Ah, it’s that time of the year again. When school starts and your mountain load of work start to pile
up. While you’re all trying to get readjusted, there are people who are just getting used to the
school. I’m sure some of you have wondered about the new kids that transferred to school. Maybe
you’ve heard your friend say they’re in a class with them. Maybe you’ve passed them in the
hallway but never said hi to them. Regardless, it’s always fun to get to know someone new and
learn about them even though they might be complete strangers. Today, we’re introducing three of
the new students to join the class of 2019 and what they’re all about. If you see these guys in the
hallway, go and say hi to them!
Fabio Xie is a sophomore born in Lisbon, Portugal. The city is located right next to the water,
where you can admire the night lights across the beautiful city. After he was born, Fabio moved to
Porto, another city in Portugal, and lived there for seven years. Sadly, he had to leave the city that
raised him and subsequently moved to Shanghai. “It wasn't easy at first for a seven-year-old boy to
live in a new place, learn a new language and make new friends,” he said. But since he moved, he’s
been living in Shanghai and loving it. His parents stayed in Europe and came back to Shanghai
when Fabio graduated from middle school at Shanghai High School International Division.
From this sudden change of environment, a European country to an Asian county, Fabio’s realized
a lot of things, “I’ve learned how to be strong, how to do laundry and cook stuff, and I realized how
difficult and how important independence is.”
Fabio is a go-getter and loves setting goals for himself. This gives him constant energy and helps
him stay focused in life. He has a passion for sports like many SAS students, in particular, soccer.
His story with soccer has been one of love and hate. “In the beginning, I wasn’t a good soccer
player” he says, “in fact, I was often teased for my lack of skills.” This left Fabio with nothing but
his passion. He started training day and night. He woke up at 5 A.M. sharp to practice and trained
for three hours until 7 P.M. at night. Eventually, he made the team in his old school, SHSID, and it
drove him to further his passion even more. He’s very excited about the fact that Varsity teams at
SAS get to travel across the world. Fun fact, the soccer club in Fabio’s old town, Benfica, has the
same mascot as Shanghai American School, an eagle!
Fabio decided to come to SAS because it offered him more resources and opportunities to make
new friends. He thinks that SAS has a more open school system than his old school, allowing
students to enjoy many resources. “The system is more open because we can choose IB/AP/school
courses at the same time!”, he exclaims, “No other schools in Shanghai offer that.” On top of that,
his favorite thing at SAS right now is getting food from the kiosk.
Another new addition to our community is sophomore Alan Li. Alan was born in the Big Apple,
New York City, and he went to kindergarten in Canada. He came to Shanghai for third grade and
stayed until seventh grade before leaving for the United Kingdom. In the gloomy but beautiful
country of England, Alan was a music scholar and played on the varsity badminton team. This year,
he came back to China to study at Shanghai American School.
Like Fabio, Alan loves playing soccer and badminton. He is planning on trying out for badminton
in season three, and hoping to make the JV1 or Varsity team.
As a fan of Korean popular culture, Alan likes watching Korean drama shows and listening to KPop. “My favorite artist would probably be Yoona because she's a really good actress and singer”,
Alan says.
Whoever said money can’t buy happiness couldn't find good places to buy clothes at. Alan shops
at his favorite shops whenever he feels sad. This is one of his hobbies and it never fails to cheer him
up, “every time I think about shopping, going on a holiday, or an adventure, it gives me energy. I
don't know why. Probably because I get excited easily.”
Alan decided to come back to Shanghai from England and SAS “the best school [he] looked at.”
It’s very westernized and Alan likes this type of school, especially because the teachers sometimes
let you eat in their classes.
Ending on a fun note, we asked Alan what were two things he’d bring to an abandoned island.
He replied with “a gun in case I find myself in danger and a bed so I can rest!”
Last but not least, Myles Zhou is the last sophomore we’re introducing today. He’s been a native to
Shanghai for his whole life and just transferred to SAS from Shanghai High School International
Division.
Myles’s hobbies include gaming, like lots of our peers. He also loves hanging out with people,
especially his girlfriend Rachel, who was at SHSID with him before he transferred here. “As a
normal couple, we fight. But we always end up fine. We can act like ourselves and be truthful to
each other. She makes me happy and I make her happy. I really appreciate the things she does for
me. Our relationship is simple, we go out shopping, we watch movies, and we have a lot of hotpot,”
he says about Rachel.
Self-deprecating humor is his strength as he tells us, “I don’t think I’m interesting.”
However, he has joined many extracurriculars activities despite only starting school around two
weeks. He is in the biology club, which incidentally is his favorite subject. AVA, a club that helps to
teach kids how to draw. The photography club, and also the Basking Club, where they help children
who suffer from autism.
One thing he enjoys about our community so far is the fact that “everyone is so energetic,” not to
mention the fact that there is a mall next to our school where we can hang out after school. One of
his favorite things at SAS is the sports program, and his favorite sports include soccer, table tennis,
and badminton. He is also planning on trying out for the soccer and badminton teams. Myles is also
a huge dog lover and loves playing with puppies and dogs.
