What All-Y'All Have Been Waiting For...

Good Evening!

This entry will be short and to the point because we (my husband and I) have a 3:00 AM wake up call for our flight to Rome – that’s about 3 hours from now Budapest time! Students leave at 8:30 AM and meet the mentors here at the hotel at 9:30 AM for their 1:15 PM flight to New York City.

At today’s closing ceremonies, medals and honorable mentions were awarded to many, many students. I think the number was around 170-180, but I can’t be sure right now.

Team USA earned 4 medals in the 40th IChO.

Jonathan Lee – Silver Medal
Yuxin Xie – Bronze Medal
Jenny Lu – Bronze Medal
Andrew Liu – Bronze Medal

Our students worked hard for this achievement. Everyone should be proud of them and join me in celebrating the their accomplishments.

I thank all of the students whom I have had the honor of working with these past 3 years. In addition, I must thank Roxie Allen, Jack Kotz, Will Lynch, and Owen Priest for all of their help and support as I went from 1st year mentor to head mentor of the USNCO. However, JL Kiappes has been a constant in my 3 years as mentor and I owe him heart-felt thanks because I really could not have done this without his friendship and commitment to students and the program.

Thank you everyone!

Subways, Trams, and Buses

Buona sera!

The 40th International Chemistry Olympiad is quickly coming to a close. It amazes me that we’ve have been in Budapest for so long. The mentors have become experts at navigating the city via the Metro, trams, and buses. Today Team Lynch went on the planned excursion to Eger for the guests. While there, they visited a cathedral and fortress and after lunch took a train trip to a forest preserve.

Meanwhile JL, Ms. Pezzi, and Mr. Monson traveled into Pest to visit Széchenyi Baths and Műcsarnok Palace of Art. The museum houses contemporary Hungarian art. It was a very interesting collection. We then took the metro to Vörösmarty tér in central Pest and had lunch at Gerbeaud Cukrázsda, one of only two Budapest cafés that the Soviets allowed to remain open during their occupation of Hungary.

From there we walked back to the main Metro station (we did NOT take the Barbie Bus) to make the first leg of our trip to Szoborpark (Statue Park) where the city placed 41 Communist monuments in 1993. After arriving in Buda’s Moszkva tér, we took the #56 tram to the end of the line in Budafok. From there, we took the #114 bus even further south until we reached the point where we could transfer to the #50 bus that would take us to the park. Considering that each new leg of travel requires a new ticket, this was not a cheap trip. There are no transfers on the mass transit system in Budapest! The park was a stark reminder of what life must have been like during the Soviet occupation; lots of propaganda to remind the people of who was in charge of their lives. The trip to the park probably took at least 2.5 hours – much of the time was spent trying to interpret the transit maps that have over 100 buses, trams, and metro lines. The return trip to the hotel was at least 13.5 miles and took 1.5 hours of which at least 1 hour was actually spent in motion on the buses or trams.

After dinner, the mentors had their fourth jury meeting. Here we learned the schedule of the upcoming Olympiads:
2009 – United Kingdom (Cambridge and Oxford); 2010 – Japan (Tokyo); 2011 – Turkey; 2012 – USA (no location selected!); 2013 – Singapore; 2014 – Vietnam; 2015 – Thailand. 2013-2015 are unofficial venues, but hopefully will become finalized soon.

The International Jury also allocated medals. There will be 30 gold, 52 silver, and 79 bronze medals awarded in tomorrow’s closing ceremony. No one knows for sure how their team did, but we are all hoping for the best.

Tomorrow is a day of rest and packing for the return trip on Monday. I will be traveling to Italy to meet some Pezzi relatives who still live in the area in which my great-grandparents were born. I am very excited to have this opportunity! Dr. Lynch and JL will accompany the team back to New York on Monday. Hopefully the departure will go smoothly and everyone will be able to make their connecting flights back to their respective homes.

Until tomorrow, arrviederci!

No Minutes and Low Power

Oh the joys of getting internet access 100 minutes at a time...

This is Friday’s blog (18 July 08), but because of running out of internet minutes and low battery power, it is being posted on Saturday morning.

On Friday, students went on an excursion to Visegrád, the first “capital” of Hungary. Mentors and guests visited there in the evening. This is the place where the Danube narrows and bends and has high, rocky terrain. A castle existed there in the middle ages and portions have been rebuilt to celebrate the town’s cultural heritage. A group of men reestablished the order of knights that protected the castle millennia ago and put on a spirited show for the crowd. A king (mentor from Slovakia), queen (from France), and jester (from Sweden) were chosen from the crowd and crowned with appropriate headware. The king then chose someone to punish (from Austria) and this man had to sit in a chair of nails for the entire presentation. Afterwards, the audience had the opportunity to try out two of the weapons demonstrated earlier. Dr. Lynch’s fearless, younger daughter was a natural with the death star.

