The long school summer holidays have come to a close and the children have returned to a life of learning! The new term openings have been staggered according to school and grade and the final groups, kindergarten and vocational college went back this past Monday. Our children, teenagers and young adults attend ten different schools in four locations, with some boarding but the majority living with us at Sarnelli House. The houses are quieter during the day and nobody is happier to see the school buses trundle away each morning than the long suffering house mothers, for whom the school holidays can be a bit testing!
The holidays saw lots of fun activities for the kids. They all took turns swimming, with each house, save the nursery getting four turns each working to play in the pool. While the older kids can look after themselves, our four German volunteers were at hand for supervision duties for three of the houses for younger kids. It is a tough gig, sitting in the Thai summer heat for a number of hours each day but they all did a great job. One of our volunteers helped to teach half a dozen little kids how to swim and they were so proud of themselves when they could swim a width of the pool unaided.
A local organisation devoted to youth development arranged a great sports day, with fun activities for all ages. The kids love these days as they get to spend the whole days playing with water, flour, balls and rope. There were eating contests, relays, and games that depended on teamwork. They were exhausted by the end of the day.
Water was also central to the annual Songkran festival, with three days of water fights and games. It is one of the highlights of the calendar for all the children, and this year was no exception. The mornings were spent playing in Pai Si Tong village, soaking each other, staff, passers-by, in fact anyone who came close to their location! A giant shared lunch was put on by each house in turn and then the older kids get on a school bus and moseyed into the city, where the whole of Nong Khai was out and about playing with water. It was tremendous fun and all done in the nicest possible spirits.
There were other activities as well. All the younger kids went to a zoo of sorts in Udon Thani, where they fed fish, saw some exotic animals and had a great day. The older teenagers spent a day on rafts on a nearby lake and had BBQs, swam and went on dinghies pulled by speedboats. A woman from the UK who has retired nearby put on picnic for two of the younger houses and had another little party in their dining room. Arts and crafts, badminton, football, music and colouring in also filled the children’s days. There was even time for a trip to the dentist for most of the kids.
We love keeping the kids happy and entertained during the holidays and depend a lot on our guests and volunteers, as well as donors who fund many of the activities.