A Hotel Room for Royalty

Jovianne Y., 8, GSIS

1)     Now it’s your turn to be an architect! If you were building the world’s most expensive hotel suite, where would you build it? What amenities and features would come with it? Come up with at least eight different things. You have no budget, so be as extravagant as you want!

I will build it in the United States and its name will be the Silver Mist Hotel. The features will include 15 rooms and two flights of steps, a hot tub, and a gym. It also has a secret passage in the closet that leads to an elevator. Pressing the button takes you down to the canteen, and best of all you don’t have to pay for the canteen but you will be asked to give one dollar. There is also a silver mist room!

2)     Because of its extravagance, your suite makes front-page news. How much does it cost per night? What do you tell reporters is the most impressive room in your suite? Why is it the most impressive? Remember to be as detailed as possible—you want people to read about your suite and book a reservation!

It costs 400,000 HKD per night. The most impressive room is the 4D movie room because you have a remote and you can choose any channel and it’ll appear in 4D! It also has a nice gift fit for children and parents at the end of the movie.

3)     Finally, construction has finished on your suite. Your first guest is a billionaire. What does this person do for a living? How does he or she react when you give him or her a tour of the suite?

She works at the bank. She thinks it’s a glorious place because of the secret passage and the canteen.

4)     The next morning, you read in the newspaper that the guest has told reporters the suite is horrendous. “The only thing I like is the gold chandelier in the bedroom,” he or she says. How does this make you feel? What extra things do you try to do in order to make him or her more pleased with the suite?

It makes me feel sad and upset. I made more gold and silver chandeliers. I also made a wishing room and a really valuable gold flower.

5)     After the guest has left, you go check on the suite and discover that the most expensive item in the suite is missing! What is it? How does this make you feel? What is the first thing you do in order to retrieve it?

The gold flower is the most expensive item. It makes me feel mad. I call the police department.

6)     After several days, the police tell you that the guest fled the country on a private jet and is currently hiding in Bali. They send you on a plane to go find the missing object. When you first get to Bali, what are the first things you notice? How is it different from Hong Kong? What do you do in order to find the celebrity?

I notice a card. It says “Mrs. Rosa.” There is a sheet of paper that says “Go to Golden Touch, 1 Cherry Street, Bali." Bali is different because the land is mostly beaches. I follow the card to Golden Touch and find her.

7)     You have gotten some hints as to where the celebrity might be. What are they? Do you find the celebrity? Is your missing object still with him or her or do you go back to Hong Kong empty-handed? Finish the story!

I do find her. The missing object is gone but I capture and force her to tell me where it is. She finally says that it’s in her pocket. So I snatch that beautiful golden flower and I say that I will capture her back. So she flees. I wanted to show the police she was the thief so I had no other choice but to chase after her. I ran and ran and tried to find her. Suddenly the sound of feet rang through my ears. So the chase was on! We ran in circles, straight and sideways. Soon I found her hiding behind a large white marble pillar. I ran toward the pillar and snuck up on her and captured her at last! I flew her private jet with her next to me. I flew it to Hong Kong and took her to jail!

Around The World

Around the World by Julianne C., 9, Bradbury School

1)     If you were going on a daring adventure around the world, what would you do? Would you row across the ocean? Would you hike Mt. Everest? Why?

If I were going on a daring adventure around the world, I would dive in the deepest sea. I would like to dive in the deepest ocean because I could find new species still unknown to science and I would also like to see different kinds of fish.

2)     Imagine you are about to embark on this adventure. What do you do to prepare for it? What items do you need to bring? List at least five with reasons why you might need them.

I would like to bring a portable shower, clothes, food, water and swimming gear. I would need a portable shower in case I caught a sickness. I would need clothes in case it gets too dirty or if the temperature changes. I would need food and water so I don’t starve to death. I would need swimming gear so I can swim in the deepest ocean.

3)     As you leave civilization and enter the wild and the unknown by yourself, how do you feel? How do you think you will feel a month from now, when you are still on your own?

I would feel very excited because I would finally achieve my dream. However, I think a month from then I would feel lonely and sad because no one would accompany me and I would have no one to talk to. The only thing that is accompanying me is my shadow.

4)     The fifth day of your adventure, something unexpected happens that causes you to rethink your plans! What happens? Is it a disaster or a blessing? Describe the event in thorough detail.

Suddenly on my fifth day a storm comes and I can’t swim in the ocean. All the ocean ahs rubbish in it and it turned very gray like we use it to wash paint brushes into. It was not a very pretty sight.

5)     What are the results or consequences of the event? Describe these in great detail.

The consequences are not only for me but the animals and plants in the sea. It would not be healthy for me to go in dirty water for ages. The fish might think the rubbish is food and eat it and they will choke to death. The plants would die because they need clean water to survive.

6)     The next night, you have a very vivid dream about your adventure. What happens in the dream? How does this affect what you do the next day?

