Another busy weekend

Sunday morning is here and we are back at work and in school -- wishing for another day to recuperate from the weekend activities. Friday was busy with QUACKFEST. Every year the students in the Senior School at Qatar Academy put on a fun day for the Elementary students. This year Simon and a couple friends organized a bull riding station. They had a steady stream of customers! Max and friends from his Music Production class were in charge of the sound board for the musical acts on stage.

 And if that wasn't enough, on Saturday we had a semester closing for Qatar Foundation Recreation Services. We watched displays of fencing and Tae Kwon Do. There were trophies, medals, certificates, QF hats, and food (of course).

 

The boys played in an exhibition game against a local Philippino team. Great game to watch!! The Philippino community takes basketball seriously. They are shorter than our players but very strong and agile. See the vertical jump on this guy and the surprised look on Simon's face!

Simon

Max

Max and Simon have also been working on their vertical jump in their quest to dunk the basketball. Max is now able to grab the rim and Simon is able to touch the rim. Getting closer every week!

Teaching Excellence

On Thursday night the University of Calgary -- Qatar held its annual Faculty/ Staff Appreciation Banquet. There were raffle prizes for dinners, hotel stays, spa treatments, as well as the annual "U Make  A Difference" Awards (which Lisa received last year). And there was a new award this year for Teaching Excellence. It is meant to recognize excellence in teaching to "individuals who demonstrate outstanding innovation and commitment to teaching, and significantly enhance the quality of learning by UCQ students."

Lisa is the first recipient of this award at UCQ. Along with a certificate, a $500 honorarium, and a ride home in a limousine, Lisa's name will be engraved on a new plaque in the University foyer.

Weekend Activities

This past weekend Simon went to Kuwait with the Junior Varsity Basketball Team. It was the annual International tournament sponsored by ISAC. The team played 6 games in total and won five of those. They lost by 4 points in the final game against the host team from American School of Kuwait. Simon's highlights of the weekend were Potbelly sandwiches, Garret caramel popcorn, and Ben's cookies. In between eating he did play basketball!

Max was supposed to go to Kuwait also. But instead he went to the hospital. Max has been battling bronchitis for 3 weeks and on the morning of departure we felt it was not safe to send him away. So we took him to see a pulmonologist. After chest Xray, sputum culture, and Pulmonary Function Tests (which he failed), the doctor changed his medications and diagnosed him with hyper-reactive airways and bronchitis. So Max spent the last 4 days resting at home, watching movies, doing homework. Given the sandstorm outdoors, it was the best place for him.

The Philippines -- Country Life

Rice paddy

Our trip began and ended in Manila but the real adventure and the best memories are of the countryside beyond the city. Leaving the noise and crowds of the city we spent several hours driving through villages, lush forests, and rice paddies. We actually ate rice at every meal and the country consumes tons of rice, but they don't grow enough for their own demand. The Philippines is the 8th largest producer of rice but also the world's largest importer of rice!

We traveled to a bustling town called Liliw. Isabelle's family owns a shoe factory there! Can you imagine how much fun that was?

It was very busy with shop keepers from the surrounding area coming to purchase shoes that they would, in turn, sell to the people of their own community. We found several styles that would work well in Doha!

The roads outside the city were well maintained and by times crowded with the local transportation called the "jeepney". These were originally the jeep vehicles used by the American military during its colonization of the Philippines from 1898-1946. When the Americans left in 1946 (Philippines independence) they left these vehicles behind. The locals modified them with an extended back end to carry more people.

Motorcycles with a sidecar are also very popular to transport people, whole families, goods, and farm animals!

We continued to the province of Batangas and the area called Anilau. We were never very far from water and it was spectacular.






 

We arrived at Isabelle's family Dive Resort just in time for sunset. We spent the next 4 days snorkeling, diving, boating, sitting by the water, eating buko (coconut milk with fruit and ice), and exploring the local sights.

It was relaxing and beautiful!

Sixteenth Birthday

Today Max turned sixteen years old. We can hardly believe how time flies. And, as usual, we retold the story of his birth..... hospitals in northern BC on strike, crowded in Labour and Delivery, told to stay home as long as possible (maybe stayed home too long), quick delivery, 27 babies born within 24 hours, Tim didn't get to eat the big snack he had packed, Tim too tired to find his car the next morning, etc., etc.

For Tim and Lisa it was just like it happened yesterday. And yet we now have this very tall, kind, handsome young man. It didn't happen overnight -- it just feels like it did.

Today is also Vergie's birthday. She is somewhat older than 16 but still very young at heart. Vergie had today off to celebrate her birthday and her plan was to go to church early in the morning, cook food for her friends at lunch, and then ride on the buses all afternoon.

She and Max are both pretty easy to please!