Singapore

The Presentations and the Gala in Pictures

KL

Some Pictures

A special thanks to Stacey who took 90% of the pictures on the trip.  Many of us didn't even carry a camera because we knew she had it covered!

The Gala

The Last Night

Santosa

Night Safari part 2 - Jen's Party

Night Safari

KL Supper

Repulse Bay

Tamarind

The Harbour

Ho Yu College

The Pictures, The Videos...

Well, it took some doing but here are some videos and pictures that we have compiled to keep a video journal of our trip.  We hope you like them.

Back in Canada - almost...

As the previous entry shows, we travelled a little lighter than we wanted to.  Stacey had to stay behind, and Norm stayed back too, to make sure that we all make it back (eventually).

The rest of us are back in Canada, sitting in the Vancouver airport waiting to get on to the next flight, and waiting to get home.  The trip has been absolutely amazing - truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience that none of us will forget.  Thank-you Norm, Thank-you Jacinthe, and Thank-you Microsoft! 

We will get home and hopefully have a bit of time to unpack and start to adjust back to the new time zones again, then when we can we will start posting the pictures and videos of our adventure.  Check in a little later this week and we should have some awesome footage of our travels.

 

It's good to be home...

 

-Ryan

Bonus Day

Well, today was a bit of a surprise.  United wouldn't let me board the plane due to a computer error... not good.  So I ended up with a bonus day in Singapore.  Norm was my hero!  He stayed back with me to make sure everything was all right.  What an amazing guy!  We had another great day eating, walking, shopping and swimming.  We're both really tired so we decided to head to bed early and try to get home again tomorrow.  Wish us luck!

Stacey

Singapore!

Yestarday was our last day in KL and the last day for our official Microsoft Conference.  It was a day of groupwork and sessions, ending off with a police-escorted trip to our finale gala.  It was wonderful!  Many great foods to eat and sights to see.  Cari Wilson won the best Canadian project and a second award for her international group. Way to go Cari!  Jennifer Drysdale's international group also won an award.  Each was well-deserved!

Darren Cannell also got recognized for his efforts in being a judge at this competion.  He recieved a beautful portfolio with the KL Twin Towers etched into the cover.

We left very early this morning from our hotel in Kuala Lumpur, and got to our flight.  It was a short trip to Singapore and it was very warm and humid.  Maybe moreso than anywhere else we've been.  We got through the airport (eventually - but that is another story for another time) and made it to our destination.  As soon as we got here we went downtown to do a bit of sight-seeing and maybe a bit of shopping, but no one bought anything, so there you go. 

We spent a few hours by the pool, each with their own laptop, catching up on e-mails and work.  After that, we went to the Night Safari and saw sights and sounds we won't soon forget.  It was spectacular - jungle life right before our eyes.  Then a late supper at Carnivores and a quick visit to the night market, and now we are back home, again, skyping loved ones and trying to get through one more e-mail before collapsing into bed at the Sheraton Towers.

Tomorrow is the last full day of our journey, and so ends the adventure.  We may or may not get a chance to log in anymore so if this is the last entry while we are here, we'll be back at our homes on Monday.

We'll see everyone soon!

 

-Ryan

Sitting by the pool!

We arrived in Singapore this morning and had the opportunity to go shopping for a bit.  Right now there are 5 of us (Darren, Cari, Ryan, Stacey and I (jen) are sitting around the pool.)  But never fear... we are all total tech geeks and are all 5 of us working on our laptops!  Better here then stuck in our hotel rooms.  We are all excited to visit the night safari this evening.  Amanda is catching some zzzz's in the hotel so she is ready for the evening.  We're having a blast!!

Jen

The Presentations

Today was the big day - the day where we gave our presentations on the projects that got us here in the first place.  There were many displays and a lot of people from all over the world looking, learning, and discovering.  Innovation is everywhere!

The judging began at 9 and we were first up so we got our 'official' presentations done early, but still did a lot of talking about our projects to everyone else who came around.  Everyone was very impressed by Canada's contribution, and by the end of the day, many, many people were wearing the small Canadian Flag pins that we had brought and handed out during the day.  It was fantastic!

After the presentations we had the opening ceremony where we had a chance to listen to many dignitaries from KL's Ministry of Education, and then we listened to the Keynote Speaker, Michael Furdyk, a fellow Canadian, who is a major force in the online community for young people by providing a platform for millions of youth across more than 200 countries to engage with social issues.  He is only 27 and is an agent of change in the world.  Quite an inspiring Canuck!

The day progressed with us going to Tamrind Springs, which is a restaurant located in the jungle.  It was beautiful and the food was delicious.  We had a wonderful time just laughing and enjoying the embiance. 

Once again, a quick jump in the pool was on our agenda for the end of the day.  Now we are all back in our rooms, Skyping and catching up on work from home, and getting ready for another night of sleep that just never seems to be quite long enough.  Nobody is complaining though - there will be plenty of time for sleep on the flight home...

 

-Ryan

Presentations Are Done!

