Every year, by mid April, the university sports days take place on a Thursday and Friday. There are no classes these two days, and students get to participate in the competitions or have two days for fun and enjoyment.
For the foreign faculty, attending the opening ceremony is mandatory, and usually we are asked to march into the stadium in a grand procession, together with selected representatives from all the different departments of our school. While the marching is quite fine-tuned with everyone else, the foreign teachers always stand out, because
- We don’t wear uniforms (coordinated clothes),
- We can’t march.
Wearing the same shirt, probably wouldn’t be that big of a challenge. The marching on the other hand is. Not once in all my years, have we achieved the same uniformity as the other groups marching. Fortunately, the opening ceremony isn’t all about the marching, there are speeches, and the different vows by representatives of the referees and athletes; there is the torch run, and the lighting of the “olympic” flame; and last but not least there is the grand show, in which hundreds of students are involved in various acts.
For me personally, sports day means I get to spend extra time at the tennis court, since there are no classes there for two days.
