Lack of personal space
On the subway, if there is eight inches of room between two people, that is optimal space for someone to take a seat (whether or not they are sitting on your lap)
No body fat
Walking up and down the stairs to the subway in addition to the lack of cars leads to what appears to be the skinniest city in America
Infinite iPod attachment
Every third person you run into is plugged into an MP3 player, oftentimes blaring their music for everyone on the subway to jam along with them
Missing wedding rings
Either the citizens of New York, male and female alike, prefer to get married after they are 35, or they take their rings off when they leave their homes
Cig. Addicts
Tobacco companies must make a fortune off of New York City
Marathon runners
Getting on and off the ferry has become my morning workout; if you aren’t speed walking, you’re going to get trampled (as well as scoring a spot in the sketchiest part of the ferry)
Oversized, fluffy dogs on leashes
People walk their dogs everywhere in the city (especially the closer you are to Central Park), so not only must people walk quickly, but they also have to avoid four foot long leashes
Snoozing subway riders
As noted in our morning paper from Tuesday, NYC is the 5th leading city in America for citizens who are lacking in sleep
This was just a video from our journey to school :) We typically walk faster but we had to slow down the pace in order to get this created!
Often in schools, extracurricular activities are offered before and after school that allow students opportunities to experience different sports, arts, or languages. When I was back at Bluff Creek (in Chanhassen), common after school choices included football, piano, and hockey. When students were involved in these activities, it consumed two to three nights of their week with practices and scrimmages (if not more depending on the intensity of the league.) In talking with my third graders here at Dwight, the sky is the limit when it comes to what they are invited to be involved in. Each of the after school activities that are provided occur only once a week to avoid overlapping, which in turn allows students to participate in multiple activities. And the breadth of options that are available is tremendous! Students can get physical through sports such as soccer, golf, spinning, cross country, fencing, skateboarding, or flag football. There are options for learning, perfecting, and maintaining languages such as Portuguese, French, Russian, Mandarin Chinese, or Spanish. Still yet are clubs for chess, horseback riding, sculpting, exploration, musical theater (glee), and choir. To me, the craziest part is that these options are only the fall trimester activities; there is a whole gamete of other choices with the changing of seasons! Especially in this environment, with the makeup and backgrounds of students in the school, it’s imperative to involve students in such a variety of activities because when they are from such diverse backgrounds, they bring their passions with them from different countries. These after school choices give students an opportunity to bond even further and relate to each other outside of the classroom.
Finally, my favorite part of the day. Heids and I were able to make it to the Museum of Jewish Heritage: a Living Memorial to the Holocaust. I have been waiting for months to go to this museum. There were three separate levels: 1st floor introduced the Jewish customs, beliefs, and culture, the 2nd floor was dedicated to the Holocaust and WW2 events, and the 3rd floor shared post-war strife and accomplishments. Included are just a few of many photos that were taken throughout the memorial.
This is a notebook used by a Jewish student (written in Yiddish).
Board games played by Nazi children incorporated winning goals such as "eliminating the Jews."
This is a post-war picture of children that were separated from their families and were looking to be reunited with them again.
Identification papers were needed by all people (Germans and Jews alike.) Notice the J on the left-hand side which was used to identify the Jewish people.
Young Jewish children were often hit the worst by starvation and disease.
Most of the country, as well as the rest of the world, fell for Hitler's "Words of Deception," and believed that his regime wasn't an endangerment.
Approximately 11 million people (including 6 million Jews) were murdered during the Holocaust.
Under Biblical law, if a married man dies without offspring, his brother must marry the widow. A ceremony, using this shoe, frees the widow to marry someone else.
Jews and other targeted groups were forced to live in ghettos. This picture was taken in the Warsaw Ghetto where Jews were forced to pay for and then erect walls to enclose themselves within each of the ghettos.
Today was my favorite day thus far. Feel free to post any questions you have in the comments section of the blog. If you have any requests for pictures/sites, include them there as well. We're always up for a challenge ;)
Enjoy the rest of your week!
-Megan
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