On Saturday afternoon over twenty boarders visited Kota Melawati and the Firefly Park in Kuala Selangor. On arrival there were many silver leaf monkeys and there were babies sitting on the roof waiting for us to feed them. The monkeys were very naughty but friendly at the same time. They grabbed many bananas and nuts from us although we were scared and terrified.


 
Everyone was hungry and we were treated to dinner at a “mamak” restaurant which we all enjoyed. After dinner, we went to the Firefly Park, which is known as the largest firefly colony in the world. As it was dark and after waiting for a while we split into groups of four people per boat and we put on our life-saving jackets before we got on the boat. The fireflies were twinkling amongst the branches of the tree. As the boat got further down the river, we recognised the mangroves were filled by thousands of fireflies twinkling in the night.
 
This trip was full of laughter and happiness and it was a memorable experience for us all.
 
Written by Ke Xuan - Year 9

 
The Boarding Eco Council recently began a new initiative for the respective floors of the Boarding House. On a weekly basis, recycling will be collected from each floor and weighed. The Floor who collects the most recyclable waste throughout each month will be able to collectively choose a reward within a set budget.

Mr Troy’s Schubert Floor were the inaugural winners managing to collect 8 kilograms of recyclable waste, and as a treat the boys’ chose to watch Captain Marvel together at IOI mall last Wednesday evening. The competitiveness has definitely commenced among all floors.
 
Last Thursday we celebrated Nowruz (New Year) or commonly known as Persian New Year. Although originating in Iran as the former centre of the Persian empire, Nowruz is celebrated by many countries and by many people from across the world including Afghanistan, Albania, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and so is directly celebrated by boarders and staff here at Nexus. The new year begins the second the vernal equinox does — so, not just at the stroke of midnight which differs across the world but at the same precise moment in which the sun crosses over the equator signalling the official start of spring - this would have been at 5:58am on March 21 this year in Malaysia.



The reason behind Vernal Equinox being New Year is the fact that Spring itself is a time of new life and so is thought of as a time to celebrate that, to put behind us the negatives of the last year, clean ourselves of negatives and celebrate the beginning of a new year with my opportunities ahead of us. No one knows exactly how far back Nowruz dates. The best estimates sit somewhere in the range of 3,000 years which makes it one of the oldest traditions which are still celebrated today in the world.
Atakhan and Mr Dan talked to the house about Nowruz before serving us all some wonderful New Year delicacies from their countries. Atakhan made Boorsok a fried bread which is served on special occasions in Kyrgyzstan and Mr Dan made Kuku Sabzi a celebration of fresh herbs served as a sort of frittata which no Persian Nowruz table would be without on a New Year feast with the family.
 
Sunday Brunch Club enabled Mr Dan and some boarders make Mexican Brunch Burritos. This is a Tex-Mex dish in its origins with influences from the southern border American state of Texas and Mexico.
We made mini omelettes with melted cheese and as an accompaniment we made a Pico de Gallo with fresh tomatoes, red onions, chilli, lime juice and coriander, all chopped finely and combined, which is a pretty traditional Mexican fresh salsa. We then topped the tortillas with the mini cheesy omelettes, fresh avocados, the homemade Pico De Gallo, some sour cream and a dash of hot sauce for the brave ones.
It was an easy, quick and delicious start to the day!