301. My book - release photos.

300. My Book Release Function.

Today was September 30, 2016.  Today, my second translated book, ‘Sweet Stories for Tiny Tots’ was going to be released.  For the book release function, my grandparents have also come from our native.  So, the morning session was a discussion between the people who were going to get the awards in the evening and the people.  For it, I wore a pink lehanga.  It was from 10:00am to 12:00pm.  By the time it was 11:00, my sister got bored and she went home with my father.  At 12:00pm, when it finished, I was introduced to writers and translators.  We had lunch there and came home for changing our dresses.  I wore a white – and – pink top and skirt.  The program was from 5:30pm to 9:00pm.  We went there at 5:00pm.  Then all our relatives and friends came for the function.  They called the Chief Guest, the people who were getting the awards, the aunty whose book was also going to be released and me to the stage.  First itself, my book was released.  The person who was receiving it was a translator named Shanta Dutt.  Then, her book was released.  Then, one by one, the people got their awards.  Then, the people who organized the awards got special awards and at last, the people who released their books, that is, me and Shanta Dutt aunty also got special awards.  I even got cash prize and an award from the publication which published my book.  Then, when it was time to go home, everybody came and introduced themselves to me and congratulated me.  Even my friends and relatives congratulated.  Then we ate dinner in a hotel and went home.  It was a very good experience.  All these had inspired me to write and translate more books.

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299. Basketball zonal level.

The date was August 5^th, the day of basketball zonal level.  I and my friend were among the main five players.  We were in the juniors’ category.  We were practicing hard for the zonal level from two weeks before the date.  Four different schools were there, Vidyodaya matriculation academy (VMA), Vidyodaya girls’ higher secondary school (VGHSS), Lady Andal and Good Shepherd.  We were playing on behalf of VMA as it was our school.  Three schools, VMA, Lady Andal and Good Shepherd were wearing red jerseys.  Our school players were wearing white or any other color shorts.  I was wearing red shorts.  Then I realized that players from Good Shepherd were also wearing my same shorts.  I thought that they will get confused and will throw the ball to me during the game, but unfortunately, they were not our opponents.  

Our school did not have super – senior category.  So, while VGHSS was playing with Good Shepherd, players from our school and VGHSS cheered for them.  And at last, VGHSS won the match.  Crescent school came for only super – seniors’ category as our school did not have it.  They played with Lady Andal and Lady Andal was the school which won the match.  

Next was the seniors’ category.  While they were playing with VGHSS, we did not watch the game and were practicing for our category, which was next.  We were competing against Lady Andal!!  We started playing.  One of the five players was standing simply and was not at all playing.  The three players who were playing very well were me, two girls named Janani, the team leader and Yuvashree.  

Once, my friend got the ball.  When a girl from the other team asked for it, she simply gave it.  Everybody started scolding her.  Then again, she got the ball and went to put in the wrong basket!  Thank God, the ball did not go in.  The PET teacher started shouting at her.  But, at last, guess who won??  Lady Andal! They put 7 baskets but we put only one.  

Janani started to cry.  Everybody consoled her.  Then, our school took the resolution that for the next zonal, we will practice really hard and win to go for the district level.  But, participation is important, isn’t it?  And thus, it was a great experience for me!! 

                                            

                                                              

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298. Trip to Chokhi Dhani.

The date was 11^th August, Thursday.  It was a very special day.  We were going for our trip on that day.  We were going to Chokhi Dhani.  That was a place of Rajasthani culture.  It was at Sri Perumbuthur.  We went to our school at 7:30 am.  It was a little difficult to wake up that early, but I managed to do it.  We started from our school at 8:00 am. 

Songs were put in the bus and we all were dancing.  That time, a girl fell down and was hurt.  So, the bus was stopped for some time to take her to the hospital.  That time also we were dancing.  We reached there at 10 am.  My partner was a girl called G.L.Varsheni. 

