Besides a 3
hour delay in Iceland, Mr. Leo Spelt
(the principal/rector) of Marnix College and I (Ms. Dufresne) had a rather
smooth journey over the ocean from one continent to the other. Toronto traffic
is a dream in comparison to Dutch cities, so finding our hotel from the airport
was easy. We were thankful for that, as we were arriving at 5 a.m., Dutch time.
Our first
morning started early (local time) and after breakfast we headed out for an
hour’s drive to White Oaks Secondary School to meet with Mr. John Stieva, the
school’s principal. It snowed all day – but hey, it’s January in Canada! Walking
through the snow like cats when it has rained, we entered the building in
search of the Main Office. A polite young student escorted us to our destination
and handed us over to a very friendly staff.
Our coats
were hung and we settled into John’s office with coffee. As I received the mug
intended for me, I put everything I was working on down so I could cradle it
with both hands. Goodness, I had forgotten what a cup of coffee meant on this
continent! That’s why you are only offered one cup. Who would want a second? In
the end you drink more in just that one cup than in the Dutch double cup.
We got to
work talking about the details of both programs, helping one another envision
the event and working out any concerns or items of special need. I presented
John with the letters our students had written for their Canadian friends as
well as the brochures of Doorwerth Castle, made by Marnix College bilingual
first year (7th grade) students. Mr. Stieva’s students will be
setting up a closed Facebook group for students and staff of the exchange so we
have the opportunity to connect online. We also received information from Mr.
Stieva’s participating students who will shortly be sending along their own
letters of introduction. So, participating students, watch for them!
Without
going into further detail, I will say that there are some wonderful surprises in
store for this trip! It is going to be an amazing learning experience on all
fronts: academically, personally, language development and so much more! A very
rich international practical learning experience awaits us in Ontario and our
Canadian counterparts in the Netherlands.
What’s more?!
…look for the next post between now and February 17th - as it will be written by a White Oaks
student.