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A trip to Koh Chang
Mary Velechovsky, student
Grades 7 and 8 of the Christian German School Chiang Mai
went on a weeklong field trip Koh Chang. The Koh Chang is the second largest
island after Phuket, and is located off Trat’s coastline.
Grade 7
and 8 of the Christian German School Chiang Mai.
After getting settled in the hotel, most of us were very
tired and decided to sleep. To give you an example how one of those
exhausting days in the remote island looked like, read on. Every morning we
would eat breakfast together and then do daily activities like snorkeling,
fishing, and kayaking. Exhausted already? When the sun set and the huge moon
came up we played beach games.
 When
the sun set and the huge moon came up we played beach games.
Quoting some students what they thought of the trip,
these were the answers, “Kayaking was fun because it was the first time
for me.”
“After kayaking, fishing on a speed boat was real cool.
But the best part about fishing was grilling and eating the fish.”
While snorkeling, we learned many new things about marine
life and we are already sure that we are expected to remember them all.
But all good things come to an end and we had to pack our
bags and get ready to go home to Chiang Mai, which was even more exhausting
than holidays. After the ferry ride back to the mainland, we continued for
an 18 hour drive to Chiang Mai.
In conclusion, our trip to Koh Chang was very fun and educational, it
built friendships and better understanding amongst us and we can’t wait
until next year’s fieldtrip.
Thai musical prodigy gives private performance for Royal family
Saksit Meesubkwang
Paded Netpakdee, 18, has just finished high school at
Prince Royal’s College, Chiang Mai, and is going on to study at Silpakorn
University in Bangkok. Despite his youth, he is one of the best musicians in
Thailand, and hopes to study music abroad.
Paded
Netpakdee receives an award from General Pichit Kullawanich at Sirikit
National Convention Center.
He began playing musical instruments when he was six
years old while in a Lanna kindergarten, and when he entered a competition
playing Thai instruments won the first prize. This aroused his interest in
music and he decided to register at the Yamaha Music School, Chiang Mai.
Participating in other music competitions, he won the first prize in
national classic guitar in 2000, and northern guitar with folk songs in
2002. He also received a gold medal from the Youth and Music competition at
Mahidol University. During the past two years, he also won a gold medal for
the national classic guitar, and a gold medal for ensemble guitar.
He was very proud to perform in front of HM The Queen at Queen Sirikit
Botanical Gardens in Mae Rim district, Chiang Mai, on March 1, 2003, and for
HRH Princess Somsawalee at Pangtong Palace in Pai district, Mae Hong Son, on
February 4, 2005. Later, he received first prize for classic instrument
playing from General Pichit Kullawanich, privy councilor, at Sirikit
National Convention Center, Bangkok.
Science Day at Prem gives students hands-on experience
Amanda Gulliver (Teacher)
Prem Tinsulanonda International School Grade Four
students had a “Sensational Science Day.” In the morning, some of the
students brought in their own experiments to share with the class. We had an
amazing volcanic eruption, homemade slime that looked gooey but was rock
hard when punched, spinning magnets, optical illusions, and rocks that felt
magnetic.
After the student presentations, we learned about the
scientific method, which we practiced by making models of objects that fly.
We first made miniature helicopter blades and tested different shapes and
lengths to see which ones spun the best. Our second experiment involved a
parachute made from a plastic bag and string. For each experiment, we had to
make the model, make a prediction, test our models, and record our
observations.
We had so much fun learning through science, that we want to do it again
next term. One student commented that Science Day was “… the best day of
my life!”
LuckyDogs has moved
Bigger, more running space, and a swimming pond
Nienke
Parma
Just awoken by the neighbor’s dogs. They have become my
new alarm clock and is set at sunrise. I sit outside, with a coffee in my
hand, watching my dogs having party time in my new fish pond. Big smiles on
their faces.
