Month: March 2009

My Impressions of Finland

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Finnish Language, originally uploaded by bill kralovec.

I snapped this photo of a sign during a walk around Helsinki on Saturday morning.

I didn’t realize how far north Finland was. Helsinki is at 60 degrees north latitude which in North America would be Fort Smith, Northwest Territory in Canada. The city is only 400 miles from the arctic circle.

Being that far north must have an effect on the culture. They are the kings of the snow and cold. Finns are known for excellence in ski jumping, cross country skiing, and saunas. I learned that wood fired sauna is much better than an electric one. I am not sure if it has to do with the darkness and cold, but the alcoholism and suicide is a problem there.

The city is beautiful and clean. The country is Scandinavian in the sense that it is a social welfare state. Everyone I talked to appreciated the excellent public transportation, schools, and health care (all basically free). It differs from the rest of Scandinavia in the language as you see above. It is a difficult language to learn. It is more related Estonian and Hungarian than neighbor Sweden. There are only about 5 million Finns in the country and perhaps 6-7 million worldwide.

The trip had special significance to me as the ancestry on my mother’s side is Finnish. There is a significant enclave of Finnish immigrants in the western Upper Peninsula. It was funny to hear the correct pronunciation of last names such as Heikkila, Niemi, etc. I also learned that Wurtanen is the most common last name in the country. In researching my trip, I learned that Finland has the highest percentage of blonds in the world. Many of the young people I saw in the city also had rebellious hair cuts and piercings. The landscape and vegetation reminded me of northern Michigan, plenty of pine and birch trees, as well as rocky outcroppings. I see why the Finns settled this part of Michigan as they must have felt at home.

Downtown at Night
Downtown at Night

I hope to come back to Finland someday and travel in the north of the country.

ISB Wins A Trophy!

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Team Photo With Trophy in Helsinki, originally uploaded by bill kralovec.

Doron and Zoki are holding the third place trophy outside of the International School of Helsinki. The team was celebrating an important victory over the Kiev International School in the consolation match, 50-47. The victory earned the team the third place trophy. There were 8 teams competing so it was quite an accomplishment. It was appropriate the cup was filled with snow, as it represented the team venturing to the frozen north of Finland to compete in the tourney.

Misa Goes for the Rebound
Misa Goes for the Rebound

The Dragons led the entire game against the Cosaks of KIS. ISB used a full court pressure defense to disrupt the opponents. The strategy worked as many fast break layups were scored by Doron and Nikola. Panayot played with an injured foot, and despite the pain, he had his usual outstanding game. A special mention also goes to Mik for his defensive efforts on their best player. Coaches Sands and Kralovec thank the team for their efforts. It was a fitting end to a great season. The boys played close to 20 games! They developed their individual fundamentals of basketball, learned the strategies and finer points of the game, increased their fitness, and interacted with students from all over the world and Serbia.

Things are looking bright for 2009-2010, as the entire team that traveled to Helsinki returns. We will also get some excellent players from the Middle School team that finished in second place in their tourney. We will also be hosting the high school boys’ tourney, so there are many things in our favor. Job well done gentlemen!

CEESA Championship Final Day

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After watching the fifth and seventh place matches, we had the consolation final against the Kiev International School. The Dragons defeated the Cozaks, 50-47 to take the third place trophy (of eight teams competing).

It was an incredible performance by the boys’ basketball team. Mik had 6 points and played stellar defense against their top player. Tausan and Misa rebounded well against the bigger Ukrainians. Pan played with an injured foot and still scored in double figures. It was a proud moment for the school and the team. Congratulations to the Dragons! Photos and video to come!

Day Two of CEESA Basketball Tourney

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ISB on the Attack, originally uploaded by bill kralovec.

The International School of Belgrade lost this afternoon to the Perchersk International School of Kiev, Ukraine, 39-47. The game was the semifinal, as the Dragons won the Pool B. The boys were matched up with the second place team of Pool A. The team started out slow and shot only 12% from the field in the first quarter. The boys from Percherk were physical and out played us.

The Dragons were led by the outstanding long range shooting of Nikola T. and Doron. They gave a good effort and cut down a larger deficit.

2 Points for Nikola
2 Points for Nikola

ISB now goes to the consolation match. The Dragons will take on the Kiev International School at 1:00 PM tomorrow. The Dragons previously beat KIS and the Cozaks will be seeking revenge. At stake is a third place trophy. Can the Dragons bring home some hardware? They will also have the chance to leave Finland with a winning record as they are 2 wins and 2 losses currently.

It was a great day despite the loss. The games were held at a local professional team’s arena (Messuhalli II). The arena was used for the 1952 Helsinki Olympics. We saw the photo of the USA Olympic team who played in the gym as our students did today.

