Afternoon at the Chinese Pagoda…

I’m ridiculously behind in my posts…we’ve moved along in our exploration of the Eastern Hemisphere from China to Mongolia to Russia to Central Asia (think former Russian satellites that end in  _____stan) to our current study of Southeast Asia.  At the beginning of the school year, I had penciled in a visit to the Pagoda Garden Tea House in Norfolk, to coincide with our study of China, but it just didn’t happen.  So on a recent Wednesday that lacked a piano lesson we found ourselves with a free afternoon and decided on a late lunch and sketching at the Pagoda in Norfolk

Grace had not been to this particular spot since she was 4 or 5 years old so it seemed brand new and really fun!  The Pagoda itself is no longer a tea house (bummer!) but offers a small eatery with seating on the main level, on a second floor, and a second floor balcony that goes all the way around the top.  We didn’t partake, but were kindly invited in to look around which we gladly did!  We climbed the stairs around and around, up to the second floor (there is an elevator) and surveyed the expansive view from the balcony.  There was a gentle but persistent breeze, so we were grateful the sun was toasty warm.  Grace decided to sketch the ornamentation on the fretwork over the windows.  Later, we wandered through the garden and took a seat on one of the benches so I could sketch a Weeping Willow nestled up to the pond.

Despite being squeezed into a small city block between the USS Wisconsin (an enormous Navy Ship), a variety of severe brick condominiums, and the Elizabeth River, this lovely garden feels bigger, and offers plenty to see, smell and touch, while cultivating a sense of relaxation. We noticed quite a few of the elements of an Asian garden we studied at the Botanical Gardens:  lanterns, stones, evergreens, bridges, island features, and a variety of “shorelines.”  Of course the koi were fun to watch once we noticed them!  When we finally packed up to go, Grace said, “Well Mom, this was one of our more successful field trips!”

We always take a few photos:

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Tea, Haiku and Bunraku…

Grace and I loved our study of Japan!  We both learned a lot from our Netflix documentaries, our study of Commodore Perry, our wonderful living books including Katherine Patterson’s Master Puppeteer, Pearl Buck’s The Great Wave,  Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes, by Eleanor Coerr, The Cat Who Went to Heaven, by Elizabeth Coatsworth, and Born in the Year of Courage by Emily Crofford.  We particularly enjoyed putting together a Bunraku Pop-up Theatre that was created by Ellen J. McHenry on her very cool blog, Basement Workshop, to go along with Master Puppeteer.  We discovered a love for the work of the great Japanese artist and print maker, Hokusai, and enjoyed reading the English translation of The Old Man Mad About Drawing: A Tale of Hokusai, by Francois Place, which describes life during the Edo period, as well as the print-making process.

See the puppeteers in black robes behind the puppets?

We watched this video of an authentic Japanese Tea Ceremony on YouTube, and decided to learn more about the various types of tea, and the history of tea.  As part of our “study” we take time to enjoy several different blends of Teavana Tea.  Fortunately, we have a great deal more mileage to cover in Asia, and many more tea varieties to try!

We’ve enjoyed sushi, and listening to classic Japanese music performed on authentic instruments, the Koto, a type of zither, and on the Shakuhachi, a bamboo flute.

We studied the elements of Japanese Gardens.  We designed kimonos.  We read Japanese haiku by masters of the art, and strove to compose haiku that would truly capture an exquisite moment in time, allude to the season and meet the syllabic requirements.  I found that Haiku works really well within the limits of texting!  Try it!   We painted a fish.

More sobering was our study of Tsunamis and Earthquakes in the ring of fire, and then reading about the very real effects of the most recent Tsunami in the October 8th issue of  World Magazine.  It’s one thing to watch exciting weather videos on Weather.com and watch the Extreme Weather Netflix videos.  It’s something else altogether to read about the children who are displaced and don’t know where their parents are, or even if they are alive.  We were so sad to read about the families who have lost everything.  We have been concerned about the water supply, and local crops due to damage to the nuclear power plant.

