Dalat Sports Day

We missed this last year, but Aiden had a blast yesterday! Each year Dalat International School holds a sports day for their grades K-4, and home schoolers are allowed to join in (a perk of our Distance Learning membership!). 

 There was a good mix of traditional sports and imaginative skill testing activities. Aiden was really impressed with the obstacle course in the gym where they had to climb a ladder and swing down with a rope.

 As Aiden is currently keenly interested in soccer, he was pleased to discover he was one of the top scorers in the penalty kicks activity and that his team creamed its opponent 6-1.

 The end of the morning culminated in a gigantic battle of tug of war.

Over all, Aiden's red team came in second place, so he was well satisfied with the morning. And he still came home humming with energy! Not so the rest of us: Mom and dad are both fighting a cold - Mom is losing her voice even :(

Grace's Adventure

Last week I went on a trip to an Orang Asli (the natives of Malaysia) village. It rained most of the time, so it was very muddy. The village is on the mainland, an hour or so outside of a town named Greik. It's in the jungle.

Carrying our bags up the last stretch to the village

Building a 'mud' stove

Painting one of the houses

Group photo in the very slight drizzle

Petting a puppy named Bungah (flower in Malay). They have a lot of animals: I counted about 27 dogs, three cats, a bunch of chickens, and a pet monkey in the village.

Roasting glazed marshmallows
It was a fun and educational trip!

More Poems from a Rainy Sunday

Can you tell whose is whose? :o)

A Walk by the Sea
Walking
The cliffs
Nowhere in sight

Wondering
Deep questions
Doubting my safety

Foggy
Mist-shrouded
Cold, damp, grey

Waves
Lapping, sighing
Sounds in the silence

Sandy
Seashore texture
Under my feet

Soundless
But not
Everything is muffled

Alone
Yet not
God is with me

Light
Piercing through
The lighthouse beacon

Foghorn
Sounding warnings
To sailing ships

Direction
Lost, found
Guided to home

Home
Safety, security
Warm voice welcome

A Forest in a City

There is always sound in a city

Always a lot of activity

A honk and a shout

With people running about

That is what I call a city

But as the day starts to darken

Lights start to brighten

My eyes start to see something

Way more exciting

Trees of glass reach for the sky

Lit by tall fireflies

Paths of stone lead the way

To places where I can play

Standing tall within it all

Is a tower with mighty power

It tells the minutes, seconds, hours

With mighty hoots within its tower

There is always sound in the trees

always lots of leaves

A rustle and a creak in the quiet

Patter of many feet

But then I open my eyes

and a forest is what it ceases to be

Now it stands a tall city

in my reality.

When Imagination Soars

A country girl once went to town

And stayed in London, uncles "house"

She found that London held a crowd

And took a walk in busy streets

Although the cobbled streets were loud

Although she's lost within the crowd

The girl looks out, away once more

And lets imagination soar

For though a rough and scruffy child

she was a poet deep inside

And in imagination wild

The City: Forest in Disguise

The streets became rivers

The roves became trees

The noise became birdsong 

And rustling leaves

Big Ben became owls

Now howling from trees

The howls and yowls

of alley dogs tree - 

A hunter in ambush

The shot and the cry

The fierce fighting dogs

In the mere passerby

But then - 

The night ends

The day comes

Imagination hid

Inside once more

He Will Come and Save You

Help

ME

While

I

Longingly

Live

Capture

Oppressive

Menacing

Enemies

And

Now my numbered

Days

Stay

Always

Victorious

Enduring

Yahweh

Openly

Understands

He Will Come and Save You
Healer
Everlasting

Waiting
"I
Love to
Listen.

Call
Out to
Me
Erratic child,

And I will
Never
Disregard you."

Safe
At home
Victorious
Established

Yet
Onward to God
Unshakable

Acrostic Names

When school is being done on the run because life and ministry gets in the way...
While walking up our hill from the bus home...
Connecting to Aiden's  current trip through the Psalms....
Composition on the fly...