Earlier in the day, mentors corrected the students’ exams using the rubric from the organizers. Because most of the questions were pretty straightforward, scoring the exam went relatively quick. Dr. Lynch, JL, and I were able to complete a quick geocache between the scoring time and lunch. After lunch, we had our 3rd jury meeting. The best part of the meeting was JL giving a short speech before he was elected to be the representative for the Americas on the International Chemistry Olympiad Steering Committee. This is a great honor for JL who was nominated by the Ireland delegation for this two-year term. After the meeting, the new steering committee decided that JL would be Secretary of the Steering Committee (the only other “titled” member of the committee is the Chair).

No More Exams!

Exams and excursions – that’s what happened today at the IChO in Budapest. The students took their 5 hour theoretical exam this morning and afternoon. Afterwards, they walked from the ELTE where they had their exam to Váci utca, a shopper’s dream in central Pest. That walk was quite a distance especially after sitting for 5 hours and being mentally drained from their effort!

Mentors and guests went to Pannohalmi Főapátság (Pannohalma Archabbey), an abbey and winery that was established in the 11th century. The abbey is a World Heritage Site that is home to Benedictine monks who also run a boarding school for about 300 boys from kindergarten age through 18 years of age. The winery was nationalized during Soviet rule and was reestablished in 2001.

While waiting for the students to arrive back at the Grand Hotel, we watched 2 young men battle it out in World of War Craft on Korean TV. The announcers were pretty excited as they commented on the strategies of the players. I tried uploading the video, but it was taking too long and internet access is not cheap here in Budapest!

After all of these excursions, mentors and students met back at the Thermal Hotel and boarded the Európa for a reunion dinner cruise on the Danube. Here students told us about eating the same thing for breakfast every day: bread, cheese, meat, and jam (to which the Irish mentor replied, “How is that any different than when they’re at home? Have their mothers made something new for breakfast everyday for the past 18 years?” I thought that was pretty funny.) The students were glad the exams were over and were ready to just relax and not think about chemistry anymore.

Highlights of the cruise included being the students being teased by Dr. Lynch’s children, one student losing a shoe to a lower deck, and Dr. Lynch getting caught in a downpour of rain. The food was excellent, the students and mentors had time to reconnect and everyone is looking forward to the next few days. Students will be on excursions on Friday and Saturday while the mentors will be very busy. We will be correcting the students’ exams tomorrow using the rubric given to us by the Hungarian organizers. We will then compare our scores to the scores given by the graders during arbitration on Saturday. It is possible that we may be able to gain some points back for the students if the grades don’t agree. The stress level for the mentors will be building as we correct the papers and try to determine how well the students did. Stay tuned; Sunday will be here soon and we’ll all know the results.

Ciao!

Thank goodness we speak English!

I can’t believe that Wednesday is over all ready! The students had an excursion after yesterday’s practical exam and before tomorrow’s theoretical exam. The mentors had a relatively easy time translating the theoretical exam into American English this morning. After we finished, Dr. Lynch and JL went to Pest to visit several museums and other sites. They saw the museum that highlighted the Nazi invasion and Soviet occupation of Budapest. The Nazis were not in Budapest for very long, but they destroyed all of the bridges between Buda and Pest when they retreated when the Soviets came to liberate the city. Unfortunately, the liberation turned into an occupation that lasted over 40 years. They also visited the opera house and other places that I just can’t remember right now.

I took a bus and 2 trams to Central Market Hall. Built in the late 1890’s, the arcade building was designed to be a marketplace from the beginning. The main floor is mainly devoted to fresh food: fruits and vegetables on the outside walls and fish and meat in the inner stalls. The large variety of food was amazing. It would make grocery shopping fun to go to the different stalls and buy very fresh food. The upper level was filled with stalls selling Hungarian arts and crafts as well as kitschy souvenirs. I spent my forints on (hopefully) nice gifts for friends and family. I also tried locating a geocache that requires some creative thinking, but was still unsuccessful. I think I’m on the right path so hopefully I can find some time to have at least one more attempt at it before we leave Budapest.

At dinner last night and tonight, we had the opportunity to listen to a harpist during dinner. Have you ever heard “Flashdance” played on a harp? That was last night. Tonight we had a Beatles medley; just another unique part of Budapest that you would probably never experience anywhere else.

This evening, JL, my husband and I ventured back to the Gellért Hill area to see more of the sites. We stopped in the Gellért Hotel (a 5-star hotel) and the lobby was very beautiful. I wanted to see the baths, but since it was getting dark and we wanted to get up to citadel before dark, we made a choice to start climbing the hill instead. Many stairs and switchbacks later, we arrived at the top of the hill to see Liberation Monument. It was originally supposed to honor a missing Hungarian soldier, but was changed to commemorate the liberation of the city by Soviet troops. The statue is 46 ft high from the base of the pedestal to the top of the upraised palm. An accompanying statue of a Russian soldier was moved to Statue Park after the fall of communism.
Well, it’s Thursday in Budapest as I get this posted. Students will be starting their 5-hour practical exam later in the morning while mentors enjoy a trip to an abbey and winery. Later in the day we will join up for a reunion dinner cruise on the Danube. It will be great to see the students and learn how things are going for them.