I'm having a blast and I can't believe what an amazing experience this is!  Our presentations are done and I am happy that the pressure is gone.  This has been a exciting adventure with something new and exciting everyday.  I feel so lucky to be sharing this with this group of people.  We laugh so hard that we cry, who could ask for anything more?!  I'm loving every minute of it.

Jen

Another great day!

Once again, it is the end of another day and everyone is exhausted!  Today we had breakfast in our hotel, Le Meridien.  It is wonderful to have the conference in the hotel we are staying in, it really makes it convenient, which is so appreciated after being so busy.  Then we got into smaller breakout groups and were taken on one of four different field trips.  Each one sounded amazing so there wasn't any disappointment at all.  Everyone we talked to from each excursion said it was fantastic.

We got a chance to have lunch at the top of a skyscraper, The KL Tower, which gave us a fabulous 360 degree view of the city.  It actually turned around giving us constantly new vista every time we looked out the window.  The food was delicious!

We got back to the hotel and got into our special project groups to work and collaborate on a project based on our excursion.  It was fun to be able to work with people from all over the world and brainstorm ideas and concepts. 

After that, the Canadian group decided to go out for supper and then we caught the train to Market Square, which is a two level group of shops and stores that sell local goods, and there are a few restaurants in there as well.  It was good to be able to experience the local evening scenes.

Eventhough we are all so tired, a quick dip in the pool was on the agenda too, because, even at 10 PM, the weather is warm (for us Canadians!) and we just can't pass up the chance.  How many times can you swim on the eight floor and look up from the pool to see 30 floors lit up in blue lights above you and overlooking the KL skyline????

Now everyone is in their rooms, frantically answering e-mails, catching up on work, and SKYPING people back home.  Again, as tired as we all are, everyone always tries to get one more call in to home whenever we can.

Trust us!  We are taking pictures and videos and we will put them up, but it may be after we get back - there just isn't enough hours in the day to get it all done... and we wouldn't have it any other way.

Goodnight Canada.

 

 

-Ryan

And we're there!

We are in Kuala Lumpur!  Once again, travel was smooth and direct.  It was a three hour flight from Hong Kong to Kuala Lumpur.  We had a wonderful day yesterday and today.  We'll have more details and pictures in the near future.  Time is at a premium and our days are full so unfortunately these postings are shorter than they should be.

We'll log in and fill you in with more details shortly...

Day Two Begins...

We are staying at the very comfortable Kimberley Hotel.  Today is beginning under grey skies but it isn't going to dampen our spirit of adventure!

We should note that Dr. Gerald Farthign, Deputy Minister for Manitoba Education, Citizenship and Youth, has joined us for two days in Hong Kong before he will depart back to Canada.

Dr. Lesa Covington Clarkson arrived after us last night and will be joining us for the next week.  She is from Minnesota and is partnered with us based on an MOU.  She will be a wonderful addition to our group. 

Today we will be going for breakfast and then off to Ho Yu College, then we'll have some lunch, then off to Giant Buddha and Lin Po Monastery via gondaol at 1 PM.

Later on, after we get back we'll go to the Stone Grill, basement of Harbour City then after dinner we'll take the Star Ferry and enjoy a second evening in Hong Kong.

 

We'll log in later and catch everyone up to speed.  Have a good evening Canada.

 

-Ryan

We are here!

Good day, or good evening, depending on where you are...

We have touched down safely in Hong Kong.  The flight was as good as a 14 hour flight could be.  There wasn't any turbulence and it went off smoothly, so no real news there - which is always good news.

We got into Hong Kong, got all our bags and got to our hotel, booked in, then went for supper.  We decided to walk back from the restaurant and do some shopping at the market, since it was on the way.  We spent about an hour or so there and made it back to our hotel rooms.  Everyone was in a mad dash to SKYPE all their loved ones back home, since midnight here is 10 AM back in Saskatchewan.  A perfect time to get in a quick visit before we all collapsed into our beds.  We are all working on adrenaline, and Stacey is working on Diet Coke, but that is another story for another time...

Fortunately, everyone has been taking a lot of pictures and videos, but unfortunately, because we are working on little to no sleep for the past 30 hours, we won't be posting any of them tonight, but they will be up when time permits. 

Thanks for checking in to find out how things are going.  Everything is going very smoothly, thanks to Norm Lee, who is THE GUY when it comes to planning everything we do here.  It is a testament to all of his hard work behind the scenes when we all say how much fun we are having and all the cool things we have seen and will see. 

Tomorrow it is breakfast at 7:30 AM so it is time to log out and try and get some shut eye so we can get to it again tomorrow.

 

-Ryan

We're So Excited!

I just wanted to test out our new blog.  Thanks for setting this up for us Ryan & Kelli.  See you all soon!

Stacey

Welcome to our blog!

This is a blog that is set up for the Canadian Microsoft Innovative Teacher group for 2009.  Within this blog we will be posting comments, pictures, and videos so we will have a running digital journal for people to see and for us to share.

Please feel free to check back in occasionally as we will be doing our best to update it whenever possible!