Spring Break

For Spring Break we decided to head south and show Marie some of the sights down there. We spent a few days at Papa & Grammy's house and took day trips from there. Two of my other students, Simon from Korea and Felipe from Colombia, didn't have plans for Spring Break either, so I invited them to join us.

The first day we hiked Cape Sebastian--one of my favorite hikes in the area. Papa dropped us off at the top and drove to the bottom to wait for us, so we got to hike the cheater way--down only. It was a beautiful hike! At the bottom, there a 1/4 mile walk down the beach to the parking area, and for the first time I can remember, there was no wind.

The next day we drove to California. At the suggestion of Simon's host dad, we stopped at Natural Bridge viewpoint, just north of Brookings. It was gorgeous! I can't believe I'd never seen it before.

We crossed into California and toured Trees of Mystery, including the new Sky Trail they've built in the past few years. It's a cable car ride that takes you up the mountain with breathtaking views.

Our last night there, Yola from Hong Kong (who is living in Gold Beach) came over to eat dinner with us. It was a fun time! Click here for more pictures of our Spring Break.

San Francisco

When Brad was training for his job with Edward Jones, I remember dropping him off at the airport asking, "When do I get to take a trip?" Well, this was my time! Each year, AYUSA brings all the Regional Directors together for training meetings in San Francisco. They flew me down for four days packed full of meetings, trainings, and a wonderful time getting to know the other staff in our region, as well as staff from other parts of the U.S.

It was a very busy weekend, and I was exhausted when I got home, but I enjoyed every minute of it.

Part of the training prepared me to place students that are coming through grant programs funded by the Department of State. AYUSA works with three different grant programs, and I will be placing students from two of those.

The Congress-Bundestag program is a reciprocal exchange between the U.S. and Germany. The kids go through a competitive application and interview process to be selected. The winners of this prestigious are hand-picked by the German parliament. I'll be placing three of these students this year.

The Future Leaders Exchange (FLEX) program brings kids from the former Soviet Union to spend a year learning about democracy, free market, and volunteerism/community service. This scholarship is even more competitive, with 1600 out of 50,000 applicants being chosen. I'm very excited about placing students from these countries this year.