When we reached there, a Rajasthani girl kept bindhi for all of us.  There were chats, sweets and lemonades given for us.  Then we saw the big pool, were there was boating.  The teachers did not allow us to go.  Then we went into a cave, where in the middle was a statue of Sai Baba.  Then, we went on a maze, where there was a small open – air building, where there was an entrance, an exit and many closed areas.  We struggled and somehow got out of the maze.  I put on my sunglasses and cap as it was very sunny.

Then, a woman, dressed in black lehanga, who had many pots on her head, started dancing.  She amazed us.  First, she tapped her legs on tumblers, balancing very well.  Then, she tapped her legs on the blunt side of iron nails.  She also tapped on the blunt side of two knives.  And at last, she tapped her legs on pieces of glass!!  But, not a single drop of blood came from her legs.  After that, she kept two blades on a tumbler.  She then bent backwards and took them in both her eyes.  Everybody got nervous.  But, she coolly took them out from her eyes.  Everybody applauded.  

We went to the place where they sold handicrafts and cool drinks.  There was a cool drink called ice – gola.  It was a small cup of ice.  The ice was dipped into any flavor.  There was a big crowd in front of the shop, but no one bought it.  I was the first to buy.  When I tasted mango flavor, it was very nice.  The crowd saw me tasting it and all of them rushed to buy the ice – gola.  Me and my friend played games like basketball, bowling, tumbler – hitting, balloon – shooting, archery, etc.

 

Then we went for putting mehandi.  There were two women, who were putting mehandi.  They were putting beautifully.  I put my mehandi and went to join my friends, who were playing snakes and ladders, in which there was a small ground painted like the board of the game and a dice made of cushion.  We started playing.  We enjoyed it.

Then, it was time for lunch.  After lunch, the teachers made us go for the camel ride, three at a time.  I was sitting in the front, Varsheni in the middle and another girl in the back.  The camel started to go.  It shook.  We all became scared and screamed.  We went one round and got down.  It was an enjoyable experience. 

Then, our lunch group, which consisted of five girls, started playing in the maze, three runners and two catchers.  Sometimes, I got separated from the rest of them.  By the time they find me, another girl will get separated.  We enjoyed very, very well.  Then, we played in the slide.  When I and one of my friends, Varsha, went, we did not have any problems.  When I went with another friend also, it was very nice.  But when I went with a fat friend of mine, she occupied all the space and I did not get any space, and while sliding down also, the hot slide scratched my right sock and it tore.  Then we swinged four at a time, on the big swing. 

Ice water was given by the people of Chokhi Dhani.  As it was very hot, I and my friends poured it own our faces.

The time came for leaving.  That time, I bought kulfi.  It was very tasty.  It did not taste like ordinary kulfi.  Then, as a gift, the people gave us small pots, which smashed and broke for most of us while coming in the bus.  It was a very enjoyable trip.  

                                          

Chokhi Dhani!!

Welcoming...

                        The place where the girl put the bindhis!!

The interior...

                                              Resting place...

Slanting bridge...

                                 Cottages of Rajasthani people...

The woman who danced with the pots...

                                            Camel riding!!!

                                    The people of the place...

                                           Mehandi delight...!!

                                                 Archery...

                                       Balloon - shooting...

Pool where there is boating.

The pool...

                                         The girl keeping bindhis...

The wonderful maze...!

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297. Journey to the lion's den.

