Conference in Beijing and a Quick Trip to Xi'an

Last weekend we had the opportunity to travel to Beijing with 13 other KIA teachers and attend the ISC (International Schools China) Conference. ISC is a group of 6 like minded schools located around all the country and their yearly conference is amazing! We spent time with teachers who understand what our school is like and the unique challenges we face here and we had the chance to worship as a community of like minded people and ask for His guidance in our schools. We also attended workshops intended to give new ideas in the classroom, as well as workshops meant to assist on a more personal level. 

I attended one about living a life of transition and was blown away at how much change we weather in a year. This is not a new idea, but to be reminded and to know that there are ways of not only coping, but thriving in the change is SO reassuring. We, especially me, have been struggling lately to keep our heads above water with work, Fellowship, friends, school work (Eric is taking classes), extra-curricular clubs (MUN and SGA), and the day to day tasks that go along with living here. I have felt so weighed down just trying to survive and sitting there in that workshop, I realized that part of that heaviness and sense of being overwhelmed has come from a shifting support system. My closest China friend left this past June and although I feel like I have dealt well with her loss, I haven't replaced the support she offered me. I have been told that each year we lose people and gain new ones and you have to keep your heart open to them, but head knowledge and actual follow through are two separate issues. I was given a revelation and now I am hoping to work to right the situation.

If you talk to the Father, please lift up the following:

1. A strong support system here and that we would be willing to open our hearts to both new and old friends.

2. That the constant feeling of being overwhelmed would be replaced by His peace. 

Jasmine tea ice cream in Beijing!

A huge blessing in our lives is the chance for travel. After the conference we had a three day break for National Holiday and we were able to travel with some friends to Xi'an and see the sights. We biked around the city wall, saw the Terracotta Warriors, visited a pagoda, ate amazing food, and generally had a great time with friends. 

Xi'an, in front of the Danyan Pagoda

Xi'an city wall

Terracotta Warriors! 

So cool!

Thanks all, for stopping by. We covet your prayers!

What Have We Been Up To? Let's See....

Goodness, don't give up on us. It's been a while, but this still seems to be a somewhat effective medium to share (right? maybe? hope so?)

It is a rainy Saturday in September. We have been mostly enjoying a dry month and then suddenly two days ago it started raining and hasn't really let up since. 

School is in full swing and we are enjoying the varying states of crazy that a new school year brings. This year we have added "SGA (Student Government Association) Advisor" to our resumes and have quite enjoyed it. 

SGA Planning Meeting at our house

"What new events can we pull off this year?"

Our first big SGA event of the year was a hit and this past week we held Spirit Week so we are pretty much hitting our groove.

Eric has added Curriculum Coordinator to his job title meaning that he's been working hard on school accreditation tasks and reports. Fun stuff. He is also the MAP Test Coordinator, which means that he is in charge of a team of people that run academic testing for the Elementary and Middle School three times a year. 

I have been working on getting a new Student Information System up and running at school. It's called PowerSchool and we seem to be doing okay with it. It has been a trying task to move everyone from the old way of doing things to a new way, but as time passes and the new system becomes slightly more familiar I expect all resistance to dissipate. 

Besides school related activities, we have been balancing Eric's classes (he is working on another degree)and the social calling of our tight knit Kunming community. 

The Werkhoven’s Came to Town

This past spring break we had the awesome opportunity to welcome my parents back to China and to show around first time visitors, Matt and Lindsey. We showed them around all the usual spots: downtown, Bird and Flower Market, the Stone Forrest, etc. but we also were able to visit Lijiang, a smaller city about an hour's flight away. Lijiang has a beautiful old town and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We stayed right in the old town and spent a few days wandering through the cobbled streets and exploring the parks and temples around there. We also took a day trip to Tiger Leaping Gorge and did a little hiking there. 

Visiting the markets on the west side of town. This is right before we walked outside and got caught in a downpour.

Monday morning breakfast before heading downtown!

Taking a coffee break

First dinner in Lijiang

Eric and Dad's favorite activity: waiting for the rest of us as we shop.

This is the look my dad gives me when he finds out I have been taking vertical photos with his camera. Again. 

A typical Lijiang street. Beautiful!

Fast food Chinese style

Mom and Dad

Black Dragon Pool in front of Jade Dragon Snow Mountain

I love this handsome man!

It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!

Okay so maybe that is overstating it a little, but it is pineapple season so it’s not that big of a stretch. Trucks like this one can be seen all over the city, full of sweet goodness.