Visnontlátásra!

Half Way Home!

Jó nápot again from Budapest! Today our team had another exciting and busy day. All of us got to both do some chemistry and explore the city around us. This morning was the team’s first chance to put their chemistry skills to the test as they completed the tasks of the practical exam. They had five and a half hours with one break, during which some of the materials were switched out. The Hungarian authors did a great job including many different laboratory skills, and we are all sure that our students did just as well completing them. This evening we hear from the organizers that no students were injured, time was not an issue, and only one buret had to be replaced (we don’t know for which team).

While the students were enjoying the beautiful view of the Danube from their lab rooms, Ms. Pezzi, Dr. Lynch, their families and I (J.L.) got to go through the city on a tour. While most of the journey was by bus, we got to venture out into some of the more famous sites. The first of these was Millennium Square, an open area in the middle of Pest containing statues of famous Hungarian rulers. You can see the center column in the picture, with the archangel, Gabriel, at the top holding the crown of the Hungarian kings. At the bottom is Árpád, the first king of Hungary, and the six other chiefs of the original seven Hungarian tribes. Around this are two colonnades with four symbolic statues, in the background of the photo you can see work and war. On the other side of the area were peace and the glory of knowledge. After that we visited the Matthias Church in Buda and the Fisherman’s Bastion, where we had a gorgeous view of Pest and the Hungarian Parliament building. Finally, we visited Gellért Hill, where we could see Buda, Pest and the Danube in between. Although it rained off and on, the trip was a great experience.
As we returned to receive the theoretical portion of the competition, the students got to leave on their own tour of Budapest. The mentor team spent the afternoon reading through the theoretical tasks and then discussing each of them with the authors. We were very pleased with the topics covered by the problems, and we think they will provide quite a challenge. Another challenge was the 2nd Jury Meeting this evening. The meeting was divided into two rooms based on the material. While we were separated at the beginning, we were able to reconvene for the latter part of one of the meetings, because it lasted about an hour longer than the first. Tomorrow, we will translate the exam into “American English.”

I have to close the message so I can attend the informal meeting to keep an eye on Dr. Lynch and his international skills…

Thanks for reading my guest-blogger entry! -JL

It's Will Lynch Day!

The heat wave has temporarily subsided in Budapest. Today we had rain and thunderstorms for most of the morning. The weather turned nice after Dr. Lynch declared it “National Will Lynch Day” and stated that rain was not allowed on this day. Remarkably within 15 minutes of his pronouncement, the rain subsided. This man is amazing!

While the rain was pouring down, the mentors worked on 3 separate computers to “translate” the practical exam from Hungarian English into American English. This year the translation went very smoothly because the Hungarian committee gave us concise and easy to understand problems for the students. After the translation we passed out gifts to the other mentors. They received a postcard with the entire 20 member team, the travel team and information about our national exam; a pocket periodic table; a USA flag pin; and some countries received a badge holder. Traditionally mentors trades gifts among themselves while students to the same.

After our translation, the Lynch family traveled to Pest while Ms. Pezzi, her husband, and JL traveled to Buda. We took a bus and a tram and then walked (in a roundabout route) to the castle district to view the Labyrinths. This is a series of caves and tunnels well below street-level in Buda. It was dark, damp, and really cool! We also ate lunch at a very good restaurant that had delicious food.

Tonight the mentors and guests traveled to Szentendre where they had a chance to make different traditional Hungarian crafts and eat more of the delicious Hungarian food. After the dinner there was a performance of music and dance that was very lively. The performers really enjoyed sharing their talents with the audience.

The students had an excursion today before tomorrow’s 5-hour lab practical: the first of 2 days of exams that they complete in the competition. We know that the students are probably very nervous and excited about the lab practical and hope that everything goes well for each one of them.

Jó éjszakát!

Let the Games Begin!

It is HOT here in Budapest! Much warmer than I’m used to, but not as hot as Savannah, GA or Houston, TX where Dr. Lynch and JL live, respectively. Today’s high was expected to be 37 C according to the French TV station; for those of you who live in a Fahrenheit world, that is equivalent to body temperature (98.6 F).

The morning began with opening ceremonies at the Madách Theater. Unlike last year, there was no parade of nations. The students were seated near the front of the theater just behind the Hungarian and IChO dignitaries. The mentors and guests, however, had “Bob Uecker” seats – last row of the highest balcony. I was too far away to get any decent pictures, so hopefully some of the students got some nice shots. The program was a nice mixture of Hungarian music and speeches.