All the world praise the Lord!
Indeed, let everything praise the Lord.
Don't ever stop praising the Lord!
Even the rocks know to do this:
Never stop praising the Lord

Greatly
Rejoice
Adonai
Cares
Everlastingly

Joyful Jasmin is
Arting today
Smiling as Grinela
Mindful as Milly
Irresistable as Grace
Never stop loving art

Elegant elephants
Lick lizards
Incredulous iguanas
Zip by zebras while
Audacious aardvarks
Boast beautifully
Engaging everyone with
Tell tall tales of the
Houseboat heyday

I Hope Grandma Won't Mind...

A ride home from church unfinished alphabet:
We went to Grandma's house and we took...
An apple
bountiful bouquets
crisply crocheted cardigans
a dark discus
ecclesiastical eschatology
fleeting floppy fish
a green gardening gorilla
a humongous horse
irresistible iguanas
jumping jogging joeys
knowing Kyrgyzstanians
long lived laughing llamas
Mount Milamor
nefarious nighttime needles
oozing octagonal opals
pleading people
quiet quartz quintet
rational ravioli
terrifying tarantula turtles...

Poetic Haze Muse by Grace

Haze

The fans are all spinning

And whirring and clicking

The windows are closed and

The turtles are in

The windows are closed

And the doors are closed, too;

There’s soap on the floor

‘Cause it’s hazy, not blue

The haze is quite high and

The haze is quite strong;

The haze makes my throat dry

And makes the air wrong.

Hazy Days

The air quality this time of year here pretty much sucks. We're talking such heavy haze that it reminds me of pea soup fog days in Atlantic Canada... only this stuff is super unhealthy to breathe! Schools close, and everyone stays indoors as much as possible. Those of us without air conditioners make excuses to hang out at the malls where there is air is cleaner. In between times we deal with headaches, skin rashes, itchy eyes, asthma - whatever our bodies do to protest the unhealthy air. Fortunately for us, the effects are minor - a few more headaches and some itchy eyes. Still, it's not pleasant.

Everyone suddenly talks about the weather, hoping for rain to clear the air and give us some relief. It did rain on the weekend, clearing the air enough for us to see the mainland (about 14 km) briefly and for us homeschoolers to have a "back to school" party in the Youth Park on Monday. A very special gift to us all, as the very next day the Air Quality Index readings skyrocketed to a Very Unhealthy 225!











It was a great morning of kids swarming the playground equipment and lots of mom-talk and discussing what we'd like our group to be like for this year.  As you can see, it is quite a large diverse group this year.


In other news, our back to school first few weeks here in the Hu home have been kind of rocky... we weren't fully ready to begin, and since the end of August Mom has had one health issue after another - and not small stuff either! For example, Mom is currently directing school work from her bed, needing to be on her back to keep severe sciatica pain at bay... But, while household routines are pretty ragged to non-existent, the household is running. Our house might not be too clean, meal times all over the place, and meals rather ad-hoc, but the kids are amazing. They've cooked meals, done extra housework, put themselves to bed, gone out to activities on their own, and worked their way through schoolwork on their own as much as possible... and pretty much without complaining too. Hopefully Mom will be back on her feet before the good will runs out!

A Random Lunchtime Creation by Grace, Jasmin, and Aiden

When you wake up in the morning and it's quarter to one
And really want just to have some fun
You run and scream
Ch-ch-ch,ch-ch-ch-ch
You run and scream
Ch-ch-ch,ch-ch-ch-ch

When you wake up in the morning and it's quarter to two
And you find a cockroach living in your shoe
You run and scream
Ch-ch-ch,ch-ch-ch-ch
You run and scream
Ch-ch-ch,ch-ch-ch-ch

When you wake up in the morning and it's quarter to three
And you fell down the stairs and bruised your knee
You brush your teeth
Ch-ch-ch,ch-ch-ch-ch
You brush your teeth
Ch-ch-ch,ch-ch-ch-ch

