(8/28-9/8) Orienteering and School

September 07, 2023

Hello again,

I definitely shouldn't have waited so long to post again. I think it will be better to post weekly, even if the post is on the shorter side. Email me at akmancub@gmail.com if you want to see/hear more of something or have any questions in case there's a slower week.

On Monday we went to Vienna because Julie's exchange flight to Taiwan was at the airport. When we drove to Austria I didn't notice much change in scenery apart from the signs being in German. After we said goodbye to Julie we did some sightseeing and went to an art museum. I like the museums here because Alaska's museum options are extremely limited.

Alan and I mostly just hung around for the rest of the week. He had an orienteering competition coming up on the weekend. The plan was for me to eventually start competing as well, so he introduced me to how to read the map symbols and the "goal cards" that are used in the competitions. We went for a practice run in the town, and I learned what running in a competition would be like.

On Friday we all went to Čiměř for the weekend competition. Alan and I took a train and a bus to the competition by ourselves because the parents still had to work. We had a couple hours of waiting between the train and the bus in Jindřichův Hradec so we went to the castle there. I actually forgot it was my birthday until later in the evening, but I can now say I spent my 17th birthday in a castle. We also had Turkish Kebab for lunch. There are a lot of Turkish Kebab restaurants here, and it was pretty good. It was messy and almost certainly unhealthy.)

When we arrived at the competition, I was shocked. There were around a thousand people camping out in an open field. Almost everyone there was in a race uniform of some kind. They remind me of the APU/Winter Stars race suits with Team colors and fancy logos. I wouldn't compete until the next day, but Alan raced shortly after we arrived. When he came back, we waited until the parents arrived and then set up camp. We had dinner and I had a surprise birthday cake. I also received important birthday presents for school and dance.

The next day we had a small breakfast and walked into the woods for the race start. I would be running the shortest and easiest (noncompetitive) course with Mr. Debef. It was much harder to find the points and your location because we were no longer surrounded by roads and cities. I later found out that we were on private property, but there are laws that let people walk through private land. Mr. Debef and I eventually finished the course, but I knew it would be a while before I run one on my own. I swear it is impossible for me to run in a straight line. I would start running north and already be 50 feet to the side after 30 seconds of running. The races can be very intense, and runners try to keep time spent looking at compasses and maps to a minimum. I tried this and I am not there yet. After the race we spent some time at the camp relaxing until the evening, when we drove to a hedge maze for a less formal competition. We were given maps and compasses, but the compass didn't help, and the map would be useless if you lost track of where you were. I completed it eventually, but my heart skipped a beat when I almost got lost before the very end.

On Sunday we had yet another competition. This time Mr. Debef and I would do the slightly harder "training" category. We almost got lost like twice and ended up going an extra 2 kilometers, but hardly anyone else competed in the category so we ended up getting 4th (1st was 40 minutes faster). We packed up and stopped by Telč on the way back home.

School started on Monday, and I was constantly confused by what was going on. School is like an extended elementary school in America, with the same 25ish people staying together and taking the same classes, although sometimes we split into different groups. Another difference is that neither teachers nor students are assigned a classroom, so we had math with the same teacher in a classroom at the other end of the building. Another difference is that physics, biology, and chemistry are taught every year. We also don't always have the same classes each day, and school can end at different times depending on the day of the week. Most classes have been introductions so far, but we have started learning a little in Chemistry and Math. My math teacher sounds like Arnold Schwarzenegger if he spoke Czech. I am doing well in English class, though the teacher has a thick Czech/British accent that makes her a little hard to understand.

We also eat at a canteen that is in a separate building across the street from where we live. The food so far tastes much better than what is served in Dimond High, it also has greater portions and is cheaper.

I also had a ballroom dance practice on Monday. Photos are prohibited at practice, so I don't have any. I don't want to form an opinion about it yet, but I am pretty sure dancing with strangers will not be my hobby. We had to dress up and it was really hot, and I was so sweaty throughout the 2 hours.

I would have waited until the week ended to post, but we are leaving for another orienteering competition near Poland after school tomorrow so I posted today. I'll almost definitely post next week on Saturday/Sunday/Friday if there's another race. Bye.