Memorable Times and Places

This last week, my students could choose one of two topics to write about: a favorite place in Győr, or a childhood memory. Here's a selection of one of each:

"My favorite place is not exactly in Győr, but in Ikrény. Ikrény is a little village next to Győr. So the two places are locked into each other.
There is a cable park, where you can go wakeboarding, water skiing, or simply swimming and enjoy the good weather. I go there almost every day in the summer. Fortunately, it takes a very short time to get there for me. I have gone to the lake for 12 years.
I really like the people there. They are very nice and helpful. A lot of riders come from Austria and Slovakia, because they haven't got such a great line like ours. So there is a very good crowd. I've made lots of friends there.
This year, one of my dreams will come true, namely I am going to work there! I can't wait. It will be fun. It is like a big family, and I am really glad and grateful that I belong there." - Dorisz

"My story happened in 1997, when I was 3 years old. It was a lovely summer day, the sun was shining, there were no clouds in the sky. My sister was a little baby and my brother wasn't born yet. We travelled to Budapest to see the zoo of the capital city. I was a child who always searched for danger, and I found it in the zoo. I wasn't interested in monkeys or tigers, but in the great Indian elephant. However, their cage was large, and they were far from me. So I decided to watch them from a shorter distance. I was little and I could pass through the grating. Fortunately, I wasn't noticed or I didn't annoy them and now I am alive." - Robi

For those reading, what is one of your favorite places or childhood memories? (We read the responses together as a class, so feel free to let us know!)

Risky Business

Hello all readers! The last couple weeks in class, we talked about taking risks. It's quite an interesting topic, because many people view things that are more scary as more risky, when, in fact, they are less risky. For example, apparently now there in an equal risk of getting injured in a plane as there is of getting injured in a car (though I think a car used to be more risky). Even though this is true, many people are more scared of a plane crash and therefore see it as offering a greater risk.

Interestingly enough, I actually applied this lesson to my own life last week. I suffered an injury while skiing (partial tear of the MCL and complete rupture of the ACL), and I sat there in pain wondering if skiing is, in fact, a risky sport or if people just view it as such. I didn't come to any great conclusions, but it always excites me when what I teach can be applied to "real life."

This week, we learned about two preschools - one in Japan and the other in England. The one in Japan tries to take away any type of risk by using inflatable toys, tons of supervision, and even spraying the wheels of strollers for any germs. The one in England allows children to play outside almost the whole day - exploring in the field and learning by experimenting. Most of my students said they would prefer the English preschool. I'm not so sure - something about inflatable toys is appealing to me.

In any case, I feel that life is just plain risky sometimes. But we all learn through the risks we take, whether bad or good. If you feel in the responding mood, let us know what risks you've taken and how it worked out.