The Week in Museums

This past week we had a couple of great museum visits. The first was to the Modern Art Museum. On the way, some of the kids were pretty negative about modern art, but after being asked to have an open mind to our speaker they listened. They still may not Iike art of the Modernism period (think Picasso till the 70's) but have a better understanding of why the works were done that way... showing feeling instead of realism and painting in a way that anyone could do and could make for themselves at home. Our guide was able to put the time period into perspective and of course the art as well.

Our second visit was to see the special exhibit of the Terracotta Warriors from China. One of the highlights of this visit was watching the students look at one of the signs and begin to recognize Mandarin characters on it. The sculptures were awe inspiring to me and the kids (and me) took many photos. The sheer size of the first set and then the miniature qualities of the second. The details we could still see and the ones we can no longer like the paint that wore away once exposed to the air and the clothes on the miniatures since the cloth had disintegrated.

Miniature Warriors

I had hoped to add a personal visit to see a chocolate exhibit this weekend at the Nordiska but that did not happen. Instead I relaxed and had a leisurely day today between brunch, yoga and the gym, I walked around the city and just kind of wandered.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Stockholm

A Successful Saturday

Today was a really nice day. After a good late afternoon and evening and night filled with lots and lots of sleep and a bit of tv watching, I woke up feeling well rested this morning. Who knew I was so tired... not me!

I had some breakfast and such with some of the kids and then went upstairs to look into some restaurants for dinner. I found a cool website called Book a Table which lets you book restaurant reservations for many cities in Europe including Stockholm. After a bit of research, I picked a place called Bauer in the trendy island of Södermalm.

Then it was time to go out and explore the city a bit... after I went and joined the gym. I decided to look into some cafes, all on the same street, I had read about in this cool little book Stockholm - inside out: A snapshot guide beyond the obvious which I found in a bookstore here. First on my list was the Classic Tea Room but when I arrived, I found that you need a reservation for lunch on a Saturday afternoon. It is a cute place so I was quite sad. Then I decided to go back to a place called Xoko where they had beautiful chocolate desserts though I was good and just had lunch this time. A wonderful pumpkin soup with fresh bread on the side and a beautiful latte macchiato which was served with a small jar of sugar... see how cute!

After a filling lunch, I decided to head on a nice walk (about 2 km) to find a knitting shop I am interested in, Garnverket. Along the way, I meandered into different shops and such. I found the place quite easily, but... it was already closed. There was a workshop going on inside just to tease me. I will go back as it looked like a great place and on some Thursday nights they have a knitting cafe.  Then it was time to head back to my room so I could relax for a bit and get ready for dinner.

Dinner was really wonderful... I had a beautiful dish of tuna with mango chutney and potato wedges and Marta had a beautiful dish of sushi. Marta and I had interesting conversation about the topic that keeps coming up.  Making connections with people when you are in a place for a short time. The same topic came up when I chatted with another friend on Skype later in the evening. Everyone has slightly different views, but we decided that it does require us to be more forward and maybe to live a bit outside of our typical comfort zone.  After dinner, we decided to walk up and down a bit of the main street of Södermalm and then walk back "home". It was a crisp night and we did stop for some dessert and hot chocolate along the way. Next time I will take a photo of the funky looking marshmallows they put on top. :) The walk was lovely and was a nice way to end the evening out. 

Back in my room, I decided to keep working on this great hat I am crocheting. I am testing out a pattern and will share it soon. Only a few more lines till it is done.

Hans Rosling and Statistics

Wednesday night Think Global School hosted an evening with Hans Rosling at Cirkus in Stockholm. It was an amazing event which you can see here if you missed it.

I enjoyed being present for the live event and also tweeting some great comments and a few photos along the way. It was interesting to read others Twitter posts during the event... some of the people were present, including some of our students, and others far away watching the live stream.

Hans Rosling has a way of making statistics relevant and fun. My favorite mathematical quote of the night was about those in poverty around the world. He said, "The percent of people in poverty were reduced, but the number of people in poverty is still the same." This idea has stayed with me even days later. His Gapminder software is a way to make statistics relevant and I want to use it in my math classroom. It is free software that makes use of the World Bank data bank. He is working to get the OECD to also give free access to their stats as well. He also reminded us to all look at the data and think for ourselves. It is very inspirational to hear him and for me put a new perspective on world questions and problems.

Musings on September

So it has been a couple of weeks... ok almost 3 since I have written. Life has been busy, but finally feels like it is settling in to some kind of rhythm... post scavenger hunts and special classes about photography and creativity.  We go regularly to our partner school YBC and they welcomed our students with a beautiful ceremony.

Their students have been buddied up and together they completed a video mashup this week exploring the similarities and differences between Sweden and where our students come from. It was a very cool thing to watch. 

I have found that we have many adventures over food. Everything from me cooking for 25... a well received wok dish courtesy of Kami Lewis Levin from one of her Girl Talk posts. One of mine was with chicken and one shrimp and tofu. 

To advisory dinners, to kids helping to prep to use getting use of a fabulous kitchen once a week to cook beautiful healthy meals. I mean look at the ingredients we picked from the fields for last weeks dinner.

We have also done some great other activities over the last few weeks... swimming, fencing, some early morning yoga taught by yours truly and so much more. We had some guest speakers as well as classes in museums and even one outside in a beautiful churchyard. TGS means the "classroom" is everywhere and can be at any time.  The days can be long, but they are rewarding. Stockholm is a beautiful place even with the cold and variable weather though we have had a beautiful stretch of sunny days in the past week.

I will try and be better to share my journey and adventures more often. I know by waiting so long, I miss many details and fun bits so I will try to post more often.