When you wake up in the morning and it's quarter to four
And you hear someone knocking on the front door
You run and scream
Ch-ch-ch,ch-ch-ch-ch
You run and scream
Ch-ch-ch,ch-ch-ch-ch

When you wake up in the morning and it's quarter to five
And you just feel completely alive
You run and scream
Ch-ch-ch,ch-ch-ch-ch
You run and scream
Ch-ch-ch,ch-ch-ch-ch

When you wake up in the morning and it's quarter to six
And you find your living room covered in sticks
You brush your teeth
Ch-ch-ch,ch-ch-ch-ch
You brush your teeth
Ch-ch-ch,ch-ch-ch-ch

When you wake up in the morning and it's quarter to seven
But you misread the clock and you think it's eleven
You run and scream
Ch-ch-ch,ch-ch-ch-ch
You run and scream
Ch-ch-ch,ch-ch-ch-ch

When you wake up in the morning and it's quarter to eight
And you find there's a monkey dancing on the gate
You brush your teeth
Ch-ch-ch,ch-ch-ch-ch
You brushe your teeth
Ch-ch-ch,ch-ch-ch-ch

When you wake up in the morning and it's quarter to nine
And you find your river has turned into brine
You brush your teeth
Ch-ch-ch,ch-ch-ch-ch
You brush your teeth
Ch-ch-ch,ch-ch-ch-ch

When you wake up in the morning and it's quarter to ten
And your pet bird talks, saying she's a wren
You brush your teeth
Ch-ch-ch,ch-ch-ch-ch
You brush your teeth
Ch-ch-ch,ch-ch-ch-ch

When you wake up in the morning and it's quarter to eleven
And you misread the clock (again!) and think it's seven
You brush your teeth
Ch-ch-ch,ch-ch-ch-ch
You brush your teeth
Ch-ch-ch,ch-ch-ch-ch

When you wake up in the morning and it's quarter to twelve
And you find your little brother on top of your shelf!
You run and scream
Ch-ch-ch,ch-ch-ch-ch
You run and scream
Ch-ch-ch,ch-ch-ch-ch

When you wake up in the afternoon and it's quarter to one
Well it's not morning anymore, so our fun is done
You brush your teeth
Ch-ch-ch,ch-ch-ch-ch
You run and scream
Ch-ch-ch,ch-ch-ch-ch!

Free Verse Vacation

We finally got here

Just in time for lunch

Bed flopping afternoon

We're all so tired

One afternoon of listening

Aiden in our room

Jasmin delighted

With big expanse of bed

Aiden found his stride

Out to play everyday with friends

Fooze ball, ping pong, and swimming pool play

No stopping till bedtime

Bible time

Where were we?

Let's start again at Galatians

Theological discussions

Flora and fauna observations for Jasmin

At least 5 new to us kinds of birds

Nests spotted right at the front door

More flopping  

With books from discovered library

Only under 14 must be accompanied

Fresh yummy food made for us daily

Dessert every meal

Ice cream on demand

No breakfasts for us

Too tired, too full, too early

Only Aiden is up to eat

Beach time strolls

So many shells

Picked, washed, sorted, stored

Art supplies for later

Sand castle times

Sand is so full of clay

Soft and beautiful

Shallow swimming

Live sand dollar discoveries

Could we reach the island?

