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| Korean War Memorial |
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| World War II Memorial |
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| Vietnam War Memorial |
Monday, October 10, 2011
Tour of Monuments in Wash DC
9 OCT - Sara, James, Jamie, Tot and James' aunt Alice toured some of the monuments on the mall. It was a very nice day
We will revisit these later and Sara will learn ALOT more :)
Update
Sorry - it has been a while since we updated the Blog. We have done many activities in a month :)
Sara started school and changed a class. She dropped guitar and changed to Personal Fitness. It is part weightlifting and part health class on how to eat and live healthy. She will enjoy it.
9 Sep - Sara and James went to an event in Wash, DC to get the word out about exchange students and finding families. It was a program called the Global DC Initiative to get more kids in Wash DC exposed to the cultures and languages of other countries. The Mayor of Wash, DC - Mayor Gray - was the speaker.
17 September, we hosted the families of the other students at our house for an orientation for the students and families. We had some EXCELLENT foods and Sara made an excellent empanada with Ham and Cheese.
On 22 Sep, Sara went to her first High School Volleyball game at Robinson. She had a great time, it was a good game and Robinson came from behind to win 3-2.
23 Sep, We went to another football game at Robinson on 23 Sep but Robinson lost bad to Westfield high school.
24 Sep - Jamie had her first volleyball game. She is on a club team in Chantilly. The girls are getting their first volleyball experience and well, they had fun.
Later in the day, two other students from China and Thailand joined us for the afternoon and we went to a DC United Soccer game. United won 4-1 and we had a great time. The girls enjoyed their first hot dogs with alot of Jalapenos - they ate them up!!
26 Sep, The Washington Redskins played the evil Dallas Cowboys. Sara and I watched it and ate Chicken wings while watching! Washington lost :( :( :(
Kims parents visited us from 29 Sep - 2 Oct. We had a great time.
29 Sep - we went to Mad Fox brewery in Arlington. http://madfoxbrewing.com/ The beer was very good and the foot outstanding. See the next post.
Sara started school and changed a class. She dropped guitar and changed to Personal Fitness. It is part weightlifting and part health class on how to eat and live healthy. She will enjoy it.
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| First Day of School!!!!!!!! |
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| Mayor Gray |
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| Spanish Ham and Cheese Empanada...sooo good :) |
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| Our Students this year Omika from Georgia, Sara, Raul from Spain, Wenjie from China and Laura from Germany...great group of wonderful young men and women! |
On 22 Sep, Sara went to her first High School Volleyball game at Robinson. She had a great time, it was a good game and Robinson came from behind to win 3-2.
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| Robinson Volleyball |
24 Sep - Jamie had her first volleyball game. She is on a club team in Chantilly. The girls are getting their first volleyball experience and well, they had fun.
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| Jamie is the one on the left :) |
Later in the day, two other students from China and Thailand joined us for the afternoon and we went to a DC United Soccer game. United won 4-1 and we had a great time. The girls enjoyed their first hot dogs with alot of Jalapenos - they ate them up!!
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| View of the DC United Soccer Game |
25 Sep - I took the girls to a Baseball game. My favotite team, the Atlanta Braves were in town to play the Washington Nationals. It was the last home game for the season for the Nationals. Washington won 2-0.
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| Sara, Mint and Wenjie at the Braves Nationals Game |
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| Wenjie, Mint and Sara with President Washington |
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| Sara likes wings! |
29 Sep - we went to Mad Fox brewery in Arlington. http://madfoxbrewing.com/ The beer was very good and the foot outstanding. See the next post.
