After the leopard, what now?

After the excitement of a leopard having been sighted on the Hebron site, this week was relatively calm! If any school week is ever "calm!"

We had the visit of a group of 40 students from Stanes School, Wellington/Coonoor last Saturday. The first event was a friendly game of Basketball on the outdoor court with many spectators cheering on the home team. As there were not many supporters for Stanes, We also cheered on the Stanes team. The teams were fairly even in terms of skill and ability. Hebron was victorious.

Just after half-time, the spectators were divided into two groups for indoor activities. One group went to the GSM Hall for table games and the other group went to the Sports Hall for some relay races. Following regular school supper, a special supper was served in the main dining room for the "A"-Levels from Hebron and our guests. The catering department went all out for this special meal. There was a good mix of students at the tables and both groups of students expressed their pleasure with the meal. Following the meal we all went to the GSM Hall for some entertainment performed by both groups. That concluded the visit by the students and the staff from Stanes. The girls who had joined us from Selborne were bussed back and Lushington returned to a quiet Saturday night.

Sunday started early as Gigi was the "Lady on Duty" for the morning. The duties included saying grace at school breakfast, answering the phone in the kitchen, supervising the kitchen men as they prepared the noon meal and making sure the noon meal was served. I joined to assist at the noon meal by watching the students as they put their dirty plates in the bin. Any student who had not eaten their meal was asked to complete the meal and not to waste food! After the meal I became the "Man on Duty." My duties consisted of welcoming visitors to the school, keeping an eye on the kitchen men as they prepared supper, answering the phone, and making a list of supplies which were taken out of stores by the kitchen men. There were no visitors to welcome and there were no phone calls to answer. It was a quiet afternoon. Thank goodness for my Kobo reader as well as a book of puzzles.

The boys of the dorm have suggested to Gigi that savory snacks would be greatly appreciated. Gigi is still experimenting and has found a great use for our iPod. She is able to research recipes which are suitable for high-altitude cooking. She is having a great time and the boys sure appreciate her efforts. Last week we had a chocolate birthday cake with vanilla icing and strawberries as the main item. Mrs. George showed Gigi how to make Kerala toast - a great favourite of the boys.

On Monday,our day off, we went out for lunch with Virginia, one of the art teachers. We had gone to the Sidewalk Cafe before and that was our restaurant of choice again. The food is prepared for you and is served hot. We have had good eating experiences when we have gone there. This was no exception! The rest of the week had gone by and here we are getting ready for the weekend. There are French tests to correct tonight and a Dorm meeting for which i need to prepare. Tomorrow is "Lushington Day" and we will learn about it as we go along.