Amy Liu
up. While you’re all trying to get readjusted, there are people who are just getting used to the
school. I’m sure some of you have wondered about the new kids that transferred to school. Maybe
you’ve heard your friend say they’re in a class with them. Maybe you’ve passed them in the
hallway but never said hi to them. Regardless, it’s always fun to get to know someone new and
learn about them even though they might be complete strangers. Today, we’re introducing three of
the new students to join the class of 2019 and what they’re all about. If you see these guys in the
hallway, go and say hi to them!
Fabio Xie is a sophomore born in Lisbon, Portugal. The city is located right next to the water,
where you can admire the night lights across the beautiful city. After he was born, Fabio moved to
Porto, another city in Portugal, and lived there for seven years. Sadly, he had to leave the city that
raised him and subsequently moved to Shanghai. “It wasn't easy at first for a seven-year-old boy to
live in a new place, learn a new language and make new friends,” he said. But since he moved, he’s
been living in Shanghai and loving it. His parents stayed in Europe and came back to Shanghai
when Fabio graduated from middle school at Shanghai High School International Division.
From this sudden change of environment, a European country to an Asian county, Fabio’s realized
a lot of things, “I’ve learned how to be strong, how to do laundry and cook stuff, and I realized how
difficult and how important independence is.”
 |
| Fabio Xie |
him stay focused in life. He has a passion for sports like many SAS students, in particular, soccer.
His story with soccer has been one of love and hate. “In the beginning, I wasn’t a good soccer
player” he says, “in fact, I was often teased for my lack of skills.” This left Fabio with nothing but
his passion. He started training day and night. He woke up at 5 A.M. sharp to practice and trained
for three hours until 7 P.M. at night. Eventually, he made the team in his old school, SHSID, and it
drove him to further his passion even more. He’s very excited about the fact that Varsity teams at
SAS get to travel across the world. Fun fact, the soccer club in Fabio’s old town, Benfica, has the
same mascot as Shanghai American School, an eagle!
Fabio decided to come to SAS because it offered him more resources and opportunities to make
new friends. He thinks that SAS has a more open school system than his old school, allowing
students to enjoy many resources. “The system is more open because we can choose IB/AP/school
courses at the same time!”, he exclaims, “No other schools in Shanghai offer that.” On top of that,
his favorite thing at SAS right now is getting food from the kiosk.
Another new addition to our community is sophomore Alan Li. Alan was born in the Big Apple,
New York City, and he went to kindergarten in Canada. He came to Shanghai for third grade and
stayed until seventh grade before leaving for the United Kingdom. In the gloomy but beautiful
country of England, Alan was a music scholar and played on the varsity badminton team. This year,
he came back to China to study at Shanghai American School.
 |
| Alan Li |
in season three, and hoping to make the JV1 or Varsity team.
As a fan of Korean popular culture, Alan likes watching Korean drama shows and listening to KPop. “My favorite artist would probably be Yoona because she's a really good actress and singer”,
Alan says.
Whoever said money can’t buy happiness couldn't find good places to buy clothes at. Alan shops
at his favorite shops whenever he feels sad. This is one of his hobbies and it never fails to cheer him
up, “every time I think about shopping, going on a holiday, or an adventure, it gives me energy. I
don't know why. Probably because I get excited easily.”
Alan decided to come back to Shanghai from England and SAS “the best school [he] looked at.”
It’s very westernized and Alan likes this type of school, especially because the teachers sometimes
let you eat in their classes.
Ending on a fun note, we asked Alan what were two things he’d bring to an abandoned island.
He replied with “a gun in case I find myself in danger and a bed so I can rest!”
Last but not least, Myles Zhou is the last sophomore we’re introducing today. He’s been a native to
Shanghai for his whole life and just transferred to SAS from Shanghai High School International
Division.
 |
| Myles Zhou |
especially his girlfriend Rachel, who was at SHSID with him before he transferred here. “As a
normal couple, we fight. But we always end up fine. We can act like ourselves and be truthful to
each other. She makes me happy and I make her happy. I really appreciate the things she does for
me. Our relationship is simple, we go out shopping, we watch movies, and we have a lot of hotpot,”
he says about Rachel.
Self-deprecating humor is his strength as he tells us, “I don’t think I’m interesting.”
However, he has joined many extracurriculars activities despite only starting school around two
weeks. He is in the biology club, which incidentally is his favorite subject. AVA, a club that helps to
teach kids how to draw. The photography club, and also the Basking Club, where they help children
who suffer from autism.
One thing he enjoys about our community so far is the fact that “everyone is so energetic,” not to
mention the fact that there is a mall next to our school where we can hang out after school. One of
his favorite things at SAS is the sports program, and his favorite sports include soccer, table tennis,
and badminton. He is also planning on trying out for the soccer and badminton teams. Myles is also
a huge dog lover and loves playing with puppies and dogs.
Amy Liu
