Spring Break is Here!

Johanna takes a hike in Black Forest with BFA and Dorm Staff

...and cuts a rug with dorm sisters using dance video game.

Josiah dressed and prepared for his report on Missionary to Africa and Doctor David Livingstone

Clara gets in the act by donning a proper explorer missionary mustache too!

Now to do some exploring outdoors in Ohio this next week plus off school!

Recent Travels and Recital

   "Great Herron Viewing Area" in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park north of Akron

We traveled Sunday to Northmar Alliance Church in Warren, Ohio.  Josiah and Clara check out the indoor playground the church installed for area moms to gather with their kids. 

Clara had her first recital via zoom after starting voice lessons this winter.

There were voice and instrumental students from all over the country, hosted by her teacher in Seattle.  

Spring Ohio Home Scenes

Sunrise over our neighbor's farm

Josiah learning times tables in 3rd grade

He really likes his vegetables, green beans, good for after school snack. 

Can you see his drone and our home?

Clara getting off the bus about 3:55

To our door stairs still wearing here mask ;}

Mongolia ‘Looks to open borders to tourists by May’

I take some of the statistics in this story with a grain of salt.  But it gives hope of a soon return.  It may take us longer for us to wait for a visa, but if we wanted to enter as a tourist for 30 days, this is good news. 

Mongolian Prime Minister L.Oyun-Erdene is reported to be considering plans to open the country’s borders to vaccinated foreign tourists by May.  PM L.Oyun-Erdene has held a meeting with representatives from the country’s tourism and hotels sector. He noted that Mongolia could generate revenue of USD 450 million from receiving three million tourists a year by 2029.

D.Gantumur, President of Mongolian Tourism Association said that the country of three million has the capacity of receiving 7.5 million tourists a year. He asked the PM to open Mongolia’s borders to tourists from 1 May. According to him, Mongolia can still receive 400 thousand tourists the summer by opening its borders in May.

S.Munkhbat of the Mongolian Hotel Association explained that the number of hotels actively decreased to 430 in 2020 after 30 hotels closed and the number of employees in the sector was cut by 46 percent. Simultaneously, the number of visitors to hotels sharply decreased by 95 percent; only a few hotels were allowed to work as quarantine centres through the pandemic. Most hotels have been closed since January, 2020. The sector has received a body blow, from which it must urgently recover; hotels pay a whopping MNT 600 billion of taxes a year! https://news.mn/en/795381/

Mongolia sends all children back to school

 

From today (1 March), pupils in all 21 provinces of Mongolia are set to return to the classroom, after authorities approved the return to on-site teaching in a balancing act between coronavirus concerns and children’s education. However, students in the Mongolian capital city of Ulaanbaatar will begin classes from 10 March.

According to the education minister, parents can choose whether to send their children back to school or to continue with online classes. Regarding higher education: colleges, universities and institutions will not open in the provinces at present.

Each child in Mongolia must attend school for 165-180 days. However, due to the pandemic, pupils have received only classes for 80 days; this has resulted in 70-80 percent of students falling seriously behind. Furthermore, 174 thousand students failed to learn in online classes due to there being no internet, smartphones or televisions.  https://news.mn/en/795388/