7 March, Saturday. PICNIC DAY.

09.00 outside on my balcony. The temperature is rising day by day, the newspaper is saying 28-30 degrees. Making good progress with the pictures.
11.30 Collect my gurtha, to the room to change. It feels good, the kids will love it!

Kay looks fantastic in her bright blue gurtha. At 13.00 we arrive at the home, where smart dressed children are waiting for us. The food and drinks standing packed and ready to go to the park. Some kids ask me if we can go – with the pedalo’s- to the beach on the other side of the lake. At my question how much that will cost they say Rs 1.200. Although it is very tempting to say Okay, I say NO, sorry, too expensive. Their reaction? Not begging, no pleading, no please. Just their funny shaking of their heads, a big smile and Okay!
The funny shaking of their heads is moving their head, bending it with their ears towards their shoulders. So not a no, moving your chin to your shoulder, but it can easily confuse you. It sometimes gives the impression of shaking no, but the smal difference makes it an okay).
And they simply continue with what they were doing, just as happy as before, even though something they asked for was refused.

Finally everybody ready and all packed, bags, balls, in line on our way to the park.
We are not going to the part of the lakeside where we usually go to play.
Today is a special day, PICNIC day, so we walk a little further down the road, where on the parkground are some temples and goals set up to play football.

Laying out the plastic to sit on and unloading the bags for our ‘dry’ picnic. A big pile of chips, crispies, biscuits, sweet popcorn, apples, banana and toastbread with a big pot of honey, bottles of cola, sprite and fanta next to the water bottles.

With perfect teamwork we fix the honey sandwiches, hand them out together with a cup of softdrink. Every body enjoying tastefully the treat of change of food, no dal baath picnic: dry picnic.
A banana each and slowly one by one they wander of to play football, volleyball or a walk to the temples.

I Join Promrat, Sudeep and some other kids for the walk to the temples. Kay, not feeling so good today (I am afraid I have a cold coming up and I am soooo tired) stays behind together with Gangka.

The temple is dedicated to Shiva, Goddess of the Universe (so my favourite) and Sudeep again explaines me about it, the traditions, the culture. Asks me about my religion. I tell him a bit about our church, but also try to explain to him that I personally do believe, but not in a special type of religion. I believe there is something and I prefer to name it the Universe. I do not ‘worship’ one special God, whether in the form of the Sun, a Goddess, Jesus, but I explain to him that I do love the sun for the warmth and energy it gives me. I do love the moon and the stars. I tell him that when I am at home almost every night I look up to the sky and I talk to the stars. Looking at the stars I never feel lonely.
That star is you, I think of you and wish you good night. The three stars in line are me and my sisters. I look at them and they are with me. This way I can talk with any one I want to talk to at that moment and they are with me.
So close and yet so far. I also say to him that like the stars (you, my father, my mother, my sisters, my friends, the children) all of you are every evening with me, but also in daytime everyone is always with me, where ever I go, because they are in my heart. So close.

I think he understood very well and with a big smile he said: from now on I go outside every evening, pick a star for you and wish you good night. Both of us happy with this we quietly walk back to the others.
A quick Thank you and Sudeep joins the others in their games.

I sit down with Kay. We are getting closer, good friends every day more, getting to know each other better. She urges me to go to Kenya. You have to go, you will love it. My dad lives in a remote area, you sit on the floor, no electricity, no luxury, but true LIFE, nature, donkeys, don’t ask what is on your plate, just eat it, it will taste delicous and it is healthy.

I would love to go, but – where do I find the time to go. I need all my time to save money for my next trip to Nepal again, to earn the money for the daily expenses, the rent, the food, some clothes.
Who knows, one day, I will have the finances and the time to go to Kenya AND Nepal.

She tells me that she got ‘sponsored’ for her traveling this year, but then – after visiting her grandparents who live in Cyprus, she also has to go back home, to London, where her mum lives to find a job to earn money for her next travel.
When she mentions Cyprus I say to her that it is so close to Crete, I want her to come and visit me, to stay for a while with me. Of course, she can sleep in my house. She can do what she wants, we will meet at breakfast and in the evening for a nightcap, to share our daily experiences. I only will give her the time I need the bathroom to get ready for work, the rest of the time is her time and my time. Sometimes we go out for dinner and a drink together, we can meet on the beach, but for the rest she is free to go and do what she wants and I am free to go to work or to do what I want or have to do.

Both of us happy with this agreement she continues saying that she hopes to find a job somewhere at a diving centre or anything to do with nature.
Fantastic I say! Then your stay in Elounda is almost a set deal. Write an application letter, tell about yourself, your experience of diving (divemaster, instructor) and I will pass your application on to Maria and Lucky of the Blue Dolphin dive Centre in ………..Elounda!
You even will be living in a shared appartment with the rest of the staff in the same building as my appartment, I live on the first floor. We will be neighbours.
A big hug,happy with the outcome of this conversation.

Time for peeling the apples, putting biscuits, popcorn, chips on plates to have them passed around.

Around 17.00 all bellies full, we still have biscuits in closed packs, we will safe them for another day to eat them at teatime. Time to walk back to the home and for us time to walk back to H.E., with all the Thank you, hugs and kisses first from the tired, happy children.

The power is on, so time to hit the shower to wash the dirt and honey and stickey hands from the softdrinks of our body and gurtha. Meet again after a little rest – skipping the Dal Baath tonight, with our full bellies - to go to Busy Bee for a Saturday Evening out and to check out more details about the moterbike course for 1 day (learn how to ride in one day for Euro 45) and the guided tours and renting a bike (A royal Enfield!). for 10 Euro a day.
A friend of Kay is coming to join her after she has finished her volunteering period and she would love to show her friend Nepal on a moterbike.
I had that in mind before I came out, but did not find the time to do it. But I want to get more information about this offer, because I think it will be a great item to add it as an option for the group(s) I hope to bring out next year.

We had to cancel Busy Bee, Kay was feeling worse and to be honest also I had no problem what so ever to stay in my room after this beautiful sunny day in the park.

I ordered Chow Mi from the restaurant again, dinner by candlelight on my balcony – this time with a fork, a lot more easier than trying to use chop sticks.

I installed myself in bed, relaxing, reliving the day, enjoying a satisfied mind, soul and body when to my surprise the electricity came back on.

By 01.00 I finished emails and updates on the USB stick, so tomorrow I can send it. Now really being tired, happy with all the events today I was soon in dreamland for a healthy, solid sleep.

Suba Rathri.