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Lovely technology
My faithful steed. THe Honda CBR 750. It's fast enough, and quite a ride through the mountains!
Nathan D. Bryant Alright, for those of you who are currently teachers, or those of you who are thinking of becoming teachers, or for those of you who have no idea what you want to do, you should consider international teaching. This entry is made possible due in great thanks to my future school. One of the many perks (and yes, I do mean many), is that I get paid conferences throughout the year. Paid means fee covered (for this one, $1000), travel covered and meals. Overall, the school is putting some nice money into my development.
I decided that instead of flying to the conference, I would ride my bike to the event. It was about 300 miles, and it made for a great trip. Numerous times I was able to see hawks along the way, and as the pics show, the view was spectacular. The conference itself was very good. I learned quite a lot about the IB program (International Baccalaureate), which is kind of like a very advanced honors program. If one follows the program all the way, one can gain 20 credit hours in the top universities around the country (top as in like Oxford). It took 17
My view
THis is one of the views while riding. Overall, it was a great time! hours of class time to just get introduced to the program, so please understand if I do not attempt to explain on this journal the details. What I will say is that the program rocks, because it challenges students and teachers alike. If educational is too easy, then it is a waste of time. Or as put better, "Without struggle, there can be no progress," Frederick Douglas.
Besides the mind filling amount of info, the school did a great job of providing fun for the participants. Within four days time I was able to go to a natural hot springs a couple of times, go on great hikes, see historic places, meet tons of new people, enjoy the open bar (yes my friends, they had an open bar every night) and there were many other events they put on for people to enjoy. The only thing that was not pleasant was the communal bathrooms. Every time the toilet flushed, I got a strong blast of cold water. While I reminisced about my college days of roommates and the like, it took about 5 minutes for the nostalgia to wear away.
One of the best parts of the trip
More of the view
Once again, some more of the lovely view! though was enjoying the school itself. As the pictures show, it is literally a castle in the middle of the wilderness. It was built in the 1850's to impress and cater to the elite. After awhile it was sold over a couple of times, the most recent being to a United World College. This is a center for high school kids, from all around the world, to attend school together. I met a few students, and they expressed how much they enjoyed and learned at the school. It provided hope to me as a teacher that there are establishments working towards making the next generation more international. I believe they are making more schools, and they are always looking for good students. If you know anyone who would do well at a school like this, you should certainly look into it. I would have loved to gone to this school!
On a closing note, I can say I made a lot of great friends here, and that I was sad to leave. It goes to show though that if you go to a place and give it a shot, you can be pleasantly surprised. The four days were packed
Obstacles
This was a first for me, but along the way to the conference I had to watch for goats. with education, fun and getting a chance to really see the South West through a great ride. If ever you get the chance to ride a motorcycle through the country, I strongly suggest it.
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Jeannine Heinbuch
non-member comment
Nate you havee such an exciting life! I was so excited to see this on my email. I have subscribed so I can follow you on your travels. The pictures are wonderful. You can tell from the way you write just how passionate you are about teaching. As long as you are not teaching kids how to do pranks you transformation from adolecent to adult is complete. Sneaking around castles is close but I can overlook it. Miss you Jeannine you childhood chum