Holidays have just started.

Holidays have just started. With the last day of Janurary ended also puja which actually had brought us to Kargyak. This end of puja looked majestically and magically. Villagers went up to stupa in a sacredly looking rite, hanging themselves with thermos flasks full of hot tea and small plates full of all manner of goodies. They went there to bring back sacred texts that were read during the January puja. The stupa is by coincidence right opposite our school, and so the crowd came to visit us as well. Thanks to that we could try all the delicacies that closed puja (or should I be more precise : it was especially me who took a taste of everything for Radim had gone to the Ski village to heal a burnt man, nevetherless I put aside the best pieces also for him!). Even though there is no reason to think that puja demands a special diet, the end of puja seemed like a big celebration of the Nature´s gifts, particularly then the gift of chang :). As soon as the puja finished, several men from Kargyak set out for Ichar so that they could take one of the lastest opportunities from chadar to bring some beams to Kargyak and surrounding villages. These beams serve to renovation of their habitations. I thought that it would be at least one week expedition (concluding from our chadar experience), but to our big surprise, everyone came back in less than 3 days. And that´s very well, because afterwards the sky became overcast and for several following days it was so damp and cold that small children had to be brought to school on the back of their parents or older siblings and there fell enough snow to change way to school for children from Ski to at least very rough (about half a meter of snow fell). Therefore Norbu from 2nd class became the greatest hero in my eyes in that period of poorer school attendance caused by the adverse weather. When I asked Norbu if she had come from Ski that day (it was a day of quite terrible storm), she watched at me with a face that didn´t understand completely this stupid question, of course she came from Ski like she does every day...However when the school finished, she admitted that she had had to slog in the snow up to the waist. This is a real devotion and love to school! Another day arrived 2 other pupils from Ski, Sonam and Desal from 5th class. They couldn´t come the day before because of the weather, but as we were writing a test from General studies, they made an effort to come at least on Thuesday (way that normally takes about half an hour took them this day 3 hours). Both wrote the test very well. Today, from early morning, we are observing a violet-red taste of rising sun. The sun truly means life here. The sun is called nima by Zanskaris and nima isn´t missing at any picture drawn by children. Another essential part of each picture is always house, home, warmth of the family. On the majority of pictures, there are usually also a way and a flower. However it doesn´t mean that there is no place for modern eccentricity. For example Phuntsok from KG drew under his sun and flower a huge helicopter and he was able to explain to me (in Zanskari) about 15 minutes all special things concerning this helicopter :). I guess that Rangdol would surely understand Phuntsok more than well as that first one wanna become pilot. Well, back to the holidays. Those ones are again a spiritual affair. There is a buddhist celebration in Phuktal where is bound nearly whole Zanskar. I am really looking forward to vacation experience that children will share with us when they are back in the school again. We wish you a really nice time wherever you are :)

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