In September, Marcus came third at the Tasmanian state finals in the secondary section, a terrific result. He was then specially invited to the nationals - his Taroona High team were well outside the top 5 teams that qualified.
So at the end of November he and I went off to Melbourne for two nights. We stayed at the competition venue, Queens College. It's one of Melbourne Uni's residential colleges.
He had a great first day, winning 3 of his four games which put him in equal 6th. The next day was much tougher, and he won one of his three games, to finish equal 16th. He has two more years in this age group.
He has definitely come home determined to play more chess and study to improve his skills.
Here are some pics from in and around the college, the university, Carlton and Parkville.
 |
| The senior kids are mostly private school. Marcus always stands out at these things in his red Taroona gear. |
 |
| On day two while Marcus played I strolled through the nearby Melbourne Cemetery's Jewish section. |
 |
| At the airport someone had left this impressive leather helmet atop a bin near departures. |