Tide creep surprisingly swift

Better not try

Anticipated night time beach strolls

Stolen by gnats and mosquitoes

No matter, no stars, cloudy skies

Mom and dad play ping pong

Revisiting when they met

Mom still can't beat dad

Day trip snorkeling

Up early, van ride, boat ride

All well worth it

Returning back

Suitably sunburned and happy

Memories of underwater splendor

Spouting spontaneous praise

Random music story

(A girl with a pencil

Running after ice cream truck

Refusing to do homework)

Kept kids happy with new friend for trip back

A Few Bests:

Dad: rest, uninterrupted time with mom, snorkeling

Mom: Aiden well occupied, snorkeling, made meals

Grace: snorkeling, deep swimming pool, flopping without Aiden

Jasmin: flopping without Aiden, snorkeling, cool new birds, frangipani fragrance

Aiden: everyday all day play with friends; snorkeling

A blessedly simple trip home
Only an hour's delay
Two trains, ferry, and Grab
We hit the ground running
So it's good
Our week away was wonderful

Hit the ground running indeed -
The very next morning
Family day at church
Began with an early morning 5km run!

An Unfortunate - Fortunate beginning to our Holiday

Fortunately, we all woke up and we're ready on time

Unfortunately, there were no Grab (taxi) cars available

Fortunately, we had a friend willing to help us out

Unfortunately, that made us late for the ferry

Fortunately, we could run and managed to catch the ferry

Unfortunately, Jasmin's suitcase bruised her ankle numerous times while running

Fortunately, we got the komuter train tickets easily

Unfortunately, it was not all the way to the border so we had to switch trains

Fortunately, we had enough snacks with us for lunch while we waited for our second train

Unfortunately, we more or less ate them all so we had none left supper

Fortunately,we got on the right train and had great seats

Unfortunately, we only had 1/2 hour at the border to go through immigration and get the next train (our third)

Fortunately, the train was late so there was plenty of time to go through Immigration

Unfortunately, our tickets had been wrongly booked so we couldn't stay on the Thai train

Fortunately, the conductor took us off and tried to rebook for us at Hat Yai

Unfortunately, the trains were all full for that day

Fortunately, there was a hotel right there to ask about buses

Unfortunately, the staff sent us to the wrong bus station

Fortunately, mom's broken Thai was enough to get the problem understood

Unfortunately, they tried to get us to pay way too much for a transfer to the right bus station

Fortunately, dad has a Thai SIM in his phone so we could use Grab

Unfortunately, by the time we got there the bus we were told about was gone

Fortunately, a man listening told us another one was leaving soon

Unfortunately, it cost as much as the train 

Fortunately, we managed to get a hold of the person arranging the taxi from the train station to our retreat center

Unfortunately, we didn't know when we would arrive by bus in order to book a new one.

Fortunately, the double decker bus had a bathroom and usb ports so we could keep the phone charged

Unfortunately, the bathroom was filthy

Fortunately, the journey was quiet and smooth

Unfortunately, sleep was not as easy on the bus as on the expected sleeper train

Fortunately, we all got some sleep

Unfortunately, the bus wasn't actually going to Hua Hin (where we were supposed to meet the taxi)

Fortunately, the bus stopped as it was going by Hua Hin, so we asked about our stop.

Unfortunately, the driver didn't speak any English

Fortunately, mom understood enough Thai to know we had to get off the bus because it wasn't going where we wanted anymore

Unfortunately, we got dropped off on the side of the highway

Fortunately, there was a gas station nearby

Unfortunately, the bus almost drove off with dad

Fortunately, dad got out via the emergency exit

Unfortunately, we had to cross the busy highway

Fortunately, dad had enough load on his phone to call the retreat center for help

Unfortunately, we had to wait an hour for a taxi

Fortunately, we were close enough to a 711 to get some food

Unfortunately, Jasmin bonked her ankle AGAIN

Fortunately, we found a washroom

Unfortunately, it had no water

Fortunately, the taxi driver found us easily

Unfortunately, we still had an hour's drive to get to our retreat center

Fortunately, we made it

Unfortunately, we were a few hours later than usual

Fortunately, it was before lunch so we didn't have to go looking for food again
Fortunately, it was as peaceful an oasis as we remembered
Fortunately, Aiden had lots of new friends there to play with

Little Boy Bliss

 Aiden had a friend to play with this week...

A classmate of Dad's brought his family up from KL for the week...

We sure hope we can get them together again soon...

