​Peng's Family
Naomi’s 2013 Activities
December 31st , 2013
Happy Holidays, everyone!
This was a year with many ups and downs. 8th grade ended with the graduation and banquet, and before I knew it, I was off to high school. I really enjoyed the end of 8th grade. In the spring, I went on a camping trip with the Lincoln Running Club. This was one of the most fun activities I will remember of middle school. Of course, I am still busy with all my activities going on, although I would say I made the biggest change in my life so far. I quit gymnastics! The sport I loved the most. I switched to diving instead because there was much less time commitment, and since I decided to go to Eastside High School with the demanding International Baccalaureate (IB) program I knew I would need some extra time. Although I love diving, I still miss gymnastics A LOT. I also ran cross-country with my sister. But besides talking about all these sports, I have to mention the wonderful trip we took this summer to Alaska! Alaska is not just like any other state. It is one of the most beautiful places on the face of the Earth. During the summer, I also went to the Summer Forensics Institute (SFI) in Peroia, IL. This was one of the best experiences I’ve ever had.
Lincoln Middle School Graduation
Graduation Banquet
Graduation Ceremony
Running Club Group Camping
New Year’s Polar Plunge
To start off the year of 2013, I went to my friends Ashlyn’s house with Maddie. When the New Year’s ball dropped, the three of us jumped into the freezing pool to keep our tradition going from last year. The water was extremely cold but we got in the hot tub right away until we were crazy enough to go back into the pool 3 more times.
New Year Plunge
Regional Gymnastics Championships at Jackson, MS
Sports
This year, I had a drastic change in the sports that I do. It went from gymnastics to diving and cross country. I started off the year with gymnastics. I competed level 9 again and made it to regionals where I qualified as an alternate for eastern nationals. After season ended, my mom made the executive decision of pulling me out of gymnastics (well, she convinced me and I agreed). I was so devastated to leave something I truly loved, but looking back, with all my activities, it would be very difficult, if not impossible to get everything done while doing the 5-hour daily gymnastics training. I wanted to continue flipping around, so I switched to diving. I started diving with the Gainesville club in June and worked very hard to learn all my skills, and then competed with the Eastside team in the fall. At the Gainesville city meet I came in 2nd place. At districts, I got third place and at regional, I got 6th place. I made it all the way to the state championships where I placed 18th. I am very happy with my achievements in diving especially for starting not too long ago. You can watch my gymnastics video here.
Arial on beam
Gainer Dive
Floor
Back Twister
Ready, Set....
As for cross country, that was truly surprising for me. I used to hate running. I remember when I was little, my Dad would drag me out of the house to run with him and I always refused. But, this year was a dramatic change, I even asked my Dad to run with me when I could not go to the cross-country practice due to the schedule conflict with diving training. I became good at it and made it onto the varsity team and did pretty well at most competitions. I was very disappointed that I could not run in the championship meets because that was the exact same day as the diving competition. I love the Eastside cross country and it is amazing how close we bonded in a couple of months. I was even selected as the High School Athletes of the week for Cross Country in the Gainesville Sun newspaper.
With coach Jon
Running
Winning award
During the gymnastics season, we went all the way to Park City, Utah for a competition. This time, I only went with my dad because we wanted to ski when we were there and my mom does not enjoy skiing. This was an amazing trip because I love snow and I got to play in it and go tubing while there was a blizzard. The mountains in Utah are much steeper than North Carolina which made the skiing more fun yet dangerous and scary. We started off on the easiest slope and worked our way up until we met up with some of my other gym friends for lunch including Ashlyn and her dad. They used to live in Park City so they were very familiar with the routes and of course, very good at skiing. Ashlyn’s dad led the way and we were told to just follow him until he brought us to a black diamond hill. We carefully made our way down the mountain and everything was going well until I started to gain speed. I tried to stop but it didn’t work out the way I had hoped. I flew myself onto the side of the route where the snow looked very fluffy and soft but I didn’t realize I would fly through the snow. I went face first into the snow and was completely submerged in the freezing snow. It scared my dad but it was very fun for me. After all the fun, it was time to go back to warm Florida but my dad couldn’t find his driver’s license. We searched and searched and realized that it had slipped out of his pocket while he was skiing. Fortunately he had his passport so we could still get back home on schedule.
Daddy is happy like a kid in the snow
Mountain top fun
Summer Alaska Trip
The big trip that we took over the summer was to Alaska. This was probably one of the best trips we’ve ever taken so far.
The first place we went to was Denali National Park. The park is centered on Mt. McKinley, which is the highest mountain in North America at 20,320 ft. Denali is 6 million acres of free, wild land, intersected by one road. There were many animals there and we were lucky enough to see a lot of them. We saw moose, Dall sheep, caribou, golden eagles, but the most exciting thing was a grizzly bear! We were also very fortunate to be able to see the peak of Mt. McKinley. 70% of the time, it is covered in clouds because it is so tall that it makes its own weather patterns. But when we went, the guide said it was the clearest it has ever been in three years. We were the lucky 30 as it is said (only 30% of clear days). The sky was blue and only one or two cotton-like clouds were over the mountain. In the park, we took a bus that traveled further into the park where cars could not go. On this road, we saw many great views and lots of wild animals. Since many eyes were on the lookout for animals and we were on higher grounds, it was easier to spot animals.
