Page 127 - sandesh

worship with beautiful carvings and halls around it. The main bakery
had eight ovens just like Indian tandoors with beautiful mosaic work
around it. The most amazing was the public bath with separate men’s
and women’s rooms and a central water heating & ventilation facility.
The baths had beautiful paintings done on the walls which have been
erased thought the ages but it was amazing to see how advanced
science and construction was even in 78A.D. The guide told us many
touching tales of people who tried to escape unsuccessfully. I even saw
a preserved body of a woman covered in ash, it looked as though the
body was covered in hard cement. My favourite place was ‘the forum’
which had beautiful huge statues and overlooked the majestic Mount
Vesuvius which looked quiet and harmless but was responsible of taking
thousands of lives on a single day.
After the tour of the city, we climbed up the Mount Vesuvius and
saw the beauty of the Amalfi coast and the Napoli region of Italy. On
the top of the mountain, nearly 2000 metres above sea level, we saw
the crater of the volcano which was huge and round. Although it is
quiet, it lets out small traces of smoke now and then, which reminded
me of the sad day in the history of such a beautiful town.
Harjaap Singh Kohli, P5 F
uring the summer vacation, our family decided to visit
Naukuchiatal which is at a 2 hour drive from Nainital.
It’s a beautiful, quiet town with no hustle bustle of the
Dholiday crowd. We went by the Shatabdi train and reached
Kathgodam. We hired an Innova and had corn on the cob on the way.
The resort in which we stayed had an excellent play area with swings
for children as well as an indoor activity room. But the cottages were
quite far from each other and that lent an eerie feeling to the entire
place! Naukuchiatal is named so because at one time it had nine lakes
in nine corners. But now, some lakes have dried up. We went for
boating in all of them. On one of the days, we went for boating in
Naini Lake which is situated in Nainital. Unlike Naukuchiatal, Nainital
was extremely crowded. We also did horse riding there. I bought
beautiful handmade candles from Mall Road. Next day, our group
decided to go for paragliding. Initially I was a little reluctant but when
my father insisted, I decided to go for it. And what fun it was! It was
extremely thrilling to see them entire town from a height. After four
days of fun and masti, our holiday came to an end.
Mukund Beriwal, P4 B
My Trip to Maldives
I I
went to Maldives for my summer vacation. It is a
very beautiful place. We lived on an island. I reached
the island in a seaplane and then a speed boat. I did
swimming, snorkeling, fishing and lots of other water
sports. I met people from different parts of the world and
clicked selfies with them. It was a very adventurous and
fun trip.
Devaryya Bansal, P2 H
126 Sandesh 2016-17, Volume 1
My Gateway to South India- Chennai
and Puducherry
or the last few years, my family had been planning to revisit
the ultra fascinating South India. When my grandfather asked
me to accompany him to the city of Chennai, I immediately
Fpacked my clothes and was happy to go! When we reached
Chennai, my grandfather got two passes to watch a tennis match
where I witnessed the magic of the great tennis player, Leander
Paes. He gave me an autographed ball and told me to try my best in
whatever I choose to do if I wanted to be like him. I went
to sleep late showing my family my favorite back hand
and fore hand shots. In the morning, we ate a delicious
South Indian breakfast and then started for Puducherry
by car. On the way, we stopped at Dakshina Chitra, a
living museum dedicated to South Indian heritage and
culture. Living museums can be so much fun! We saw the
Siddhi Goma dancers who had originally come from Africa
but have now settled in Karnataka. I also made origami
sculpture with recycled paper while my sister Disha
painted clay toys. When we resumed our journey, suddenly
my grandfather saw miles and miles of white fields where
salt was being made. I didn’t know our table salt comes
from evaporating seawater on the bed of the earth curst.
In Puducherry, we stayed in an art gallery that also
functioned as a guesthouse. At night, we went to the beach
and ate seafood in a restaurant called ‘Sea Gull’ with lots
of cool breeze and airy terraces. Every evening, we went to see South
Indian classical dance performances. I admired their makeup and exotic
costumes. Their duet dancing was well timed with well composed
movements. Dancers used their hand mudras and facial expression
as a unique language, without speaking at all. Finally, before we left
for Delhi, we went to see a crocodile farm near Chennai where they
also keep snakes and collect their venom for making medicines. We
saw many species of crocodiles and reptiles. There were many cobras
and one big green and sleepy anaconda. After such an interesting
experience, I am ready to explore more of our great country and learn
about Indian heritage and culture.
Yadu Nandan Sahu, P4 C
My Trip to Mcleodganj
went to Mcleodganj in the summer holidays. It is a hill
station in the state of Himachal Pradesh. The hills there
are called the Dhauladhar ranges. They are a part of the
Himalayas. When I was travelling to Mcleodganj with
my parents and dadi, we stopped at a place called Murthal
to eat parathas. We then drove to Chandigarh and stayed
in a hotel there for one night. We woke up early morning
Sandesh 2016-17, Volume 1 127