Never expected it would go this fast, but we moved in
less than a month! And, despite the extra stress and hard work, it’s
absolutely worth it! The new place is much bigger, full of my favorite
fruits: mango trees and coconut palms. The house has one room more, the
office is bigger and there is an infirmary. More important are the improved
kennels. Beside good quality food, proper health care and loving attention,
dogs need physical and mental stimulation. Therefore, the kennels are
divided according the size of the dogs: with the smallest kennel for breeds
such as the Shih Tsu, Miniature-Pinscher and -Poodle, Pomeranian, and the
biggest kennels (approximately 45m2) for big dogs such as the Golden- and
Labrador Retriever, Rottweiler, Mastiff. Although, having enough space for
them to run and play, it’s not enough for the mental stimulation, as being
in the same place day-in-day-out is pretty boring. Just imagine yourself
being in a beautiful house with big garden for the rest of your life, with
the occasional trip to the doctor. You would become quickly bored too,
wouldn’t you?! For solving this problem, we have special play camps.
Experience has taught that the dogs really enjoy the daily change of area.
Nevertheless, my biggest joy is the fish pond. Not only
for the refreshing and joyful swim, it also can be included in my training
programs (if requested) and be used for rehabilitation purposes. For example
the German Shepherd Mix, having spondylosis and hip-dysplasia, benefits
enormously from her daily swimming sessions, next to the acupuncture, Reiki
treatment, homeopathic medicine (carefully selected by me) and extra
vitamins. And not to mention my arthritic nine year old Rottweiler and 12
year old Afghan lady, both on homeopathic medicine too.
Reaching the new place is fairly simple, as it is along
the second ring-road (No. 121) around Chiang Mai, see map. At the
intersection turn left or right (depending on where you come from) and after
about 50 meters turn right into a small dead-end lane. LuckyDogs’ new
location will be at the end of the lane on your right.
May I warmly welcome all my old and new customers to this
beautiful new place.
For more information on dog-issues, boarding, training or
behavior (modification) please contact LuckyDogs: 0 9997 8146 or
lucky4paws@yahoo.com
Third German Academic Days at CMU
German language studies going down as Asian tongues increase
Sandy Clark
70 of the 100 German professors and lecturers from all
over Thailand, plus guest speakers from neighboring countries were welcomed
for the third German Academic Days which took place at Chiang Mai University
from March 24-26.
German language has had a long tradition in Thailand, so
it was surprising that the opening addresses by the Dean of the Faculty of
Humanities and the vice rector of Academics were both only in Thai, despite
the fact that over half of the attendees were foreigners.
 (From
left) Dr. Nina Herrmann Merolle, DAAD-Study Information Center Bangkok,
Hagen Dirksen, Honorary German Consul and Dr. Joerg Loeschmann, Goethe
Institute Bangkok
Honorary Consul of Germany Hagen Dirksen said that he had
expected to give his speech in German but as English is the language of
diplomacy, business and the Internet, used English instead. He said, “In
our globalized world it does not mean that other languages become obsolete.
Young people have to understand that the more foreign languages they speak,
the better their chances are to land an interesting job later in life. I
believe that today’s teaching must respond to the job market of tomorrow.
But language skills are not enough, the role of you as lecturers is also to
strengthen interest in foreign culture, art and music and increase the
knowledge and the friendship between Germany and Thailand.”
Dr. Joerg Loeschmann from the Goethe Institute Bangkok
talked about a revival of the German language, looking at the 45 percent
increase in numbers of students at the Goethe Institute over the past four
years. Over the same time the number of Thai students enrolled in Germany
has more than doubled but this pleasant situation ignores the fact that the
number of students learning German at High Schools has decreased by 15
percent. Joerg Loeschmann said, “The biggest reason for that decrease is
the new retirement scheme of the government, the lack of a fixed pool for
language teachers, the naturally growing importance of Japanese and Chinese,
a level of the general university access examination in German language that
is much too high and not (in line with) the knowledge and skills that a High
School student can reach after three years with only five hours a week and
the limited use of methodological knowledge in the teaching of German.”
He closed his address saying that the German Academic Days in Chiang Mai
will face many challenges for the participants and hopefully it will end
with a creative output for teachers and later on for their students.
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