In the lucky 30% to see the spectaular views of Mt. McKinley
Cute grizzly bear passing the road in front of our bus
Our final destination on the road was the Eielson Visitor Center. We stayed there for about 3 hours exploring the wildness. We hiked up a mountain that took us 4300 feet up. Although uphill hiking was very difficult, it was definitely worth it. On the way back we saw the animal we were most looking forward to -- a grizzly bear that was about to cross the road. We stopped the bus and everyone quickly scrambled to one side of the bus trying to see and take as many pictures as possible. We were very lucky to see this especially since it was so close—right off the road!
We hiked a long way
Breath-taking view from the peak
Another place we went to was Seward. Seward is the gateway to the Kenai Fjords National Park, which is where we took an 8.5 hour day cruise to the Fox Island for a nice dinner. On the cruise, we were fascinated by all the different types of sea creatures. There were a lot of cute porpoises who were chasing our boat and playing around in the wake, mommy and daddy Alaskan killer whales teaching their young how to hunt and stay away from the boats. Alaskan sea otters remain very active all the time, and pretty puffins fly up in the sky, but the sea lions cluster together for a nice cozy sleep. We also saw lots of birds, turtles and seals. Even though 8.5 hours seems like a long trip, it was very exciting almost every minute. There was always something to look out for and when we found something the whole ship would go crazy but we tried to keep as quiet as possible so the sound wouldn’t scare away the animals. The place where we turned around was at a very big glacier. You could hear the water rushing out of it from the melting ice and sometimes there would be a big Boom! And it almost sounded like thunder, but it was just a huge chunk of ice falling into the water. Although the boat ride was very windy, Lucinda and I stood on the sides of the boat for almost the whole trip, using our sharp eyes to find whatever animals were out swimming about in the water. On the way back to Seward, we stopped by Fox Island for a nice dinner with all you can eat prime ribs and Alaskan Salmon.
We stayed on the sides of the cruiseship to seach for sea creatures
Porpoises chasing and swiming in front of the boat
Skipping rocks after dinner at Fox Island
Humpback Whale breaching
Naomi at Holgate Glacier - Kenai Fjords National Park
Beautiful Alaska puffin
Exit Glacier is another glacier we went to in the Kenai Fjords National Park. The Exit Glacier is the only part of the park that is accessible by road. It gets its name because it served as the exit for the first recorded crossing of the Harding Icefield in 1968. We hiked up a trail to get very close to it—almost touching it. As we got closer and closer, the wind grew stronger and stronger. By the time we reached the top, the wind was so strong it almost felt like it was going to knock me over. The wind occurs because of the big temperature change between the glacier and the air. Overall, our time in Seward was very fun, we loved the little downtown, the fresh sea food, but most of all, getting to see all the great sea creatures and glaciers.
Exit Glacier at 10:00 PM
We hiked all the way to the point that almost touched the glacier
Downtown Seward
Busy Seward Harbor
Our next stop was Anchorage. On the drive there, we stopped by many places for great views, pictures, and trails. The place we stopped the longest was Crow Pass Trail. We spent more than 6 hours on the mountain. This was Lucinda’s and my favorite hiking trail. The mountain was covered in snow and most of the trail was covered in snow too! And the funny thing was, we were wearing shorts and t-shirts and everyone looking at the pictures thought it was crazy to be wearing so little while surrounded by, and walking on a thick blanket of snow. But it was actually 70 degrees outside. About one fifth of the way into the hike, my dad and sister took off while I and my mom were taking pictures and enjoying the pretty views. We were separated for a couple hours until my dad and Lucinda decided to be nice and wait for us since they had all the water and food. After meeting up with them, they took off again but this time taking the camera and leaving us with some water. At a certain point, the trail ended and there was just white snow ahead of us and a couple of tracks. My mom and I weren’t sure which track to follow and if Lucinda and my dad took that same track. We could not call them because there was no phone service so we had to use our best judgment and go with it. As we were trudging through the snow, we came across another hiker and we asked him if he had seen my dad and sister. He said no, so we just continued ahead until we finally reached the destination sign. It was so nice to see that we made it but there was still no sign of Lucinda and dad.
We sat down and rested for a little to save some energy for the long way down. While we were resting and enjoying the view of the glacier, that’s when we saw little specks moving around on the glacier. The little specks ended up being Lucinda and dad! We kept calling their names over and over again trying to see if they could hear us but we couldn’t really tell if they did or not because it was so far apart and we could barely see their bodies. After they came back from the glacier, we started to head our way down the mountain. When we finally got back to the parking lot, it was almost 6 o’clock and we were all tired so we decided to drive straight to Anchorage without any more stops.
Resting after three hours of non-stop climbing and hiking
Mom made it to the end of Crow Pass Trail at Chugach National Forest!
Breathtaking view at the top Crow Pass Trail!