After the opening ceremonies, we were off to Eötvös Loránd University for a wonderful reception of traditional Hungarian food (not just goulash). Spicy meats, smoked fish, and delicious deserts were enjoyed by all. There were two chefs “cooking” with liquid nitrogen. One was making garlic bread on a stick (that just seemed too weird) and another was making ice cream by freezing flavored whipped cream with the liquid nitrogen. The students were in high spirits, eagerly talking to students and mentors from other countries. It was great seeing them having all of this fun before the stress of the practical exam on Tuesday.

After the students left for their excursion, the mentors checked out the labs and found them to be well equipped and spacious. One of the labs even overlooks the Danube River. It’s too bad that the students will not have time to enjoy the view as they work on the practical task portion of the exam.

This evening during a welcome thunderstorm, the mentors survived their first jury meeting. This is where the practical problems are debated and clarified. Then each delegation votes on approving or disapproving each of the individual tasks. Tomorrow we will translate the “official English version” into American English so we can be assured that our students understand the procedures.

Another fun day has ended in Budapest. Jó éjszakát!

The Gang's All Here!

Szia!

Today was the day USA Team officially registered for the IChO. Students met their guide, Máté, who took us on a promenade around Margitsziget. He pointed out several of the features of the island and also practiced his English and tried to teach us some Hungarian. Máté speaks English very well, far better than any of us could ever imagine speaking Hungarian.

The last member of our team arrived along with Dr. Lynch’s family. It seems that there was a problem with air traffic control in Canada and their flight was delayed. Everyone finally arrived at the hotel at almost 2 PM. A quick registration and lunch and then the students were off on a bus to their home away from home, Gödöllő. That left the mentors with some free time. Dr. Lynch and family enjoyed the thermal pool, while Ms. Pezzi, her husband, and JL did some geocaching on the island. JL successfully located both of the geocaches!

Later in the evening, JL and Dr. Lynch, and to a much smaller degree Ms. Pezzi, attended an informal meeting of many of the mentors, scientific observers, and guests. Ms. Pezzi left the meeting in the quite capable hands of her fellow mentors in order to type up this blog and get some much needed sleep.

Tomorrow is the opening ceremony, lab inspection, and 1st Jury Meeting. It should be a great day for everyone. Lots of pictures will hopefully follow tomorrow.

Welcome to Budapest

Jó estét kívánok from Hungary!

After a much too exciting meeting at JFK (a thunderstorm, a late arrival, and a non-arrival), 3 of the 4 team members as well as Dr. Lynch, Ms. Pezzi, JL Kiappes, and Chemical and Engineering News reporter, Linda Wang, boarded a bus and were driven to our plane out in the middle of the tarmac at the airport. Due to heavy airplane traffic, we got the grand tour of JFK from the ground as we took the long way to our runway.

The flight was uneventful as we headed up the northeast coast of the US and into Canada. We were pretty much following a similar flight path that took the US team to Moscow last year. The GPS lost satellite reception around the Labrador Sea in Canada, but was restored during our breakfast over the Czech Republic.

Customs was a breeze and we were met by our guide and boarded the bus with ¾ of the New Zealand team with their mentor, Sheila. It turns out Sheila was responsible for getting Dr. Kotz involved with the Olympiad and she’ll be visiting Waupaca, WI (just 20 miles north of us) in a couple of weeks.

After settling in at the Danubius Grand Hotel, we made our way to bus route 26 for our first journey into Buda and Pest. We walked Szent Istvan körút in Pest and ate a late lunch at a restaurant that had Hungarian and English on the same menu. The students wanted to stick with something familiar for their first Hungarian meal. The meal was leisurely and good company and conversation was enjoyed by all.

After lunch we walked the rest of the street to the train station then turned back and took side streets to the Parliament building located on the Danube. Jenny told us what she remembered about Kossuth Lajos as we walked around the tér named in his honor. After a stop at the local McDonalds for some needed refreshments (it was really hot in the sun!), we completed our walk over Margit hid to Margitsziget, the island where our hotel is located. The interesting aspect of this island is that it is free of car traffic and is an urban park in the middle of the Danube between Buda on the west and Pest on the East. We casually walked all the way back to our hotel and saw some pretty interesting sites that warrant further investigation.

We just returned from a very late dinner. We ventured into Pest via Arpád hid in search of a restaurant. We saw many interesting sites including some Roman ruins. Dinner was hamburgers at a hole-in-the-wall take out place – no restaurants were found. It was a fun experience though.

Tomorrow we officially register for the 40th IChO. Let the fun begin!

USNCO 2008

Welcome to the blog for USNCO 2008 (Team Alpha Alpha).

I will try to keep everyone updated as we venture to Hungary for the 40th IChO a few days from now.