Dalat International School: Senior Scribble

Yi Yao Tan Six boys position themselves on court, waiting for the whistle. Sweat dripping. Crowds cheering. This is it. Boom!! A finishing blow by Albert Jeong (12), as he settles the score 15-12 once and for all. Dalat is in the semis. With a season full of ups and downs, some wins and many losses, Dalat’s varsity boys volleyball finally lifted their heads and saw victory in a 2-1 playoff upset of the original third seed, Faith Academy. Having lost to Faith in round-robin earlier in the week, the team was undeterred; with meticulous planning and strategizing, the Eagles gained their foothold to shut down their dangerous competitors. In the semis, Dalat fought valiantly, however, losing to the defending champions YISS in a hard fought 1-3 loss resulting in a bronze medal for Dalat. A week earlier, the team had arrived fresh on the island of Guam after more than a day of traveling, ready to take on their opponents. The first few days before the tournament, however, were cal...

Seong-Min Kim             “All for one, seize the moment! All for one, seize the moment! All for one, seize the moment!” Captain Seong-Min Kim (12) and Jeremy Worten (12) led the Dalat varsity boys’ soccer team with a chant that spread across Hong Kong and made a fierce presence on the field. Wednesday, October 17 th , 2018 was the start of the journey to become “Champions of Asia.” The boys’ varsity soccer went up against Morrison Academy in their first game of ACSC Tournament. Throughout the match, the intensity level was high with lots of physical contact against the thick team of Morrison. The match concluded with a 2-1 loss but the boys played an “enormous game,” according to Coach Dustin Roberts, who wanted the team to carry on this momentum to the next game. The second and third day decided which playoff spot they would be placed in. Their second game of the tournament was against Grace International School. The ...

Esther Ko             The weeks of strategizing has finally ended. The troops circle around their prized chariot, and the four kingdoms prepare for war. With half the army having deserted their posts, the remaining soldiers now depend on one another to win a battle that will leave its mark in history. First, the freshmen with their glorious Disney chariot. Second, the sophomores with their dark and enigmatic Halloween chariot. Third, the juniors and their chariot glittering just like its name — 2020 Bling Bling. And last, but not least, the seniors with their… Christmas couch? The most ancient of all kingdoms, the seniors thrust their way through the raging competition, pumping with 2-months-prior anticipation for the holiday; and, as if enchanted by some mysterious magic, they transform a once torn and tattered, old couch into a mesmerizing thing of beauty. The judges give their votes, and the first victory...

En Min Saw The PSAT, probably the most dreaded acronym (after SAT) for high school students, took place on the Wednesday of October 10 th . Juniors and sophomores were required to take the test, but they were dismissed as soon as it ended. As for the fellow freshmen and seniors, since they weren’t in the PSAT examination, it was still a typical day of school. To elevate the sunken mood of being stuck in school, the Senior EXCOM decided to organize a picnic lunch for the class at the grassy area by the ocean. When the bell rang at 12:15 p.m., seniors swarmed out of classrooms toward the picnic spot, chattering away nonchalantly. The high sunlit clouds drifted across the blue sky; the seniors laid out their picnic blankets and gathered under the shade. Everyone was ready to replenish their growling stomachs. Half-patiently waiting for lunch to arrive, they munched on the chips and chatted about how their week was going. To kill time, Seong-Min Kim (12) picked up a soccer bal...

Ryna Mayekar Hi da hi da hi dee dee hi da hi da, hi da hi da! These words will never leave our heads. The choir kids went over to Bangkok over the weekend and learned a lot. We worked together to make a beautiful sound that echoed through the auditorium. Not all of the class could go due to SATs, which was truly heartbreaking. Waking up excited on Thursday for our departure later that day made it hard to focus in class. We sang our way over to the airport in three vans, making sure we know our notes. After reaching the airport, checking in our luggage, and grabbing a quick bite, we decided on doing a flash mob. We picked “Amavolovolo,” an African Folk song, to sing, since we had a dance to go along with it. We circled up as Ms. Goh set our beat for us. 3, 2, 1… Nge-ke si ye le la-Kwa-Ma-shu… Ms. Goh and a few other parents filmed us as we took the strangers by surprise. The video was posted on the Dalat Fine Arts Highlights Facebook page and managed to get 1700+ vi...

Kristiana Phillips From the Penang airport to the Thailand marketplace, all through the October 2018 choir trip, Dalat high schoolers sang their hearts out before, during, and after the choir festival. Beginning the trip after school on Thursday, October 4th, the high school choir spent all of Friday and most of Saturday preparing and performing seven pieces of music in a mass choir for the Bangkok International Choir Festival. But the singing didn’t stop there. They sang in the mall. They sang in the vans. They sang outside and inside the 24@Home Hotel where they stayed. On the Sunday they left, the Dalat choir pranced up and down the Thailand market, singing and dancing to a traditional African song. The entire trip was a bonding experience in which fine arts students experienced the unifying power of music.  In the words of choir conductor and educator Joyce Goh, “Music brings us all together and fills our hearts with such joy.” Joining a chorus of nearly f...

