What the Wendling's do outside of school...

Prior to leaving for Korea Justine, Kyara, Matteya and Ariel were involved with a number of different activities. These included: dance, hockey, volleyball, basketball, soccer, golf and exposure to other activities from time to time. Most of these activities are done through the elementary or middle school program at GSIS and so the girls are able to continue to do these activities - but hockey and dance are not. A promise that Rosanne and Kevin made to the girls before deciding to go to Korea was that they would try their best to give the girls the same activities that they participated while in Canada.

To help facilitate this a large hockey bag was brought to Suwon with everything from Matteya's hockey equipment to dance shoes and body suits. Bringing the equipment was the easy part - finding the activities in a city of 1 000 000 people would be the hard part.




Luckily, at the end of August, a hockey arena was discovered and with the help of some new found friends Matteya began to play hockey. Now, Matteya plays hockey twice a week - usually on the weekends. With the help of Siyehol - whose sons Jin and Peter are pictures above and below - much of the registration and transportation have been provided for.


What is hockey like in Korea? Hockey does not have a specific season - they play all year long. As well, hockey practices have lots of skating drills - both forward and backward skating - and not as many drills involving team play, passing and shooting. Because of this the average Korean hockey player is a strong skater.

In Korea - skates are grinded not sharpened - there is training not practices - and we are not quite sure what the Korean word for flooding the ice is. However, after one special practice there was pizza and chicken wings for the kids - so some traditions are the same no matter where you live. (However, chicken wings are made one way in Korea - HOT!!!)


After some adjustment - and getting into shape - Matteya is enjoying hockey and in her first game scored a goal and had an assist. Unfortunately they only play one or two games in a month and much of the players time is spent training and practicing.

Matteya' number, 99, 11 was not available and after consulting with mon oncle Paul it was agreed that 99 was acceptable because it was Wayne Gretzky's number and mon oncle Paul wore it one season - (as well 9 is her Maman's number).



The other activity the girls were able to find was dance. With the help from a teacher at GSIS Rosanne found the girls a dance studio which offers ballet and hip hop. So twice a week the girls walk or take a taxi to the dance studio, approximately 15 minutes from the apartment.


What is dance like in Korea? Justine, Kyara, Matteya and Ariel find that the instruction is a little more intense and the dance to be a little more challenging. This is probably due to the demands of the parents - who have high expectations and pay a lot of money to have their children meet these standards. One has to remember that most students in Korea go to school and then go to extra academic classes after school. If a child was to dance or play hockey it is because the parents have made this choice to look at activities that they deem to be important for the future of their children.

In the end, the Wendling girls are enjoying their various activities. It gives them the opportunity to continue to improve their abilities and a chance to see Korean culture in a different way. Spending time at GSIS gives one perspective of Korea and the culture it exists in. However, going to dance and hockey give Justine, Kyara, Matteya and Ariel more information on what life is like in Korea.

As well, a number of other girls have tried taking the ballet or hip hop classes - all of them have enjoyed the experience and many have continued to train in ballet or hip hop.

A New Journey in Hong Kong

From September 12th - 16th the Wendling family left Suwon and GSIS in order to take a well earned vacation in Hong Kong. Well it really wasn't a vacation...Rosanne had to go get some MYP training for Science. So it was decided that we would go as a family because of the fact that it was the holiday of Chusok in Korea so we would have five days and four nights in order to explore this former British Colony.


So what to do first...well of course Hong Kong Disney. Yes, believe it or not the Mouse has a home in Hong Kong and so we - Kevin and the five girls - spent two days at the Magic Kingdom. (Rosanne did spend one day with the family before having to go to training on UbD and Assessment - I think Kevin got the better deal on this one.)


Complete with Mickey Mouse and all his friends, rides like - 'It's a Small World', (our friend Tammy's favorite), and the 'The Adventures of Winnie the Pooh', parades, a western style hotel and food that was almost like back home - almost.



Kevin and the girls then ventured into the city to catch up with Rosanne who was still attending her conference. That night the family went to the Ladies' Market near Admiralty Station. There you could buy anything - even a watch or two or 22 depending on the number of sellers at hand. This was a place to make deals and if you couldn't make the deal - you walked away - sometimes with the vendor following you and trying to grab you in order to bring you back to their stall. Upon looking at all of the humanity who seemed to be pushing against us, one of the girls said, 'Wow there are more people here than in all of Canada'.


The next evening the Wendling family had the opportunity to venture to Victoria park to partake - with our new friend Leah from Thailand as well as our Australian friends Ann - 'there is no way I am going in a circle' - and Kylie from GSIS - in the Hong Kong Fall Festival. This evening was marked by local entertainment and the gathering of lanterns into the park, it was beautiful sight with more people than you could imagine at this celebration.


The next day Kevin and the girls headed to Ocean Park - a Hong Kong version of Sea World. Again, they spent a full day with many rides and a four level aquarium with ocean life that ranged from sharks, to sting rays to something that looked like a cross of both. However, the highlight of the entire park had to be the Pandas - or as Mia calls them - the 'Kung Fu' Pandas. Ocean Park has four Pandas and we were lucky enough to see two of them no more than five feet away from us.


Later that day Rosanne caught up with the crew and they finished the day by going to the Peak - that is the top of Hong Kong - and the taking a ferry around the harbor.


After a quick swim the next morning, the Wendling's packed up and headed back to Suwon to continue their other life as teachers at GSIS. What an opportunity though - Hong Kong will be a memory that we will cherish.

Going on Retreat in Gyeongju

August 29th, 30th and 31st was a retreat for the faculty and staff of GSIS and its sister school TCIS. The retreat was an opportunity for the staff of each school to get to know each other and to make connections with their brethern at the other school. (Mia and Bentley are seen here watching a moving on the long bus ride to Gyeongju.)

The retreat took place at the Kolon Hotel. Upon arrival, a number of the staff came out of the hotel to greet us and make us feel welcome. The hotel, considered a luxury hotel in Asia, had a 9 hole golf course, swimming pool, sauna and soccer field. There was much opportunity for everying to enjoy their time together.


During the day there were many activities both at the hotel and within the surrounding area. Here is a sample of the what the Wendling's did while at Gyeongju.

Mia is enjoying a quiet moment by the natural foot massage area at the Millennium Park. Below we see the Wendling's in front of a replica of the Bell of King Seongdeok.


While at the Shilia Millennium Village the girls had a chance to make a souvenir of their time at the village. Both in the pictures above and below the girls are making necklaces.




The Bulguksa Buhdist Temple, pictured above and below, is one of the largest temples in Korea. It is known worldwide and is a UNESCO site. After seeing the temple the girls had many questions about Buhhda and the Buhdist religion.


We had the opportunity to see the National Museum in Gyeongju which had a number of interesting artifacts, a few are seen below.



Rosanne and Kyara are outside of one of the tombs of a Shilia King. The body of a King would be buried and a wooden enclosure put around them and then 10 - 15 meter high hill would be put on top of that.


Gyeongju was both interesting and enjoyable for our family. We thank our friends from GSIS for sharing their time with us.

First Day of School, (August 11th, 2008)

The first day of school is about hope and faith in a new school year. A year when you anticipate learning a lot from your teachers, making new friends and having new experiences. For Justine, Kyara, Matteya, Ariel and Mia, seen above, this school year, 2008 - 2009, will be a school year that will more than meet these expectations.

(Above: The Wendling girls are ready for their first day of school at GSIS.)
(Above: Ariel gets ready for Grade 1.)

The first day of school on August 11th? Sad but true, the school year begins a little early at this international school. However, it was still a day of great excitement for all. (It also means we end earlier - the beginning of June.)

(Above: Matteya is ready for her first day in Grade 3 - in Mrs. Cooper's class.)

Kyara, Matteya and Ariel are in what is known as the Elementary School at GSIS. Elementary school is for students attending 'Junior Kindy' to Grade 5. Justine, who is in Grade 6, is in Middle School which encompasses students in Grade 6 - 8. While students in Grade 9 and up are in High school.

(Above: Kyara ready for Grade 4 - her teacher - Mr. Schumacher.)

As for the parents, Rosanne is teaching Science in Middle School - Grades 6 and 7, while Kevin is teaching High School and Middle School Mathematics. This will be a learning experience for both of them, but in entirely different ways. For Rosanne it is the first time she is teaching in an English school and teaching all Science. For Kevin, he has to work, he has to teach...hopefully he will remember how to do this.

(Above: The girls are with 'Auntie Grace', one of the secretaries at the school.)

A few of the benefits of being at GSIS is that for the first time ever all members of the Wendling family are together in the same school. In fact, on some days they can even have lunch together. As well, at the end of the day the girls usually make their way to mom and dad's classrooms to help their parents pack up, before heading to their apartment.

(Above: Mia, wearing a fabulous pink print dress is ready for Day 1 in the ELC.)

For Mia, the ELC is a fun place with her friends she can play, make things, play in the sandbox or watch a movie. She loves her teachers and her classmates.

School is school no matter where you live in the world: there is learning, a teacher, friends and new experiences. Hopefully, you have learned about how the Wendling's do school in Korea.

New Friends and a New Home

Moving to new country has many new challenges. For a family with five young children one of the biggest fears is whether or not they will be able to make new friends. So far we have been very lucky that Justine, Kyara, Matteya, Ariel and Mia have all made new friends here in Suwon.

