The first day was Tuesday when we had a meeting after work. It was a working lunch and it was held at our director, Valentina's, house. Valentina is from Russia and I would give anything if I had a picture of her for you. She looks like a doll. She has long, red hair that is usually twisted up in an elegant bun and bangs. She has very rosy cheeks. We got to her house and she opened the door dressed in full Russian dress. A long white flowing dress and a Russian hat with a Russian apron. The thing that made the scene so....surreal....was that she acted as if this happened every day. That there was nothing out of the ordinary in her appearance whatsoever.
The theme of the meal was "A White House luncheon" and it was a feast! Every dish represented something about an American President. I can't recall very many of the meanings because I was so taken aback by this whole scene that I had a hard time concentrating on the words being spoken. The whole thing was soooooo Valentina. She is so willing to work for HOURS and HOURS and HOURS for one activity, so willing to throw herself totally into a situation, so over the top:) We had salmon, chicken, roast beef, potatoes, avocado salad, a Russian salad, fruit, and two cakes!!! Amazing.
That evening I had two of my students over for dinner. Um, I didn't dress up and nor did I prepare quite a feast, but we had a great time nonetheless. Here is a picture of Lex, Helen, and I.
Lex was in two of my classes a couple of sessions ago and then I have been tutoring him since then. He is one of those colorful students that I'll never forget. He made us laugh and asked such great questions, he wasn't afraid to fail, he threw himself into American culture and the English language, and he became a good friend. He wanted to get to meet the babies so badly, but alas he had to go back to Korea today. So, I assured him that there will be LOTS of pictures on the blog for him to see. HI LEX! Helen's brother Jason was in my same classes with Lex and they became best of friends. Jason went back to Korea and his sister Helen is now here studying. Helen and Jason are both smart, wonderful students....they must have very proud parents!
Wednesday was great because our students got to "hear" two amazing speakers. One speaker was deaf and one was blind and deaf. Their wives interpreted for them and hearing their stories was inspiring and humbling. Wish you all could have been there.
Anyway, this was my last full week of teaching! Next week we have review days and then two half days of finals, and then friday I give my students their grades and say adios to the English Language Institute. Very bitter sweet.
Guess that's all for now. I'm going to go comb the bookshelves for a good read. The wind is starting to pick up and it's supposed to start raining and snowing before too long...perfect night for a book. Hope that you too have had some interesting days, Jenny
Oh, here is a link to a challenging video I came across on another blog...really made me think. Hopefully it'll make me do more than think.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFrmyD6G5qU
1 comment:
What a fun meal you attended. It sounded amazing. I know you will miss your students and they will miss you. Both of your hands will be pretty full before you know it. I am thankful you will get a little rest before the big day. 14 more days until spring break in Utah!!!!!
Post a Comment