We stayed longer in Japan than we were supposed to!  Can you blame us?  I love the freedom I have with homeschooling to keep studying what we find stimulating!  Japan falls in weeks 8 and 9 in Sonlight’s Eastern Hemisphere curriculum, and as usual I’m more than a little late in posting!

Welcome to Elizabeth Island…

Can’t you just hear the accented tones of Mr. Roarke (Ricardo Montalban), and sidekick Tattoo (Herve Villechaize) adroitly observing,  ”De Plane! De Plane!”

We are at the end of Week 3 of our 2011-2012 School Year.  This week we wrapped up the Pacific Islands, and set sail for Australia and have embarked on an exploration of the many unique animals and land formations of the island continent.  

Grace needed an extra day to finish up her “Choose Your Own Adventure” project.  For each region we study, the curriculum suggests an opportunity for further expression or research.  She chose to draw a map of an Island Resort, and was asked to consider:  methods of arrival and departure to the island, five kinds of recreation, shelter/lodging for guests, kitchen area for food, and staff lodging.  She was allowed to assume a fresh water source. 

We talked about our favorite experiences with lodging, resorts, and dining out and then the realities of laundry, kitchens, water, electricity, staffing, transportation and sand in an island setting.  Finally, we looked online for some inspiration and found the Matangi Private Island Resort in Fiji (Wow!).  Forget the project – Grace was ready to make a reservation!

Grace:  “Is $900 a night a lot?”  

Me:  “Well, yes, especially considering we need to get there first!  Look on the globe and refresh your memory.  First find Norfolk, VA and now find Fiji!”

Grace:  (Glumly turning the globe around in her hands) “Oh yeah…Well, maybe we should just go to Bermuda!  That’s pretty close…or look, here’s Cuba and Haiti!” 

Me:  (Dryly) Well, we have some of the same issues, and those particular islands each have problematic elements, especially in terms of a vacation destination…Let’s get back to work, shall we?”

We surveyed a few maps of other famous islands:  Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island, Wendy Orr’s Nim’s Island, and a party store Pirate Party Map (yeah…).  With all of this to work with, Grace got to work on her map, and I think did a beautiful job!  (She did enlist my smaller handwriting for her map key.) After much discussion she named her island, Elizabeth Island, and determined it’s location: 18°N, 178°W. 

Enchanting Elizabeth Island

Welcome to Elizabeth Island…

Situated West of Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean, Elizabeth Island offers all the amenities one could desire in a private tropical resort.  Upon arrival by sea or sky one is met by our island of unimaginable loveliness with abundant stretches of serene, shell strewn beaches; palm, coconut and banana trees; interior mountains with trails where hikers can discover colorful flowers and birds; sparkling waterfalls, and the undersea beauty of Locke’s Reef. 

Visitors can explore the island on challenging hiking trails, or putt around in our energy efficient solar golf carts.  Swim in Key Hole Lake!  Tube down Parrot Creek!  Snorkel in Locke’s Bay!  Sunbathe on any of the many beaches that wreathe the island. Enjoy breakfast, lunch or dinner in our Resort Dining Rooms and satisfy a taste for the tropics in either formal or casual settings.  Join us in our open air ballroom and dance to island rhythms, view island-themed movies, or craft and play games!   Our west-end Island Arena offers weekend concerts by talented Pacific Island musicians on authentic instruments accompanied by crashing waves, against a backdrop of brilliant sunset and then under a blanket of shimmering stars!

For your accomodations choose a Resort Guest Room convenient to dining and shopping, with a view of the ocean and stunning Pacific sunsets, or a peaceful view of the our mountains crowned in mist.  For a not-too-rustic island bungalow experience book one of our charming Island Treehouses on the east side of the Island.  Enjoy the sounds of the surf to rock you to sleep, a lovely sunrise, and the beach just steps away!  

We look forward to seeing you at Elizabeth Island…