I was in Chicago (my first trip to the US!!) with Melita - my grade 8 Science buddy. We were there for the pre-conference on Differentiated Instruction - or as we know it 'DI'. Carol Ann Tomlinson was great and we learnt a lot....now all we have to do is apply it!
My first impression of the US was passing through immigration with a huge guy shouting out 'Go to A!!!' Thankfully, he wasn't addressing us as we visitors needed to go to B. On approaching the officer, he explained that the shouting guy, if he was telling you a story would tell you it in the exactly the same tone and volume. He then explained that that guy was a New Yorker - definitely not from Chicago.
As we went around Chicago - to our hotel - Hotel 71, shopping(Old Navy, American Girl Place, Bath and Body Works) and the conference people were as friendly as could be ....very impressive. They would just make conversation- just really nice. Apparently the mid-west is like that...cool.
Melita and I managed to get to the Chicago Institute of art - loved it - really loved being able to see the Seurat Park painting with all the little dashes - love it!!! We also managed with Jennifer Sparrow to go to 'Howling at the moon' - a bar where there were dueling pianists, and another night we went to a small jazz bar. Oh...I remember - that was the day I was wearing my England shirt as it was HK's rugby sevens weekend...and England won again! Bless!
Singapore was a good trip - Gail and I took 15 girls down for a hockey tour. thankfully, Jude Felix was on the ball and had our girl's playing the girls he coaches as their school on Friday. Then on Saturday morning was an early 8-9am match against some of those girls and he gave the girls training on the Sunday. We also managed to see Ice Age 2, go to the night safari and take a boat ride to the Merlion. Oh...and we had lunch at Raffles - VERY nice! Gail also went in the bungy cage thing and got catapulted into the air - crazy lady. I point blank refused to do that...I really couldn't imagine telling my parents that I had done that - plus I was scared stiff!
Ah...Dumaguete - that will need a post of it's own. However, that will wait as I have a really bruised finger on my right hand after having played a hockey match today - it's quite swollen and painful....maybe I should post a picture!!!
1 comment:
I can't imagine what it's like for foreigners to enter the U.S., especially these last 5 years. I've heard horror stories about the immigration officers treating people like cattle, though it sounds like you had a decent experience. When I came back into the U.S. from Cebu, Philippines via Hong Kong (on that popular Hong Kong-Los Angeles Cathay Pacific flight) the officer asked me several questions about my time in the Philippines. However, he actually had a decent personality...unlike the woman in Manila who could easily have been confused with a robot (one that doesn't speak!)
Glad you liked Chicago. I'm from the "Midwest" myself, though live in Tennessee now. Down here in the South it is even more laid back and hospitable...almost too laid back, though.
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