(the moms got along pretty good too...)

Random snapshots of the Afternoon

Soy milk drinks to get bus change.
Unexpected high tide; hunting a new way to our favorite rocks
Super aware we're bringing a friend along who might not appreciate the wet scramble!
Wall walking bravery with the tide crashing at the base, splashing us with spray.
Chinese practice sitting on the wall, watching three brave adventurers maneuvering over rocks and waves.
Spotting monitor lizards sunning on sea surrounded rocks, creeping crabs, two colored flowers.
Learning more of each other through tck (Third Culture Kid) discussions.
High-rising ocean spray over the rocks in a hazy sunset.
Scooting under a locked gate - a new way back to the road from the beach (to avoid the wall walking!)
Monkey babies clinging to mommy tummies crossing the road high in the trees.
Contented wet and sandy bus waiters creating happy musical improv.
Getting a surprise ride home to end the long bus wait
Too much fun to stop and take photos :)

Thursday Out and About

Yesterday we went with some friends to the iBox Glass Museum. It was not so much a museum as a mix of a few how to exhibits, a store selling fantastical glass creations, an art studio where you could make a small pendant, and a sampling of 3D photo opportunities. We spent a long time deciding and creating our designs, and came away quite satisfied with the results. the 3D photo ops weren't that impressive to us, having been to the large Art in Paradise in Bangkok a few years ago, but the kids had fun.

 
The kaleidoscopes were the best fun, I think!

Afterwards, we walked over to the ginormous pet store that is half tourist attraction half serious pet store. We saw and fed huge koi fish, and discovered just how much you'd have to pay to own a fox, a pararie dog, a jerboa, and other exotics as pets. Jasmin and her friend were "in heaven" as pet lovers! 

Yet Another Milestone...

What do you get when you have a pet-loving, plant-interested, entrepreneurial 12 year old daughter?

A household with more plants and pets than people! The count is now 3 turtles, 3 hamsters, 1 sugar glider, 14 plants, and only 5 people :o)

Jasmin has done this on her own initiative and has paid for everything out of her own money that she has earned - great learning experiences for which we put up with living in a self-made jungle :oD

Multicultural Living

We just love this multicultural living!
Today we..

• Interacted with Singaporeans, Korean Americans, Malay Chinese, Indians, Malayans
• Heard conversation in Malay, Hokkien, Mandarin, English, Tamil
• Spoke in English and Mandarin
• Read signage in Malay, Chinese, English 
• Ate cereal from a bowl with a spoon for breakfast, Indian Briyanni chicken off a banana leaf with our fingers for lunch, and fusion food for supper!
• Heard Chinese celebration drumming, Hindu temple gongs, Muslim calls to prayer
• Passed Christian churches, Mosques, Chinese temples, Buddhist temples
• Saw signs for Christian, Japanese, Malay, Cantonese, Mandarin, English schools

All this on our adventures today biking through town! We started the morning at church, taking in the first part of a four hour prayer and praise session. We moved on to Penang House of Prayer for a course we're taking. We ate lunch in Little India before striking out for Grace's voice teacher's home for an extra practice (Grace has a voice exam coming up soon). And then ran into (Chinese) church friends at Tesco on the way home.

Canada Day Plus

Guess what we did for Canada Day... supper at the beach!  We stayed till dark, but we didn't get any fireworks :o) On the other hand, the sunset was spectacular so we didn't mind not having fireworks.

.

We've been introduced to another tropical ailment this week... this white rash on Grace's face. Thankfully it is an easy thing to fix.  While at the doctor, on the way home from the market, a neighbourhood cat decided the buggy was a great place to hang out. She was singularly not impressed when we came out and she had to leave her spot.

We discovered this beauty this week too - unfortunately in the bathroom. We think it is a papilion emerald. They are exquisite in tiny detail (it's about as big as a fingernail!) Trying to get a decent photo that showed the detail proved impossible for us, but here is a clearer internet photo: