Since being back in the US, the goal has always been to go back abroad when we were ready and the job was right. Well, to that end we started our job hunt in earnest last fall. We had itchy feet and were ready to go somewhere, even if it wasn't our dream posting in Hamburg. So we began checking the postings and schools on the international school placement databases, researching the pros and cons of various places. We looked at the lifestyles in cities around the world, trying to take advantage of our international network as well. Yangon made the list; most of China did not (Gus and crowds? Nope). Most of Europe was in--including places like Bucharest and Belgrade. We even looked at places like Tbilisi (which is prettier than we expected) and researched sandstorms in Khartoum (their school has a top notch equestrian AND sailing program!). Botswana yes; Senegal, no. You get the idea. It's actually pretty exciting and mildly exotic (or very exotic!) to think of yourself living in Ulaanbataar or Hanoi or Barcelona.
We began firing off applications and letters of interest to our top picks. Now, the hiring process internationally is complex, but in short there are three major fairs--Bangkok, London, and Cambridge--with a lot of smaller fairs. The fairs are like a speed dating session, with schools and candidates from around the world attending. Some schools hire on the spot, while others go to several fairs, then pick the candidates. Some candidates are snapped up before the fair even starts, while others are strung along. It's very stressful for all involved.
After sending our CVs out there and hearing nothing from schools we wanted but getting lots of interest from schools we didn't solicit (for profit schools in high rises in unremarkable but crowded Chinese cities, for example), we obsessively checked the job availability through early January and agonized through the small Melbourne fair and the Bangkok superfair (so called because two major recruiting organizations host their big fair consecutively and because it attracts the best schools and candidates) before heading to London, which also hosts a superfair at the end of January. Because of the Monday holiday and the fact that we would have had to arrive in London by Wednesday (meaning flying out Tuesday and missing school anyway), we decided to fly out Sunday and actually spend two days visiting some friends and doing some fun stuff in London.
We flew to Reykjavik, Iceland, where we had a 10 hour layover. Now, this was incredibly exciting--Iceland is new to us, and we had enough time to bus into the city for most of the day. We knew it would be cold, but we underestimated how dark it would be! The first hint of any light at all came at 9:30 am, and it didn't get light until 10:30 or 11. The sun never really got high in the sky, and by the time we left at 4, it was getting dark again. We did, however, make the most of our time, visiting the Hallgrimskirkja, walking through the main shopping/pedestrian zone, down to the waterfront and the Sun Voyager Viking ship sculpture. and along the bay to the harbor, where we stopped in for some hot tea. Then we headed up the Old West Side residential neighborhood (pretty!), past a bunch of embassies, to the Landakotskirkja, and past the Holavallagardur cemetery, which was particularly eerie in the half light of winter! Then it was down the hill to city hall and the lake and up past a high school back to the Hallgrimskirkja, where we stopped to sample some fermented shark. This is a traditional Icelandic dish, frequently served with a Brennevin (local schnapps) chaser, and we learned that it was sold in sample sizes at a particular cafe. Gus found it tolerable, and I actually liked it, especially with the chaser, though I would only recommend it in small amounts. After a quick trip to the top of the church for the view, we headed back to the airport for our late afternoon flight to London.
Hallgrimskirkja and Sun Voyager at 8:45 and 9:30 am
Scenes from a Reykjavik neighborhood--taken around 11 am
Landakotskirkja and the Hallgrimskirkja from across town--taken 10:45-11 am
Lake in the middle of town
Almost noon on a winter's day in Reykjavik
We went up the tower and came back down just around 1:00 pm. Yep, that's as bright as it got.
Tuesday dawned with a full day of walking the primary sights of London. Our hotel was in Earl's Court near Knightsbridge. We spent the morning at the British Museum, where I found the Gilgamesh tablet (my students were reading the Epic of Gilgamesh at the time). Then it was a walk through Hyde Park to the Wellington Arch, past Buckingham Palace and St. James's Park along Pall Mall to Trafalgar Square, then down and across the Thames to the South Bank and London Eye. Then it was back to the hotel and off to meet our friend Anna T for dinner at a local pub. It was so nice to catch up!
Students had seen a handout with this photo. It was bigger on the paper than in real life. Remember, I have small hands!
Students enjoyed reading this placard when I returned and marveled at the tiny size of the cuneiform writing. How could anyone learn to read that?
Wellington Arch and some sort of mounted guards.
The London Eye from St. James's
Big Brother is watching you! Yes, the camera in front of Nelson's column (described in 1984 as a statue of Big Brother) made for a perfect picture for the senior classes, who were just finishing the novel. Oh, and the London Eye.
Gabriel's Wharf--neat little place to get food!
The first pic was actually taken at King's Cross station, where there is a Harry Potter shop (but no, platform 9 3/4 is not in the part of the station where you think it is) and then the Great Hall on the studio tour
It's smaller than it looks on TV
Gus at a House table
The staff of Hogwarts
Dumbledore's office
Broomsticks and a green screen
Number 4 Privet Drive
The hippogriff bows back if you bow to him. Yes, I tried it!
Diagon Alley
Okay, this was the coolest thing--the giant mock up of Hogwarts. The cameras could be moved around this model to create those great aerial shots of the castle. It is beautiful and detailed and simply magical to see.
The walkway goes around the room so you can see it from all angles as you descend the ramp
From below
Elizabeth, Janice, Gus and Artie, Anna
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