By Su-Ji Lim Laughter and chatter filled the air as choir students settled into the bus that would take them to the Penang International Airport. There, they would fly to Bangkok and attend the Massed Choir festival at ISB (International School of Bangkok). While the sun shone above the choir students in the bus, a gray cloud loomed over four other choir students, including myself. They were destined for something else. These four choir students, who all happened to be seniors, had to sacrifice the choir trip to take the SAT. Some people jokingly criticized them for being overly studious, but in the perspective of these students, their future was more important than a one-time trip. According to Lydia Kim (12), "The decision to stay wasn't very difficult to make. I think that learning to prioritize what is important for my near future and not dwelling on the initial disappointment is important." Jackson Miller (12) adds on to this idea of prioritizing by say...

By Suzanne Liew “Swish, Swish, Swish.” Brush strokes were applied quickly as Tien Min (11) concentrated hard to complete his Chinese ink art piece. It was another stressful day in art class. “Does this look like a building?” Tien Min asked for advice. Like many art students, he usually came in during study halls and after school to complete art pieces on time. “This needs more depth,” said Mrs. Nichols, as she was also walking towards my table and eying my watercolor art piece. I was working on a portrait, the 3 rd piece of my AP Art concentration. AP Art students have to submit twenty-four pieces, twelve breadth (different art pieces in a variety of mediums) and twelve concentration pieces (with a central theme). Taking in Mrs. Nichols advice, I shifted my focus back to my artwork when “YAAAAY!!!” shouted Grace Moon (11), jumping with joy. “I finally figured out my theme for my AP Art concentration!”  But her excitement slightly faded when she realized her next a...

Isabel Smith   Despite the seniors always teasing the juniors for working in the store, the 12 th grade had to serve there last year. This year, the junior class’ Servathon came faster, since the start of school was pushed ahead. But the juniors were ready to make it productive, and the seniors were ready to make them feel appreciated. Seeing the juniors off at to the buses on the morning of Friday, the 28 th of September, 11 th graders walking with tools and supplies in hand, reminded the seniors of their own Servathon. Adorning work clothes, the juniors anticipated a day of sweating and working hard, fulfilling their promise to the community and the school. Every year, it’s a tradition for the seniors to take over the store while the juniors are away at the Servathon. The seniors then throw the juniors a welcome back party in congratulations of the funds they raised and the hard work they put in. Last year, the seniors had Coke floats to give out, as well as a welco...

Alicia Chin   Every year, Dalat hosts its annual Spike and Strike tournament. ISKL, local school teams, and even clubs are invited to compete against each other. The varsity girls’ volleyball team came up with a few goals for their season; one of the goals was to win the Spike and Strike tournament. The team’s first game was against ISKL. The weekend before, they beat ISKL in their home tournament, twice. Now, they had to defend their home ground. After shaking hands and saying their good lucks, the first tournament game for the girls’ began. The Dalat team started with serve-receive—they earned the point. Sara Septon (11) went up to serve next. With a light toss, the ball was suspended in the air and shot forward in the blink of an eye; it was an ace. The six starters crowded in a circle to celebrate with a cheer. The game continued. Mikaela Steinkamp (12), the team’s captain, ran towards every ball received from the opponent to set it up for one of the hitters. Bump, s...

Albert Jeong              On Friday, September 28th, Dalat hosted its renowned Spike and Strike tournament, which involves the soccer and volleyball teams competing against other international schools around the country. It wasn’t surprising that a lot of supporters and spectators watched the games; every Friday, lots of students stay on campus until 10pm to hang out, especially on game days. The first volleyball game started at 4pm, but the gym was packed even before the match started.  The first team Dalat played was ISKL. To start the first set, Daniel Kang (12) was placed as setter, Albert Jeong (12), Yao Tan (12), and Trevor Ronning (12) as outside hitters, Karl Chan (12) and Zhi Yong Lee (11) as the middle blockers, and Seunghwan Kim (10) as Libero. At the beginning of the match, Dalat picked up the pace, head-to-head against ISKL. The tension during the game rose as the whole crowd cheered, wondering which t...

By Joy Kiehl Varsity girls soccer won 1st place in the Spike and Strike Tournament last weekend against a mixed Varsity/JV ISKL team and Uplands. After a long Friday at school, our varsity soccer girls team was ready to show ISKL that we could beat them. We took vans to College General at 4pm to watch part of the varsity boys soccer game and then warm-up. Kick-off started a few minutes after 5pm. We dominated the first half by being able to string together passes and keep possession of the ball. We managed to get an early goal. Later in the first half, Lauren Worten (8) scored a goal bringing the score to 2-0 for Dalat. In the second half, we experienced more defensive pressures as ISKL started to gain more possession. We, however, were able to keep a clean sheet against ISKL. As the sun rose over the College General field the next morning, we waited for the referees to arrive so that we could begin our game against Uplands. In the first half of the game, we dominated ...