Back from Beijing

And my voice is gone. One of the varsity girls who decided not to go came up to me first thing this morning and said, "Sohko, I should've gone. It would've been worth it to see you yelling and coaching the way I heard you did." That's great, eh. I've lost my voice, if that says anything about the entire weekend. The seriously smoggy air of the city didn't help, either.

The girls' team lost all their games, but it was the ultimate practice for them, and I think they learned a lot. The boys' team, on the other hand, won most of their games and came out on top, as champions of the entire tournament. They played so well!

By far the biggest highlight of the trip was the morning excursion to the Great Wall, on Thursday. We climbed a steep hill where many shops and vendors were set up, selling little trinckets and articles of clothing for passing tourists. I got two bracelets just for the fun, and even found Aaron an old piece of wood. It was probably part of a large door frame or something, but the intricate carvings on it were what got him excited (he enjoys decorating his house, he says. Oh, adults). We went up to the actual Wall via cablecar, and the car I got on was the same one Bill Clinton had got on on his way down. Who knows if it was actally true, but there was a sticker on it that said so. On that day we only walked between two guard towers, but one day I would like to go back and hike the whole length of it. Hopefully the restorations would have finished by then. (Or not, depending on how efficient the Chinese decide to be.)

I stayed in an apartment building located in a residential complex, whose homes are at least 1000 sq. ft. in size and the rent starts at at least $4500 CAD. Totally western-style architecture and interiors. There are about 100 houses in one complex, and there are probably about 15-20 complexes. The region around the International School of Beijing consists of primarily these western European blocks; the only times I felt that I was in Beijing was when I was on the Wall, when I was out shopping in a local market, and when I was on the bus in the mornings traveling between ISB and our excursion destination. It was an interesting set-up, to say the least, and kind of creepy, to be perfecly honest. The School was great, though! Awesome people and the tournament was fabulous - every aspect one would consider for an event was covered and executed, and I was thoroughly impressed.

Some pictures to follow, and there are more on my flickr site.
> A bright red sun at 6am, because of the intense smog in the air.

> See! Bill Clinton took this car.

> Me and the Wall (and a random China man).

> Great view.

> The Pomegranate: a North American sports bar in the middle of nowhere.