CEESA Boys’ Basketball Championship Day One

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Laurynas Makes a Three Pointer
Laurynas Makes a Three Pointer

The International School of Belgrade won their first two games on Day 1 of tournament. In the first game this morning, the Dragons defeated Quality Schools International of Bratislava 52 – 34. Six players scored for the Dragons, with Panayot leading the way with 20 points. Mi also scored 6 points. Nikola T. had a stellar performance on defense.

In the second game today, the Dragons won by a score of 56 – 49 over the Kiev International School. The hard fought game was decided by coolness under pressure demonstrated by the Dragon. In the final quarter, Pan and Doron made some big baskets and steals to seal the victory.

Pan and Andras on the Move!
Pan and Andras on the Move!

We have one more game today against Suomalainen Yhteiskoulu, a local Finnish team. If we win, we guarantee a spot in the semifinals. If we lose, there will most likely be a three-way tie for the top and then it will come down to point differential, which we want to avoid. If we do lose, we could finish anywhere from first to third in the group.

UPDATE:

We lost to the local Finnish school, 47 – 74. The score was tied at halftime 30-30. In the second half, we ran out of energy as this is our third game today. The Finn school played a reserve team in the morning (lost to KIV) and had an easy game against Bratislava. It will be disappointing if this game against a non-CEESA school causes us to out of the semifinals. If due to point differential we finish third, the highest finsh we can have is fourth.

In the other Pool, the most likely winner will the Internationl School of Latvia and second place will be the Pechersk International School of Kiev, Ukraine.

Boys’ Basketball Team Arrives in Finland

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ISB Cheerleaders Send off Hoop Team, originally uploaded by bill kralovec.

The ISB cheerleaders gave the team an enthusiastic farewell before the boys embarked on their journey. The cheerleaders have been incredibly supportive this year. This is the best cheerleading squad perhaps in the history of the school. They attended all of our regular season games. On behalf of the team, THANK YOU!!! You can see them in action by clicking on the video above.

We bussed to the Budapest, Hungary airport and flew from there to Helsinki. The International School of Helsinki (ISH)is hosting the annual Boys’ Basketball Championship of the Central and Eastern European Athletic Association. Eight teams from all over the region are competing for the title. All visiting student-athletes are billeted with ISH families.

I wil try to post regularly during the competion which begins today. We have been placed in Pool B with the Kiev International School (Ukraine), Quality Schools International of Bratislava (Slovakia) and Soumalainen Yhteiskoulu (Finland). We play those three teams today with games at 10:45 AM, 12:45 PM, and 3:45 PM. It will be a grueling day indeed.

This is the farthest away I’ve been from the equater. Helsinki is at 60 degrees north latitude, a mere 6 degrees (400 miles) from the arctic circle. There is still snow on the ground and temperatures are below freezing. This is a special trip for me as my mother’s ancestry is Finnish. It will be great to learn more about Finnish culture and coaching a lot of basketball the next three days.

Sad Anniversary in Belgrade Today

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UPDATE: The Serbian government asked everyone to observe a minute of silence at 12:00 noon yesterday. At the school, we paused before starting our afternoon classes and listened to the air raid sirens throughout the city. In Senjak, where the school was located, we heard at least three different sirens, although they were not that loud.

I also want to note that the Serbs separate governments from citizens and I have never felt any animosity towards me or my family. They are extremely kind towards foreigners and we feel very much at home in Belgrade!

Several long time expatriate teachers and Serb colleagues were meeting last night to commemorate the anniversary. They lived through the 78 days of the bombing and wanted to share their memories of that time. I might interview one of them to get their story of the school during the bombing.

Serbians will be recognizing the 1o year anniversary of the 1999 NATO bombing today. NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) began a bombing campaign of 38,000 missions in Serbia in the spring of 1999, from March 24th to June 11th. The bombing campaign was in response to the Serbian government’s involvement in the then Serbian province of Kosovo.

The Former Yugoslav Ministry of Defense (B. Woodruff Photo December 2008)
The Former Yugoslav Ministry of Defense (B. Woodruff Photo December 2008)

Reminders of the bombing are present still today in Belgrade. On one of its busiest streets, the Knez Miloševa are two buildings that have not been repaired or replaced since the bombing. It is quite a shock to newcomers to the city. I remember seeing these on my first taxi ride downtown upon my arrival to Belgrade. It is a sad and tragic reminder of the Yugoslav Wars of the 1990’s. I am not sure why nothing has been done to these buildings. Perhaps it is lack of money, or perhaps Belgraders don’t want to forget. If any of my blog readers can enlighten me on this, please do so. The photo above was taken by a friend visiting us over the Christmas holidays. I took the photo below in April of 2009.