(Above is a picture of Mia with Brett. They both attend the ELC at GSIS and are often seen having lunch together. No fears though of a long term relationship as they are both 3 years old.)


Many of the children who come with parents to work overseas have to learn very quickly how to make new friends. Being in a minority - that is not Korean - you seem to be able to make friends quickly - even if they are not exactly the same age as you.

(Above: Justine is with Jade and Amy as they ride a bus to an activity.)


The unique thing about making friends overseas is that each of the families are coming from different parts of the world. At GSIS, the school that Rosanne and Kevin work at and that the girls attend, has staff from: Canada, United States, Australia, Korea, and few nomads who have lived most of their lives in various countries.

(Above: Kyara and Selah sitting on the bus with a sleeping Mia - arguable the best kind of Mia.)


Yet, the best friends that the Wendling girls seem to have is each other. Having four siblings means that there is always someone to play with, talk to, and be with.

(Above: Justine and Kyara relaxing at home while watching a movie on a lap top computer.)


Yet, it is nice to make other friends, friends to play with, have sleep overs with. Friends to watch movies with, play games with or just to hang out with.

(Above: Ariel, Abbey, Hannah having fun just before having a sleep over at the Wendling apartment Below: Matteya and Abbey watching a movie.)


The best part of watching your children with their friends is knowing that they are learning from each and every situation that they experience. That is a big reason why we chose to come to Korea. Experiencing and learning is truly what makes us unique and grow to be the best person we can be.

Landing in Korea

As we arrived in Seoul, Korea at approximately 12:00 Noon on July 31st, we were very tired and yet very excited. One of the biggest difficulties for us was the 14 pieces of luggage and 14 carry ons that we had. Somehow we managed to get them out into main part of the airport where we were met by staff of GSIS - the school that we would be working at. Their help made the job much more easy.

As we exited the airport the first thing we noticed was the heat and the humidity. Approximately 30+ degrees with humidity at least 95%. We knew humidity could be like this - just as it is back in Canada - but when you are trying to move luggage in this heat it doesn't help.

We were bused to Suwon with the other Canadian's who were on the flight with us from Toronto - all of us wearing the fashionable purple GSIS t-shirts. The Leighs - Steve - Stephanie and others as well as staff from TCIS, our sister school in Taejon, were all very excited to finally arrive to our destination.

We had truly begun our journey - at this point there was no looking back - just going forward.

Leaving Canada - Time on the plane

On July 30th - leaving at 5:00 AM - the Wendling's began their adventure to Korea. Helped by mon oncle Paul, me mere, and Tammy - Natalie and Danielle - the Wendling left Port Colborne for Pearson Airport in Toronto. (Thanks to Amy as well for the donuts - they were appreciated.)

It was an easy ride there - we managed to fit everything into the two vans. However, when we got there we realized from the Air Canada attendant that over half of our bags were overweight. Very quickly and without much hesitation maman with the help of Tammy - rearranged the bags so that we were within the proper limits. Thanks to mon oncle Paul for being with Mia and Ariel as they explored the airport so that everyone else could help with the bags. Then with the help of a much kinder Air Canada airport attendent the Wendling's were able to get to the terminal.


As you can see in the pictures we are wearing some beautiful red Canada t-shirts that were given to the family by the Bilodeaus, (thanks Tammy, Joe, Natalie and Danielle).

The plane ride was very long but the girls made it with a few naps, a few games and toys - including Dora, a couple of movies, some M and Ms and each other.

Saying Goodbye

During the last few days, it felt like all we were doing was having a get together and saying goodbye to either family or friends. Saying goodbye is hard and it can be done in many different ways:
- saying goodbye to Grandma and Grandpa Wendling at Justine's soccer tournament - although the team had just won the tournament - with Justine scoring the winning goal in overtime - it was an emotional day




- saying goodbye to la Familee Lafontaine at mon oncle Paul's house; this was a hard day as it wasn't just the Wendling's leaving - Amy was also leaving for British Columbia - a day though that the family came together to swim, have a BBQ and a fire

- saying goodbye to Justine, Kyara, Matteya, Ariel, and Mia's friends at different pool parties






















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- saying goodbye can be helping with last minute packing and moving, thanks again to Tammy and Roger for helping Rosanne and I with that it was greatly appreciated

Also, thanks to Me Mere for everything that she did. There is no amount of thanks that we can write to express our love for her in the help that she gave us in preparing for this adventure. Thank you and we love you.

The first step of this new adventure was not really to say goodbye to our family and friends, but to learn of the value and importance that family and friends have in our lives. Often we forget how important they are and how much they add to our lives. We will see all of you at Christmas...no worries.