Today the Peace Run visited five lovely schools in Pokhara, each distinct and memorable in its own way:
1. Kantipur Academy
2. Baseline Academy
3. Bal Kalyan School
4. Oxford School
5. Social Public School
Apaguha, our Team Member from Czech Republic, uses his drone camera to take aerial photographs of the Run. He seldom appears in our reports because he is so focused on getting perfect shots for the Run!
The day started off in Kantipur Academy, where the ceremony was held in the open school field.
Wherever we went, the team was treated to spectacular views of the Himalayas.
Bikash, a Nepali member of the Team, runs the torch into Kantipur Academy.
Chinmoy Bishwas, from Bangladesh, holds the torch.
Some bystanders were puzzled to see runners with a peace torch wending their way around cows, dogs, and busy streets!
One of the students at Kantipur Academy, Rasina Garbuja, sang a beautiful song about Nepal. Her voice was very subtle and beautiful. Even though the international team members needed to have the song translated for them, it was a pleasure to listen to Rasina's voice.
Students had to rate skits performed by the runners with a 'thumbs up' if the skit represented peace, or a 'thumbs down' if the skit didn't represent peace. Here, we get a thumbs up!
Pierre and Homagni treat the students to their very amusing 'slow-motion' skit.
Prerana is carried off the field by Boijayanti and Shumbhani during the girls' skit for the students.
Meditating on the heart for peace...
Sujal Mehta, one of the younger members of the Peace Run, holds the torch.
At the end of the ceremony, the Principal of Kantipur Academy expressed his gratitude to the Peace Run for bringing the school a boost of peace. The Peace Run thanks Kantipur Academy for welcoming us to their school!
Views of Pokhara between schools.
Runners from Baseline Academy greeted us before our arrival and ran into the school with us...
Where we were greeted with fresh flowers and smiles.
A student at Baseline Academy showcases her artwork on peace.
Peace Runners hold a row of Nepali flags at the ceremony.
The students eagerly welcomed the Peace Run.
The Coordinator from Baseline Academy, Mr. Ram Prasad Timilsena, introduces the Peace Run.
Runners were welcomed in the traditional Nepali way: tika on the forehead and with khata, a ceremonial scarf.
Madhabi Shreshtha (not pictured), a student from Baseline Academy, spoke very inspiringly about the importance of peace in our world, quoting from Nelson Mandela’s famous saying, “An eye for an eye will leave the whole world blind.”
Shumbhani from Guatemala hands Mr. Ram Prasad Timilsena a Certificate of Appreciation.
We then had a quick run down the road to Bal Kalyan School.
Runners from Baseline Academy joined us on the short run over to Bal Kalyan.
Rows of students greeted us at the entrance with 'Namaste.'
A student participates in the Peace Run Team country guessing game.
Bal Kalyan School was third on our route.
Students take a moment to hold the torch.
Atul from India is all smiles.
Stacey, our Team member from New Zealand, presents Bal Kalyan School with a painting by Sri Chinmoy, the founder of the Peace Run, entitled "World Harmony."
Homagni is all smiles as the Peace Runners depart Bal Kalyan.
Afterwards, it was off to Oxford School!
Krishna, Nepali Peace Run Coordinator, opens the ceremony.
The artwork from Oxford School was incredible. One of the teachers informed us that no one individual student worked on each painting, but a group of students had to collaborate on each one, which made the final product all the more remarkable.
Roshani Tiwari, a student, spoke about the importance of peace: if we don’t have peace inside ourselves, we won’t be able to give it to others.
The Peace Run team practices the "World Harmony Run" song with students.
For our last school of the day, we were greeted by students at Social Public School several kilometers before we ran into the school.
We were greeted by over 900 eager and excited students! The energy in the air was electric. It was so much fun!
Prerana, Stacey, and Uddyogini enjoy the last ceremony of the day.
The Peace Run team enjoys some performances.
The Peace Run was treated to a lovely cultural dance by the students
Mr. Prem Poudel (not pictured) is a driver from Pokhara who Sweta, our Team Captain, met several months ago while preparing for the Nepal Peace Run. He very kindly offered to help the Peace Run, and took two days off from work to serve as our guide, taking us from school to school. We are so grateful to Prem for his help. We couldn't have visited so many schools without him!
And so this busy and fulfilling day comes to an end...A big thank you to all the great schools that welcomed us with their great big smiles and open hearts!