30 Sep, Sara, James and Jim (Kim's Dad) went to a Japanese Hibachi restaurant.
1 Oct - We had a yard sale to get rid of some of our stuff then went to a Belgian Restaurant for dinner. It was very good but in a small restaurant. http://cockandbowl.com/ See food entry for photos
More Food from September
Some of the different foods Sara has tried this month :) She likes different foods ;)
Sara also had a Peruivian Chicken and El Salvadorian food but we forgot the camera so we will have to go back to those places :)))
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| Japanese Rolls - yummy!! |
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| noodles, chicken and stir fried vegetables |
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| Pizza Carbanara from Mad Fox Brewery |
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| Nutella, banana crepe - fried and rolled in cinnamon and sugar - REALLY DELICIOUS!!!!!!! |
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| Japanese cooking |
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| Spicy Hot Wings (chicken) Best to eat while watching FOOTBALL!! |
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| Banana Belly Buster (Banana and icecream inside a crepe) |
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| Kim's Beef and Vegetable Stew with Rice |
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| Cinnamon Rolls |
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| Chinese Food |
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| Sweet Potato with Sugar and Cinnamon - Kim did not like |
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| Pork Chop, Broccoli, fried cabbage and bread |
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| Boston Market Turkey, Spinach and Veggies |
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| Noodles, Chicken and Broccoli |
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| Baked Noodles and cheese with ham |
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| Chili Hotdog with Jalapenos |
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| Indian Curry Chicken and Rice |
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| Belgian Waffle |
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| Five Guys Hamburger with Fries |
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| Belgian Mussels |
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| Roasted Chicken and Belgian French Fries |
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| Belgian Waffle with chocolate and whipped cream (Yes, I know it is upside down :) |
Sara also had a Peruivian Chicken and El Salvadorian food but we forgot the camera so we will have to go back to those places :)))
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
9-11 Ceremony
11 Sep - Jamie participated in a ceremony at the Fairfax Government Center. She and other Girl and Boy Scouts led the group in the Pledge of Allegiance. After the ceremony, Sara met some important people. Sara took the time to tell them she was an exchange student from Spain and thanked them for their support of the exchange programs.
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| Sara and US Congressman Gerry Connelly. He is a member of the US House of Representatives. |
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| Sara with Ms Bulova, Chairwoman of the Fairfax Board of Supervisors and Mr Bulova who is a Delegate to the Virginia House of Delegates representing Fairfaxand Son of Ms Bulova. He is a graduate of Robinson where Sara attends school. |
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| Sara with Mr Cook. He is the represenative on the Fairfax County board of Supervisors. |
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| Jamie is in the group in front to the left....the TALL one :) |
First Day of School
6 Sep - Jamie and Sara had their first day of school. Sara was very surprised at how many students there are at the school when they are all in the hallways!!! Sara is adjusting well to school starting at 7:20am and then being out by 2pm. Also, having lunch at school is new to Sara. In Spain, and alot of European countries, they don't have lunch at school.
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Football Game and Labor Day Weekend
Click on the photos below to make them bigger.........
Monday and Tuesday (29-30 Aug) Sara did normal stuff. James and Sara went for a short run of only 1.5 miles. Jamie and Sara played some volleyballin the backyard. Sara got alot of bug bites on her legs... They ate at Church's Fried Chicken.
Later on Wed, Sara went Robinson school and receive her schedule and locker. She will be taking:
IB Philosophy
Human Anatomy
Pre-Calculus
Gourmet Foods
US and Virginia History
English 11
Guitar I
It will be a tough schedule for her but she is a very smart young lady and we will ensure that she does well!! She met some of her teachers and likes them.
Thursday (1 Sep), she went back for her New Student Orientation. Later that night, Sara went to her first American high school football game. Robinson was ranked #17 in Virginia and Stone Bridge was ranked #2. It was a very good game but Robinson lost 0-3 in the last minute. Sara saw the High School band perform at halftime. It was a very interesting first High School event.
To read about the game - go to this link
http://www.robinsonathletics.com/index.cfm?action=main.teamarticle&articleID=227403&id=26622
On Friday afternoon 2 Sep, we departed Fairfax for Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park. We stayed at Skyland Lodge. http://www.nps.gov/shen/planyourvisit/driving-skyline-drive.htm
On Saturday 3 Sep, we got up early and drove to Lexington, Virginia to go thru the drive thru safari. This is a zoo you can drive through in your car and freed the animals. They also have a small petting zoo and some animals in fenced areas. Sara was a little scared at first to feed the animals but later felt comfortable. They fed llamas, osterich, Emu, Elk, deer, and a few others. The car got feed all over it and the paint on the rear passengar door is scratched from elk antlers. http://www.virginiasafaripark.com/geninfo.html
After the zoo, we drove to Staunton for lunch at Wrights Drive In. It was too hot to eat outside so we ate inside - typical hamburger and hotdogs. Then we went to the Shakespeare Theater to see a performance of Hamlet. It was very good especially the actors that played Hamlet and Ophelia.
http://www.americanshakespearecenter.com/
After the performance we went to dinner at Mill St Restaurant. It was a very nice restaurant and I recommend it. We drove back to the lodge. There is no air conditioner and it was quite warm and muggy night. http://millstreetgrill.com/
5 Sep Monday, we got up and had breakfast and went to Luray Caverns. http://www.luraycaverns.com/ The girls took a tour of the caves and then went through the maze. They had a good time. Weather cancelled the rest of the day so we headed back to Fairfax. It was a very fun day and trip and we had a great time.
