Tunak Tunak Tun is the name of the catchy tune chosen as the Concordia Language Villages International Day (see my 7/9 Pickle On A Stick post) song. All the kids from various villages could do the dance that Indian singer Daler Mendhi does in his video, which you can see here (it's a RealAudio file):
http://www.owlnet.rice.edu/~mrdarius/music/tunak.ram
Here are the original lyrics in Punjabi and English:
http://lyrical.nl/song/26240/25771+25769+25770
Also, there is a Lesnoe Ozero webpage with pictures from this summer's programs at:
http://clvweb.cord.edu/russian/vergas/index.htm
Okay. Now THIS may be my last post from Minnesota...
Tuesday, August 02, 2005
Winding Down
Well, Lesnoe Ozero is coming to a close in a few days. On Saturday morning I'll be on a bus with kids going to Minneapolis to fly home. (However, it's not entirely over with yet! Today is "Imperial Russia Day," replete with a time-authentic social caste system and visits by Peter I, Catherine the Great, and Aleksander II, and tomorrow is Soviet Day, replete with as much Communist Partying as can possibly be fit into one day: opression, shortages, lines, pay toilets, strict deportment in the classroom, and maybe even an exile or two to a gulag or defection to the West.)
It has been an interesting experiment for me, to "camp" with a bunch of teenagers and young counselors. I've really enjoyed my time teaching Russian here, but my sleep deficit is red-lining and everything tastes like bug spray. The kids have been a pleasure to live with, really (however, I would never want to return to that age of angst, hormones, and social winds that constantly change direction!).
Once I'm back home, I may find it odd to not get up and sing the Russian national anthem before breakfast, as is the custom here, or to pour my first cup of coffee in front of the watchful eyes of a burunduk (chipmunk) or to not hear the soul-stabbing cry of a loon from somewhere out on the lake as the sun comes up. (Speaking of loons, I never could get a picture of one-- they're always too far away. They're an odd sort-- and aptly named, yes-- and I often see just one, sitting solo on the lake beyond the reach of my camera lens. This morning I saw one that looked like it was out there waiting for something... It drifted quietly, then let out a cry, then sat quietly again. Every so often a pair, male and female, will appear, but from my observations, the loon population seems to be made up mostly of solitary males.)
On Thursday the 4-week credit students get finals, then we grade and do paperwork furiously before all the computers are shut down for packing on Thursday evening. Friday is clean-up day and then we're done, for the most part, until the program officially closes on Saturday morning, which I and a handful of kids will have to miss because we have to catch the early (7:30 a.m.) bus (the start of a long day: 5 hours to the airport via the Japanese Village, 2 hours to wait for a flight, and then 2.5 hours in the air) .
So, this could be my last post from Lake Trowbridge (aka the Black Sea). More, perhaps, once I've turned the corner and found my way home. Thanks for tuning in to my blog (which I may keep alive for awhile longer) and letting me share my summer camp experiences with you!
For the time being, Прощай! и С Богом! (Farewell! and May God be with you!)
It has been an interesting experiment for me, to "camp" with a bunch of teenagers and young counselors. I've really enjoyed my time teaching Russian here, but my sleep deficit is red-lining and everything tastes like bug spray. The kids have been a pleasure to live with, really (however, I would never want to return to that age of angst, hormones, and social winds that constantly change direction!).
Once I'm back home, I may find it odd to not get up and sing the Russian national anthem before breakfast, as is the custom here, or to pour my first cup of coffee in front of the watchful eyes of a burunduk (chipmunk) or to not hear the soul-stabbing cry of a loon from somewhere out on the lake as the sun comes up. (Speaking of loons, I never could get a picture of one-- they're always too far away. They're an odd sort-- and aptly named, yes-- and I often see just one, sitting solo on the lake beyond the reach of my camera lens. This morning I saw one that looked like it was out there waiting for something... It drifted quietly, then let out a cry, then sat quietly again. Every so often a pair, male and female, will appear, but from my observations, the loon population seems to be made up mostly of solitary males.)
On Thursday the 4-week credit students get finals, then we grade and do paperwork furiously before all the computers are shut down for packing on Thursday evening. Friday is clean-up day and then we're done, for the most part, until the program officially closes on Saturday morning, which I and a handful of kids will have to miss because we have to catch the early (7:30 a.m.) bus (the start of a long day: 5 hours to the airport via the Japanese Village, 2 hours to wait for a flight, and then 2.5 hours in the air) .
So, this could be my last post from Lake Trowbridge (aka the Black Sea). More, perhaps, once I've turned the corner and found my way home. Thanks for tuning in to my blog (which I may keep alive for awhile longer) and letting me share my summer camp experiences with you!
For the time being, Прощай! и С Богом! (Farewell! and May God be with you!)
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