In this book, Thea Stilton works as a professor in a Mouseford Academy and gives a project about photo essay to the students.  For that, the five Thea sisters – Colette, Nicky, Pamela, Paulina and Violet, go to a wildlife reserve in Africa.  There was a lion cub named Mosi and his mother Leah.  The Thea sisters’ guide, Malik showed them around.  The Thea sisters loved Mosi and took great care of him.  But, one day, Mosi fell down a pit and got hurt in his leg.  They took him to the vet.  He put a bandage around Mosi’s leg and set him in a large cage with food and water.  There was a mouse named Fadhili who was cunning and wanted to steal Mosi.  He was the one who set the pit.  He wanted to steal Mosi and give it to two other cunning people, Edgar van Lupin and Ludmilla van Lupin.  He also mixed sleeping pills in Mosi’s food.  When Mosi was in deep sleep, he opened the cage and stole him.  He wanted to sell him to people of different countries and earn money.  So, when the Thea Sisters seach for Mosi, they also fall inside the pit and they come to know about Fadhili’s cunningness.  So, they all make a plan and save Mosi, giving him back to his mother.  This was a nice book and I liked it.

                                      

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296. The BFG

This was a nice book written by Roald Dahl.  There was a giant called BFG.  He was a dream – blower, who blows dreams through a long trumpet into the bedrooms of children.  There was an orphan called Sophie.  One day, when she could not sleep well and was awake, she spotted this giant who was 24 feet tall, blowing dreams into the bedrooms.  The giant, who also noticed Sophie watching him, took her in his huge hands and walked away to Giant country, where nine other human – eating giants lived.  But the BFG was not a human – eating giant, he was a BIG FRIENDLY GIANT.  The BFG collected dreams from a place called Dreamland and kept each dream in thousands and thousands of jars.  His diet was Snozzcumbers, a disgusting vegetable and a sweet, tasty drink.  One night, when the other giants, Fleshlumpeater, Bloodbottler, Meathugger, Childchewer, Butcher Boy, etc. went to hunt poor little boys and girls, Sophie could not bear it and asked the BFG to do something.  He was helpless, so Sophie herself thought of an idea.  She wanted to tell about it to the Queen of England, as the giants went to England to hunt.  But how could she tell?  She had a plan.  She thought of conveying the message through dreams.  She asked the BFG to mix dreams about the Queen, the giants, the little children, Sophie sitting on the window sill of the Queen’s bedroom and BFG himself. He mixed the dreams and they set off to England with the dreams.  BFG blew it in the bedroom of the Queen around midnight and Sophie waited in the window sill.  In the morning, when the queen’s maid opened the curtains, Sophie jumped into the bedroom and narrated the story of the giants killing the children like in the dream.  So, the queen made arrangements and soldiers were sent to Giant country where the giants where sleeping.  They all capture the giants, tie them to helicopters and fly back to England.  There was a prison which was 500 feet deep and several feet high built to imprison the giants.  It was done and Sophie and BFG lived in England happily ever after.

                                       

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295. The 3 mistakes of my life.

This is the first time I am reading Chetan Bhagat’s book.  This book was about a boy named Govind who made three major mistakes in his life and because of depression, ate so many sleeping pills and was admitted ia a hospital.  He e – mailed to Chetan Bhagat, who was in Singapore about this and he came in the next flight to India.  This book was a mixture of cricket, business, religion, and of course, friendship.  Govind, his friends Ishaan and Omi started a cricket shop.  Many children come and buy cricket bats and balls.  Then, while running the sports shop, Ishaan coaches the children cricket and Govind, who was a maths expert, taught maths to students.  After a few days, they come to know about Ali, a 12 – year – old boy who always hits sixes in cricket, but after a few balls, his head aches.  So, Ishaan teaches him cricket and makes him improve his stamina.  Then, an Australian named Fred calls them to Australia to give Ali special coaching for a week.  They go to Australia and Ali gets special coaching and all of them return to India.  After a few months, there was a war between the Hindu party and the Muslim party.  Omi’s uncle Bittoo, who was a devotee of Hindu Gods, killed Ali’s father and stepmother and searched for Ali.  Omi, knowing this, hid Ali in a secret room.  But, Bittoo finds him and tries to kill him with his trishul.  But, Omi dies when he tries to defend Ali as the trishul pierces through his body.  After that, Ishaan and Govind try and kill Bittoo and they bring peace between Hindus and Muslims.  This was a very nice book.