Fall Camp '07

So Fall camp was great - here's a little summary.

Place: We went about 4 hours north of Tianjin to a nature preserve (yes, they do exist here) up in the mountains. The area actually had real pine trees, oak trees and a smattering of other foliage I haven't seen here in China. It was beautiful. It rained the entire first day but after that the weather was perfect. The skies were clear and blue, and at night there were sooo many stars.

Purpose: Fall camp is a time to bring our high school together. Students are divided into 10 teams of about 10 students with a mix of grades and ethnicities. Seniors are leaders for each team and it's a good opportunitity for them to develop their leadership abilities. There is a general theme that has subparts and each team is a different sub part. This year the teams were based on questers - real or mythical. In the past we've had Disney stories, Lord of the Rings themes and on and on. It's a big deal.

Activities: Day one - the teams prepared for their skit performances the first night by making costumes and practicing everything from choreograhy to lines. It was a good day to rain since this could be done inside.

This team is practicing for their skit....

Day two - students were divided by gender and by grade and spent the day outside walking/hiking being with each other and in nature. They also spent some portion of time alone. I went with the 9th grade girls. Let's just say most of our students don't like being outside - bugs are terrible, sweating is awful, and exerting oneself to walk up a hill is far too much! These kids spend most of their lives in a city studying. But overall, I think they enjoyed the day. Most even said they really enjoyed the hour of solitude we spent around a lake and wished they had had more time.

Group shot with the 9th grade girls.

Day 3 - Group games. This day was devoted to team competitions in the games department. We have a couple of teachers that always come up with creative and interesting games for the teams to compete in. Points are awarded to each team. This year we even tried a canoeing relay around the lake - yeah - that was interesting. Most kids don't have a clue what to do in a boat.

In the evening the kids make their own dinner - a stew of carrots, potatoes, and beef - over a fire. We also had a bonfire late at night.

Day 4 - the last games of tug-of - war and the egg toss and then awards and heading home.

It was nice to get out of the city and breathe some fresh air. I forgot that when there isn't pollution the sun shines quite brightly - I got sunburned. Oh - and I have to put a plug in for the headlamp I bought this past summer. Headlamps are SOOOO useful! If you don't have one - you should! It was such an asset when walking in the dark back to the cabins or doing room checks or trying to find something in my bag in the poor lighting.