Different View of the Building - B. Kralovec Photo April 2009
Different View of the Building - B. Kralovec Photo April 2009

The building above is the former Yugoslav Ministry of Defense which was bombed on May 7th, 1999. It was built in 1963 and it was designed by Serbian architect, Nikola Dobrovic. The building is divided by Nemajina Street and the design of the building is meant to resemble a canyon with the street as a river divided the two sides. There is an excellent blog by a Swiss architect married to a Serb which discusses many of the buildings in Belgrade and it also has an indepth description of the NATO bombing campaign.

The Yugoslav Ministry of Defense Building In Its Prime
The Yugoslav Ministry of Defense Building In Its Prime

The anniversary will be marked by air raid sirens, church bells, and ceremonial gatherings. Around 500 civilians were killed in the bombings and many Belgraders are resentful at the NATO bombing. The BBC has an article about the anniversary here.

Family Journal: Sunday March 22, 2009

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We had a well deserved family day on Sunday. With basketball, one acts, and oral exams on Saturday, it was a busy week of work.

There were sunny skies and cool temperatures and it was a nice day to head to Ada Ciganlija for a family exercise session. We like to go there because I can rent a bicycle with a rickshaw to carry Oliver and Ocean, Nadia can run, and Owen can ride his bike. Nadia ran her usual 7 km loop around the lake while I took the kids around the island. We stopped at the obstacle course and ran around in the woods for quite a while.

Ollie shows his speed
Ollie shows his speed

After enjoying Ada, we went home and did some chores. Nadia cooked a delicious meal of fajitas, we cleaned the car seats, took the car to Mopex, a car cleaning company down the street that cleans cars inside and out, organized a book shelf, etc. In the late afternoon, we had a fire under the gazebo and the boys painted some cardboard animals they made while Ocean played on the swings. Nadia came out and we enjoyed a bottle of Hungarian Tokai wine. She made a Risotto dinner and we put the kids to bed.

Owen Takes Care of His Little Sister
Owen Takes Care of His Little Sister

Sunday morning was really nice too. Ocean is so different to the boys. She woke up and gave her brother a kiss and sat on his lap while I was preparing breakfast. She is much more cautious, affectionate, and calm compared to her brothers.

International School of Belgrade Presents One Act Plays

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Last night I attended the One Act Plays presented by the International School of Belgrade’s Thespian Society and the high school performing arts department. The scene above is a comedy sketch on the assassination of Russian historical figure Leon Trotsky. One Acts are the performing equivalent to the literary short story. The students performed to full houses both Friday and Saturday evenings.

In the scene above, Teodora and Luka do one of the six variations on the violent death of Trotsky. it was hilarious!!!! Whenever I watch our students performing, I forget they are students and I just enjoy the play. There was a variety of one acts, ranging from Pan and Doron’s take on Rowan Atkinson, to Mina’s interpretation of Medea and Greek tragedy. The evening was enjoyed by all and I would like to compliment Mrs. Sands and the students for their efforts. The PTA lead by Manon and Jeanette provided refreshments for the audience during intermission which was appreciated by all.

 

Mina and William Are Featured in this Greek Tradegy
Mina and William Are Featured in this Greek Tradegy

 

 

All of the props and costumes were designed by our stagecraft class. Student directors from the IB Theater Arts class were involved as well as many students not enrolled in our performing arts classes. I uploaded some short exceprts of video from some of the plays, feel free to view them on my flickr.com account.

 

Willa, Monty, and Suzanne Perform
Willa, Monty, and Suzanne Perform

 

 

As I said in my welcome message to the audience, we have wonderful students and last night they were showing their best. At ISB, we pride ourselves in everything we do, we do at the highest level! The performing arts department is a shining example of this. I can’t wait for the Shakespeare Festival coming in May!

Oliver’s Parent – Teacher Conference March 2009

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Oliver Writing His Name, originally uploaded by bill kralovec.

My final post this morning is of a video of my son Oliver in his Parent-Teacher Conference last week. The little guy is in Ms. Mira’s Early Years class at ISB. The Lower School conferences were set up in a different format. The parents and student worked together on activities the students do during a normal school day. Nadia and I attended Oliver and Owen’s conferences. Above, Oliver writes his name. He is so cute and quite a little character. He also showed us how he mixes primary colors to make new colors, recognizes patterns, and can sort items into categories. He also showed us around the room. Way to go Oliver!!! He passed all of his “exams” and we celebrated by taking him out to a Chinese dinner (his favorite). I’ll upload a sample of Owen’s performance later today and hopefully post.