A forest in the heart of Patan

A forest in the heart of Patan
by Shila Shrestha

We always do music in the mornings. Today Dhana Sir came to teach us, he comes on Mondays and Fridays. His class started at 9:00 and ended at 10:00. While we were playing music, the kids here for Winter Adventures ate lunch. They were going outdoors. I also had to go because I can take pictures and also help out with fun and hiking. 

I stopped the game they were playing and told them to get in the van as I ate lunch. All the kids were not going, school kids have to study hard and they do a lot of hiking anyways. We sat in the van. Little Zoya sat on my lap. She is so little, only 14 months. 

We reached the forest, Zoya was sleeping but woke up fast. Her mum carried her for a bit so she wouldn't cry. We climbed the stairs. They were long. I took some pictures of everyone. We walked and Zoya also walked. She was very good.

The forest was made up of pine trees. The trees were very tall and beautiful. Even though this is mid-winter, there were a lot of greenery. After we got to the top, we played games. They loved to sing and play ring-a-ring-a-roses. They had lots of fun falling on the floor. Then they wanted to play another game. The game was Ice and Water. They played for a long time and then. They played hide and seek. It was very nice.

Usually, when there are a lot of older kids we take on challenging hikes. This time around there were mostly three and four year olds. After playing in the grass in the big clearing, we were so tired so we sat on the bench. All the kids drank water. Then they felt energetic again and said they wanted to run so they ran and ran and again they were so tired. We all drank water so our mouth was not dry. 

Then Sabita didi and I took them on a hike. We went down and climbed up the grassy uphill. I saw the trees, the city below us, the green grass of the forest floor and I loved taking photos of the children. It was now time to go. What a wonderful afternoon it had been!