious.  One guy played with a paddle in both hands.  The table was concrete, but the players bring their own net.  There was also a tarp hung up between trees used as a windbreak.  When they finished playing after 45 minutes, they took their net down, untied the tarp, folded it, and hung it up on a nearby hook, ready to be used by the next players.  This group of players seemed to be the regular “morning group.”  They all had their tea, and took turns playing, women and men.  As they were leaving, they were asking my age (I think that’s what they were asking.)

When they finished, I put my stuff up, but a group at another table motioned me over.  This group was younger and played a faster game.  It took some time for me to adjust, but I definitely got faster (I had to.)  They kept giving me the “thumbs up.”  I doubt I could beat any of them in a game, but I could hit with them.  One of the women called a friend on the phone, and they started to try to ask questions, through the phone.  I eventually was handed the phone when they were trying to find out how long I had played.  That’s a tough question to answer since I’ve played since Jr. High, but never really seriously (unless I was playing my son or my brother.)  I ended up spending almost 3 hours playing intermittently with the different groups.

Back home, I had to clean up and get ready to join Judy and a group of BISS teachers at a Sanlitun restaurant.  They were completing the evaluation and review of the Grade 5 Exhibition two weeks ago.  Lots of pizza, chicken wings, and french fries.  Its always fun to sit in a group of teachers from such diverse backgrounds (Canada, Sri Lanka, Australia, Korea, etc.)  So many different viewpoints make for interesting exchanges.

Judy is fired up and ready for school today. With all her major projects finished up, she’s ready to settle down to teaching. Saturday is BISS “International Day” and all the grade levels are performing. She’s been getting all the preparations in place, and this is the week it all comes together. It’s the last major performance for the year.

I’ve been getting restless. I’ve completed most of my class prep for the rest of the year. All I have on my plate is grocery shopping and swimming.

I decide it’s time to pursue another hobby. Since table tennis is the #1 sport in China, I figure this is great time to develop my own game. I’m not that good, but I can beat a few people (mainly my son and my brother). I need a racket/bat/paddle, and I’ve found a sporting goods store where I can purchase one.

After I get on the train, I decide to detour on a sightseeing trip. There are several places Judy has visited on BISS trips that I haven’t seen. I’m also scouting some weekend trips for the two of us. I take the train to Behai Park. It’s a really large park with a big lake. There are lots of small rental boats on the lake.

View from the north end of the lake

Battery powered “Tulip Boats”

The gentlemen had a speaker set-up, and was “conducting” this lady in a song as I walked up (check out the baton in his hands).

I think he’s trying to sell his songbook. The music on the large page is written in the Chinese simple notation.

After walking through the park. I walk out and across the street to Jingshan Park. It’s another beautiful park with the highlight being the tall hill in the center. It’ overlooks the Forbidden City, but also has a great view of the rest of the city. Unfortunately, there are many stairs. It’s a real hike to the top, but the view is worth it! I’ve posted a link to a short movie below.

After leaving the park, I hire a rickshaw for a ride to the sporting goods store in Wangfuging (one of the main shopping areas in Beijing). I make my purchase of a racket (the official name), and the rubber surfaces that are glued to the racket. There is a huge selection available. I walk out fully “geared up” and ready to tear up the table tennis world (or vice versa).

I finish the outing with a train trip to the Marriott for a swim session, and then home. We catch a couple of “Lost” episodes and then hit the sack.

We enjoy a very lazy Sunday. Judy is working hard to finish several of the major projects she’s in the middle of. She spends pretty much the entire day finishing one project and then moving on to another. At the end of the day, she has knocked out a bunch of the major chores that were hanging over her head. She is ready to celebrate!

We’ve been putting off going out anywhere today so she could finish up all the computer stuff. When she finally finishes up, we don’t feel like going out, so we order from “Avocado Tree”. It’s a “Chipotle” copy, with the big burritos, black beans, guacamole, etc. It’s really good. We get a chicken burrito, a burrito in a bowl (no tortilla), two chicken tacos, and several orders of chips/salsa/queso. Judy does the largest damage on the queso and chips. It’s a glorious end to a productive day for her.

The morning starts off kinda lazy. Judy’s working on curriculum, but the internet is so slow, she can’t get much done. We leave late in the morning to go over to the Marriott. I’ll swim and she’s going to use the hotel wifi to get some work done.

After the swim, we walk down the street to Kro’s Nest Pizza. I’ve been a few times previously, but this is Judy’s first visit. We get some french fries and a really large pizza. I don’t what I was thinking? We taxi home when we’re done, with plenty of extra pizza to spare. Judy goes back to work on her curriculum project and I start getting ready for my trip to the Beijing Guoan soccer game tonight.

Steve and Josie – all geared up for the game

A couple of the BHSFIC faculty (Steve and Josie) meet me at Sanlitun, near the Worker’s Stadium. Steve purchased tickets from scalpers as he walked by the stadium. With tickets in hand, we go find some food. After dinner, we run the gauntlet of street vendors selling Guoan gear. I buy a light jacket and a scarf (when in Rome, etc.). The game is fun. Guoan ends up winning at the end on a penalty kick. The crowd is entertaining they are really organized as a group. I admittedly haven’t attended too many soccer games, so I don’t have much to compare it to. I attached a link below to a short video I made at the game.

THURSDAY, 5/8/14

Yea! It’s a teaching day for me. When I leave the apartment I’m not sure of my schedule today. I know I’m meeting the 10^th grade class, but I don’t think the 11^th graders are meeting. They’re all taking AP tests at various times for the next two weeks, and when they aren’t taking tests, they have “self-study.” Sure enough, when I sign in, I’m told that 11^th grade classes won’t start meeting regularly until the week of May 19. Even then, the 11^th graders will only meet their non-AP classes on a morning schedule. They won’t have any afternoon classes. I’ll have an adjusted schedule of one combined class of 11^th graders on Thursday and then again on Friday.

Since the majority of the students in my Guitar Club and the Orchestra Club are 11^th graders, we don’t meet the clubs either. Without a club meeting, I’m able to attend the regularly scheduled faculty meeting. We get a BHSFIC calendar for next year. Now I can begin to think ahead about our travel opportunities for 2014-15.

FRIDAY, 5/9/14

I spend time today, getting hotel and flight reservations set-up for Baton Rouge when we go back to the US in July. I also needed a hotel reservation for San Antonio for TBA. I have to attend a judging clinic this summer if I want to keep my judging credentials current in Texas.

Judy has another full day of classes, as well as performances at the BISS assembly with one of her grade levels. When she gets home, she’s beat and ready to crash. We finish off the busy week with a couple of episodes of “Lost” (we’re finishing Season 5.)