I can't believe it's nearing the end of our first year in China :) Prom night was a big moment for the students at BCCSC!

Last night, the students dressed up (or skipped the dressing up and opted for jeans) and gathered by the outdoor stage to enjoy one last evening together before they leave. The last day of school for the grade 12's was today. They end school early to begin the final preparations for their new lives as students in Canada.





Most of them were relieved for the end of exams, but a little down about the prospect of leaving their friends and significant others. They looked great and had a fun time eating, dancing, causing a little trouble for the Canadian chaperones (that's us), and taking thousand of pictures!

Mike was taking tickets at the entry & I was one of the official photographers for the event. I tried to capture all the moments...mostly happy faces, some not so happy faces (girls pouting & guys begging for forgiveness, lol!), and the teachers either dancing or on the lookout for beer :)



I got a few whistles for the outfit I was wearing (be sure to check out the photo album), and Mike confiscated some beverages. The students weren't even smart enough to try to hide them, lol! It was kind of like a middle school dance, where all the kids are afraid to be the first one to get out on the dance floor, nervous about asking someone...it took them more than an hour and a half to get into it and by then they only had 45 minutes left. lol!



One other thing was everyone was trying to convince Mike to shave the beard! They hate it! It's a cultural thing: men with beards are considered dirty. I laugh so much about it, because I can't get over just how much they hate it. All the students want to touch it, then run away giggling. The cleaning ladies in our office look at him every day, scrunch their faces, and walk away muttering in Chinese.

Today there were a lot of depressed kids dragging their belongings to the gates and saying their goodbyes. But for everyone else, school continues...until the first week of July.

Mike & I are going to the Fragrant Hills Botanical Gardens tomorrow, wheeee nature! All the roses are in bloom here in Beijing, so I'm so excited to go! Most of my Korean students are going to homestays around Beijing, but for six of them...they'll be coming with us to the gardens.

The director of the International Department of BCCSC asked me if I had any interesting plans this weekend & if I would mind taking the kids along. I'm happy to do it because they have to stay on the campus most of the time and hardly get out (they're pretty much 24/7 students). So the plan is a Korean meal (kimchi, yum!), then Fragrant Hills, shopping for the kids at Wudaokou, then back to the school.

More pictures & stories tomorrow (hopefully all good? lol!)