Ben's Como Park High School Destination Imagination team "Spilled Salsa" had a great week at Global Finals held in Knoxville, Tennessee. After the 16 hour drive down, they were excited to dive right into the festivities. First night, a spectacular opening ceremonies welcoming teams from 28 countries. We sat by both China and Turkey who were very excited to be there. Kids also walked around the U of Tenn and World's Fairground site where the DI competition and activities were held. (pictures above, kids relaxing following instant challenge and happy after performance, and pic of opening ceremony)
The second day, the kids worked on the finishing touches for their Duct Tape Ball costumes and worked on their performance a bit. They also viewed performances by other teams and did some pin trading with other participants. 
(pictures below, duct tape ball, pin trading, sight seeing in Knoxville)
Duct Tape Ball was held that night, and the team really did it up with their costumes. Medora and her sister's all-duct tape dresses raised breast cancer awareness. Lizzy was a duct tape Lady Gaga. Hannah made a beautiful dress from duct tape and plastic wrap. Ben and Michael wore duct tape vests, and Ben embellished his costume with duct tape facial hair and a duct tape priest collar. The event was amazing, as you can see from the picture, the crowd was huge and lively, and enjoyed the band. The following days the kids had their Instant Challenge and performance, both of which went very well. The event came to an end with more spectacular events, including closing ceremonies complete with fireworks and after parties. The drive home was long, but gave the kids time to reflect on an amazing experience, catch up on school work, and sing along to Lady Gaga's "Born This Way."
(pictures below, duct tape ball, pin trading, sight seeing in Knoxville)
Duct Tape Ball was held that night, and the team really did it up with their costumes. Medora and her sister's all-duct tape dresses raised breast cancer awareness. Lizzy was a duct tape Lady Gaga. Hannah made a beautiful dress from duct tape and plastic wrap. Ben and Michael wore duct tape vests, and Ben embellished his costume with duct tape facial hair and a duct tape priest collar. The event was amazing, as you can see from the picture, the crowd was huge and lively, and enjoyed the band. The following days the kids had their Instant Challenge and performance, both of which went very well. The event came to an end with more spectacular events, including closing ceremonies complete with fireworks and after parties. The drive home was long, but gave the kids time to reflect on an amazing experience, catch up on school work, and sing along to Lady Gaga's "Born This Way."