In my dream I decided not to protest because people cannot control the weather. I decided to spread the word to stop throwing rubbish into the ocean and I also gathered groups of people to clean the ocean. On the next day I did exactly what happened in my dream. I believe if lots of people put their hands together we can do anything.

7)     After dozens of weeks, you finally return home. How do you feel to be back? What does your family do when they see you? Do you wish you were still on your adventure?

I feel very relieved to see my family again because I missed them dearly. I feel happy because I have someone to talk to again. I wished I was still on my adventure because I was used to the beautiful sights.

College Is a Must

By Erica Kwan, 14, St. Paul's Convent School

Nothing is eternal, or more accurately, few things will last beyond your lifetime. Everything that we own can be robbed away in a second, and everything that we treasure may fall apart. A rich man may lose all of his money in one economic recession, or an athlete may lose everything due to an injury. However, there is one thing that will forever be yours: knowledge and wisdom. Nobody can open your brain and extract the information you learn at school, nor can they take away the skills that you possess. Despite the importance of being resourceful and knowledgeable, more and more people are opting to skip tertiary education and directly enter the workforce. I believe that this is a very big mistake and that college will always be important, no matter who you are.

        After peeling away all the gimmicks and unimportant factors, the core value of going to college is very simple—to learn. The most basic reason to go to school is to learn and increase our knowledge, and college does exactly that. Higher education provides us with more skills and expertise than high school does. Also, colleges are equipped with more advanced facilities, like better laboratories, that high schools cannot provide. For example, students can conduct clinical trials and experiments in colleges. Students can continue their education in their field of interest, thus arming themselves with the requisite knowledge to enter the work field. The whole point about college is to learn as much as you can and add value to yourself.

        Attending college allows you to experience the real world and escape from your protected glass bubble. School is a reflection of the actual society where the necessity to be competitive and hard working is essential. College teaches you to become independent since you will be living alone and this forces you to make your own decisions, from what to have for lunch to what courses to take. There will be no parents to force you to go for tuition classes and ground you if your grades are unsatisfactory. You will be completely in charge of your own life and this trains you to be more disciplined and responsible. In the long run, this prepares you for life after school and how to thrive in your workplace. Also, attending college opens up your eyes and broadens your horizons. College is a melting pot of different cultures and a collection of bright students from various countries. You get to study with people from all over the world and meet experienced teachers who may one day become your mentors. These are valuable experiences that cannot be learnt if you do not attend college. In addition, college is a place for you to discover yourself. Adversity and new environments bring out your character and who you really are deep inside. For example, you may be a very talkative person when you are surrounded by old friends and family back home, yet when you are thrust into a completely new environment, you may suddenly become shy. Using this piece of knowledge, you can improve your character and attitude in order to face different challenges throughout your life.

        Lastly, you can learn from your mistakes in college. When compared to the actual society, college has repercussions which are relatively smaller. A blunder in college would probably attract dislike from your peers, a few scoldings from your professors and disappointed looks from your parents. Although these consequences are unpleasant, they will not ruin your life and career prospects. However, if you commit a mistake while you are working, the trouble it brings will be tremendous. Bosses expect you to learn everything you need in college and forgiveness will be handed out stingily. Make as many mistakes as you can in school and learn through trials and errors while you’re still in school because there will be teachers to correct you, but don’t expect that kind of mercy in the real world.”

        College is a place to form life-long friendships with your schoolmates, not to mention a place to build connections with influential people. Your schoolmates may be related to your future employer, or your roommate in college may be the daughter of a powerful politician. You can meet alumni and work together with experienced professors side by side. This gives you an advantage and more doors may be opened for you.

        According to statistics, the number of mal-employed college grads accumulated to 17 million in 2008. In other words, 17 million people are overqualified for their jobs. Some may argue that no matter how high your qualifications are, you still can’t get a satisfactory job, so why bother? However, this is entirely a misconception. First, a college degree has never, and will never, guarantee a good job 100% of the time. Yet, it increases the chances of securing a place in the job market and enhances the possibility of employment when compared to just a high school diploma. College graduates are armed with the knowledge regarding their career choice and this is crucial to success. Also, out of those 17 million mal-employed students, we do not know how many of them actually put in their best efforts while studying, nor do we know whether their degrees are actually useful to their future careers or are they merely degrees earned online. Therefore, it is unfair to say that college is not worth attending due to the high mal-employed rate shown in the statistics. Also, people like Steve Jobs, Bill Gates and Ted Turner are isolated cases. They may be blessed with exceptionally high intelligence levels and may have managed to succeed without college qualifications, but people should not give up the notion of continuing their education just because a few CEOs did not graduate from university.

        Money, fame and status are elements that can be taken away in a flash, yet knowledge is something that is forever yours. By attending college, you are arming yourself with the skills and wisdom that will help you succeed later in life. If college qualifications are not deemed important by employers, they will not require you to submit your portfolio when applying for a job post. There will not be 4,084 colleges in the United States if tertiary education is useless. In a world where even waiters hold college degrees, there will not be many job options for you if you do not.