Summer Forensics Institue
During July, I went to Summer Forensics Institute (SFI) in Peoria, Illinois at Bradley University for the speech and debate camp. At first, I really did not want to go but my mom insisted. It was my first time flying alone and my first time to experience anything with speech. Within the two weeks that I was there, I learned as much material as I would have in one school year. I also made so many great friends and most of them were either from Wisconsin or Illinois. I decided to do the category Dramatic Interpretation with the piece called Pop Art by Joe Hill. During the whole time there, we worked really hard by ourselves and with our group and coaches. In my group there were 5 people and 2 coaches. My coaches were Lauren Jones and Junior Ocasio. We chose a piece, cut it, memorized it, and performed it. It took lots of work to do all of this in such a short time. At the end of camp, there was a mock competition with three rounds of judges. My performance was good enough to be chosen to award an honor of certificate. This camp was a wonderful experience and it’s amazing how much can be done in such a short amount of time. Not only did I get to become very close to my group members, but also to other campers on my floor. I will always remember the wonderful time I had at Bradley during SFI.
Bradley University with Wisconsin camp friends
Forensics "mock" meet at camp
High School
Summer ended way too quickly and then I started off another school year, but this time at Eastside High School. Near the end of 8th grade I had to decide which school to go to. My parents really wanted me to go to Buchholz High School but I wanted to go to Eastside, because that’s where almost all my friends were going. After a lot of thinking and talking, I decided to go to Eastside. The transition between middle school and high school was very smooth. I am currently taking pre-calculus and chemistry with 10th graders. I was elected the freshman secretary for the student government. I also went to homecoming with a group of my friends. For the International Day, a group of nine of my friends performed a Mexican hat dance. High school is not any different from what I imagined and I love it.
Homecoming
Mexcian Dance at International Day
EHS Footbball Game. Go Rams!
China Wedding
During thanksgiving break, I had a great opportunity to go to China with my mom for my cousin’s wedding. The weddings in China are very different from those in the US. First, the groom has to go to the bride’s house to pick her up but inside the house, everyone blocks the door and doesn’t let the groom in until he gives everyone money and answers a bunch of questions. Once he is inside the house, he must go to the bride’s bedroom and the door is blocked again. This time, it is even harder to get through but finally the groom and his friends broke the lock and pushed through. After the groom finally got in, he had to find the bride’s shoe, which are carefully hidden. Then the bride and the groom said good-bye to bride’s parents, get in the car and start heading to the wedding ceremony. The bride has to change shoes right after she gets into the car. Everything was very loud with fireworks and noisemakers. I was one of the bridesmaids along with 3 of my cousin’s close friends. The wedding was so beautiful, and had a lot of yummy food. After the wedding, we went to see the new apartment. Their new apartment was decorated very elegantly. During the trip, I saw a lot of relatives that I had never met before and some that I hadn’t seen since I was 4 years old. On one of the last days I was there, I spent the whole day with my other cousin, his wife, and their 9 month old baby boy. He was so fun to play with. While I was with them, we went to Zhong Yuan Fu Tower, the tallest tower in Zhengzhou, China. On the top, the view was truly amazing. You could see all the tall buildings, and sadly also the air pollution building up in the sky. The trip to China was short, yet so much happened
Farher walking the daughter down the aisle
Putting on the wedding ring
Beautiful bridesmaid -- Naomi
Naomi at the wedding ceremony
At the groom's new elegant apartment
Happy family reunion
Yummy food
Overlooking ZhengZhou on the top of Zhong Yuan Fu Tower
With 9 month old baby nephew
at Zhong Yuan Fu Tower
Four generations together in one picture
Violin
I continue to play violin with my teacher Kim Chalmers. For the spring recital, I played Mediation and we recently just had our winter group recital. I am in book 8 and this year I made it into the first violin section in the Alachua County Youth Orchestra (ACYO). Currently, Lucinda is my stand partner in the orchestra and we sat next to each other for the Stop! Children’s Cancer Concert and the ACYO winter concert.
Naomi playing violion in front of our house
Winter violin recital
Lucinda and Naomi at Stop Children Cancer Concert
Naomi and Lucinda with thier teacher at the winter rectial
Friends
As you already know from our previous Newsletters, our family is very close to Anneliese’s family. At the beginning of the year, our family went to Anneliese’s lake house to celebrate the New Year and we ended the year by going to their lake house the day after Christmas. Of course, Lucinda and I went there many times over the summer. We also went to St. Augustine with them over the summer. We are so happy they are such great friends.
Emma, Anneliese, Naomi and Lucinda at St. Augustine
Happy girls jumping
Best boddy
2013 was pretty good year altogether. I have enjoyed all my activities – gymnastic, diving, cross country, violin, student government, playing with friends and all the great trips. I’m going to attend public speech and math competitions in the new year. I can’t wait to see what other adventures come ahead for next year! I hope everyone is having a great holiday season!
Beatiful Fort De Soto Park
Unforgetable Alaska trip!
Strong, perfect vault!
In our back yard
Regional Meet at Jackson, MS
Go Xi Fa Cai, 马年腾飞!
Naomi Peng