Spring in the City of Eternal Spring

I feel like there has been enough snow this year (two dustings!) to somewhat discount the whole "City of Eternal Spring" label, but now that Spring is actually here, I would quite like to think it will be forever. We have been enjoying 70 degree days and sunshine for a long while now. The jasmine and rhodies are blooming all around our neighborhood and my own geraniums are thriving! Welcome Spring!

View of our corner of the neighborhood from our deck.

Blooming mum

Blooming geraniums

MUN Trip to Shanghai

For the second year I had the opportunity to bring a small group of students to Shanghai and attend a Model United Nations conference this past January. Held at Concordia International School in Pudong, the conference is attended by over 500 students from around SE Asia and beyond. This year there were schools from Italy, Saudi Arabia, and Zambia in attendance. The theme of the conference was World Population. It proved to be an informative and challenging topic for my group of girls, but I know that they came away from the weekend with a more full understanding of the issues and opportunities that they may face.

The KIA girls

Dinner at a New York Steakhouse. They were so excited!

Pu Dong Skyline from the Pu Xi side of Shanghai along the Bund. Pretty awesome.

A Wild Couple of Weeks in Kunming

It has been a wild few weeks here in Kunming. I am sure that many of you have heard about the train station attack. Be assured that we are all fine and good. 

The weekend of the attack many students and teachers from KIA, including Eric, were taking part in and leading a huge youth conference (Permeate) about 15 min. away from where we live. Eric didn't stay overnight at the resort like the rest of them so I was grateful that when I received the phone call on Sunday morning from Michelle informing us of the Saturday night attack that I knew Eric's exact location (at home, with me). Michelle gave us the information that she knew and said that we needed to stay home from Fellowship because our building is only two blocks or so from the train station. She also said the wedding that we were all planning on attending that afternoon (a KIA colleague was getting married) was probably going to be cancelled because it was being held at a Muslim restaurant. Later that day we received an email from our school Director, who has the privilege of being our Field Director, that all OASIS staff (us) were not allowed to attend the wedding, but it would still take place without us. An email a little later on told us that school was cancelled on Monday so our weekend was unexpectedly extended a little longer so they could better assess the needs of the community and our safety. That evening (Sunday) some of the kids attending Permeate actually had to go to the station to take trains back to their homes around Yunnan. A friend of ours who dropped them off said that they seemed okay about it and the station was pretty cleared out by the time they arrived. 

We laid low on Monday and on Tuesday returned to school to find three policemen guarding our school gate and a new set of rules regarding going off campus during the school day. The students seem to be handling it fine. Besides a few changes at school and the increased police presence around the city, the attacks didn't affect any of them personally. The fear was that some of our students have lived in countries where terrorist attacks are quite the norm and I know of at least one student who was actually caught in the middle of an attack. We were somewhat apprehensive as a school that the student's experiences elsewhere would be brought to the surface with the attack here. I haven't seen this to be the case, they are a resilient bunch, but I am also no expert. 

Another result of the attacks was the cancelling of our yearly service trip to an orphanage about 5 hours south of the city. It is located in a largely Muslim area and they asked that we not come. We willingly agreed because we didn't want to position ourselves as a nice big target. Additionally, we were going to have a group of students from our sister school in Kabul visit, but we asked them not to come because we couldn't guarantee their safety. We were a little bummed about both cancellations, but we understand there is sound reasoning behind them. 

Sinterklaas and the Annual Staff Christmas Party

Look what Sinterklaas brought!

For our annual staff Christmas Party on Dec. 14th, we went to a local Chinese restaurant, ate amazing local foods, held a white elephant gift exchange, and took part in the British tradition of Christmas poppers (hence the fabulous paper crowns).

Kim, Michelle, and I

Kunming in the Snow!

This is what Sunday Dec. 15th looked like in Kunming! Our first snow in China.

There is something super cool about snow on palm trees.

Monday morning brought more snow and very chilly temps.

View of the KIA track and field from the fifth floor.

Looking through the buildings in Hu Pan, our neighborhood.

So many of the students were disappointed we still had school with the 1/2 in of snow on the ground, but let's face it, why do schools in America get classes cancelled? Extreme cold, loss of water, icy roads etc. We live without central heat so cold is the norm, we loose water about once a month so no problem, most people bike or walk to school so it really wasn't an issue. Sorry kids.