Monday and Tuesday (29-30 Aug) Sara did normal stuff. James and Sara went for a short run of only 1.5 miles. Jamie and Sara played some volleyballin the backyard. Sara got alot of bug bites on her legs... They ate at Church's Fried Chicken.
On Wed (31 Aug), Jamie, Sara and James went for a run. Jamie turned around pretty quick and Sara and James went for about 2.75 miles. Sara tripped and fell and tore some skin off the palm of her hand. She has a nice scab but she is OK. It hurts but she is doing well.
Later on Wed, Sara went Robinson school and receive her schedule and locker. She will be taking:
IB Philosophy
Human Anatomy
Pre-Calculus
Gourmet Foods
US and Virginia History
English 11
Guitar I
It will be a tough schedule for her but she is a very smart young lady and we will ensure that she does well!! She met some of her teachers and likes them.
Thursday (1 Sep), she went back for her New Student Orientation. Later that night, Sara went to her first American high school football game. Robinson was ranked #17 in Virginia and Stone Bridge was ranked #2. It was a very good game but Robinson lost 0-3 in the last minute. Sara saw the High School band perform at halftime. It was a very interesting first High School event.
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| Robinson Football Game - Robinson is in Blue and Gold!!! GO RAMS!! |
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| Robinson Marching Band performing at Halftime |
To read about the game - go to this link
http://www.robinsonathletics.com/index.cfm?action=main.teamarticle&articleID=227403&id=26622
On Friday afternoon 2 Sep, we departed Fairfax for Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park. We stayed at Skyland Lodge. http://www.nps.gov/shen/planyourvisit/driving-skyline-drive.htm
On Saturday 3 Sep, we got up early and drove to Lexington, Virginia to go thru the drive thru safari. This is a zoo you can drive through in your car and freed the animals. They also have a small petting zoo and some animals in fenced areas. Sara was a little scared at first to feed the animals but later felt comfortable. They fed llamas, osterich, Emu, Elk, deer, and a few others. The car got feed all over it and the paint on the rear passengar door is scratched from elk antlers. http://www.virginiasafaripark.com/geninfo.html
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| Feeding a Llama |
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| Feeding TWO llama's |
After the zoo, we drove to Staunton for lunch at Wrights Drive In. It was too hot to eat outside so we ate inside - typical hamburger and hotdogs. Then we went to the Shakespeare Theater to see a performance of Hamlet. It was very good especially the actors that played Hamlet and Ophelia.
http://www.americanshakespearecenter.com/
After the performance we went to dinner at Mill St Restaurant. It was a very nice restaurant and I recommend it. We drove back to the lodge. There is no air conditioner and it was quite warm and muggy night. http://millstreetgrill.com/
On Sunday morning (4 Sep), Jamie, James and Sara departed at 0730 for our 6 mile hike on the Appalachian Trail. http://www.appalachiantrail.org/ 100m into the hike we saw 4 deer and then about 12 wild turkeys. It was really nice cool walk. As we passed the horse stables, one of the horses made a loud sound. I told the girls it was an Elk so I make the Elk sound that we made up in Washington St. I went "EEEEEEEEEERRRRGHHHHKKKK!! Then there was a very loud rustling in the big oak tree about 10 yards from us. I immediately thought it was alot of turkey's leaving the tree but there were no turkeys. Then I thought squirrels but it was too large. Then I remembered that bears climb trees and must, at some point, come down. Just then the large black face with black ears appeared from around the tree about 40 feet up and looked at us. I told the girls to walk slowly backwards. I did not know if it was a mother bear with cubs or not. The bear came down the tree about 10m (30ft) from us and looked and ran away. It stopped quick enough for a photo and went on. We kept walking, ate breakfast about 1 hour into the hike, saw more deer and turkeys and right at the end a grey fox. It was an exciting and fun hike. It was hotter than in the past and there were not as many wild flowers. We ate lunch and went back to the room for a shower!! We spent the rest of the day playing Monopoly deal card game and had dinner.
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| Turkey's |
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| One black bear |
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| Sara with a deer |
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| Silver Fox - Look int he opening in the middle of the right hand side |
5 Sep Monday, we got up and had breakfast and went to Luray Caverns. http://www.luraycaverns.com/ The girls took a tour of the caves and then went through the maze. They had a good time. Weather cancelled the rest of the day so we headed back to Fairfax. It was a very fun day and trip and we had a great time.
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| Getting Lost in the Maze |
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| in Luray Caverns |
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