Monday

The week was kicked off with an assembly on Monday morning, run by the International Knights committee. The assembly began with a poem by Mr. Bickes’s daughter titled “How” read by Mr. Bickes himself. The poem addressed the seemingly infinite amount of conflicts which divide humans, calling for unity. An inspirational video followed, in which about a hundred ACP students shared where their grandparents come from, ranging from Chile to Vietnam. Finally, a cultural “fashion show” took place, where students proudly displayed their traditional cultural attire. Crowd favorites were Esete Amare’s Ethiopian dress and Hongan Nguyen’s Vietnamese attire.

Tuesday

Tuesday was South America and Europe day, with the main affairs being a Kahoot game about the continent during success time and a lunch game on the field called “1, 2, 3 Momia Es.” The game is very similar to “Red Light, Green Light,” where the participants must stop running when the leader stops singing “1, 2, 3, Momia Es.” What exactly does this phrase mean? It loosely translates to “become a mummy.” I personally would have gone with a cooler name to the game like “Gárgola es” (become a gargoyle), but the Chileans didn’t ask me. Weird.

Wednesday

Hump Day shined a spotlight on the areas of Africa and Oceania. Oceania is one of the more unique regions in the world, with several tiny islands in the areas around Australia. The area is home to the country of Nauru, the third-smallest nation in the world, though the two smaller countries, Monaco and Vatican City, aren’t exactly countries in the traditional sense.

Thursday

The penultimate day of the festival was Asia day, my personal favorite thus far. Around 80 students came to school wearing beautiful dresses from China, India, and everywhere in between. Thursday’s lunch game was a big sack race in the middle of the West Field, containing several hilarious falls. The highlight of the day was an assembly put on by Ms. Pederson and the Chinese Club, featuring a Chinese Lion Dance. The performers were excellent, interacting with the crowd and even biting the heads of a few students. I saw smiles throughout the entire performance, though I think I saw Mr. Bickes twitch when the lion began kicking the Knights logo on the gym wall. A couple of images from the affair can be found below.

Friday

To end the week, the great continent of North America took the stage. During the success lesson, I found myself stunned at my lack of knowledge about my home continent. I, uh, kinda forgot that Central America was included as a part of North America. Whoops. I did not see any traditional attire today (disappointed with the lack of pilgrims!) due to Tie-Dye Friday, but the Maple-Syrup-Pong lunch activity was a hit. The big International Festival takes place from 5-9 tonight, which will be covered by our own Ronin Komarnisky.