The celebration for the school’s 50 years started yesterday with after school workshops, (which I skipped), and an opening ceremony at 7pm.  Of course there was a huge buffet and wines offered.  The school kitchen, (award winning), put on the spread and it was glorious!  The main speaker was a guy from Seattle who travels around the world talking up technology to International schools.  It was rather eye-opening for me as I tend to be backwards, old-fashioned, anti-technology, a dinosaur!  These are not MY words mind you, because of course I think I’m in the right.  But the speaker talked about this new generation of kids who know no life without all the tools and toys.  How we are always telling them to turn off and pay attention when for them, turning on IS paying attention.  Very scary for me as I feel I’m being left behind.

Today is a school-wide birthday party.  The classes have all been given a decade to dress up as and the teachers are hilarious with wigs and make-up and costumes from the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s.  I’m neutral up here hidden in the library.  There is a talent show tonight for the school community and some of the lower school performers gave a preview this morning.  There is a fourth grade boy, Emmanuele, who plays the harp “like an angle”.  He competes and is number 3 in the country.  The kid is 10!  He’s just been accepted to the conservatory in Torino.  His playing actually made the hair on my arms stand on end.  At the end of the student’s performances, all the teachers were called up front to dance to Gangnam Style.   I hid in the back and watched.  My eyes may never recover from watching Mrs. C., a 60 something, short and portly, English nursery school teacher dressed up like an ABBA member, flailing away on stage. 

There are a lot of parents wandering around on campus dressed in their autumn finest, (tweeds and brown leather), even though it’s been in the 70’s and sunny.  I imagine they are hot but that obviously isn’t as important as being stylish.  And Italians are so good at being stylish....  xxoo me