THE
PROMPTS FOR THE MONTH
FRIDAY 1st
YELLOW: It's been a tough week. I should have got this lovely yellow book out
and dipped into its pages earlier
SATURDAY 2nd LOOKING
DOWN: on my favourite winter weather dinner - roasted veggies straight out of
the oven
SUNDAY 3rd
STARTS WITH A: Asparagus - in season and organic at the Centennial Farmers
Market in Thimphu today
MONDAY 4th
COOL: These former students have all the moves and are way cool. We saw them
perform in the Clock Tower Square twice on the weekend for the launch of 4G
mobile services in Thimphu
TUESDAY 5th
THANK YOU: One way of saying "Thank you" in a school community is to
display the efforts, achievements and memorable moments of many on the noticeboard
for all to see
WEDNESDAY 6th
A BUILDING: Not just a building but THE most iconic building in all Bhutan.
Tiger's Nest is the number one tourist attraction and a spectacularly
impressive structure clinging to the rock face. It is a challenging and
somewhat daunting walk to get there but the views and building more than reward
your efforts
THURSDAY 7th
I SAT HERE: in the comfy seat for 20 minutes or so just playing on my phone
before the reality of research to do and lessons to prep once again took over
my entire evening. Luckily Ian cooks dinner most nights or I wouldn't even eat.
Teaching in a nutshell
FRIDAY 8th
PAIR: The Druk School logo consists of a pair of dragons and is emblazoned on
many school items including the wall of the playground where I captured this
shot at lunch time. Druk means dragon by the way
SATURDAY 9th
I FOUND THIS: Between the parent -teacher interviews for class X students this
morning at school, I found the time, energy, inspiration and resources to make
these ‘manipulatives’ to teach the "Kindle the Flame" community adult
literacy class tomorrow (Yes that is Sunday) making our usual 5 and a half day
working week a 6 and a half day one this week!!!! Lucky it's not every week!
SUNDAY 10th
FRAGRANT: incense
MONDAY 11th
NATURAL: A sun halo is a natural phenomenon I have only ever seen here in
Bhutan though I know they occur elsewhere. They are incredibly auspicious and I
love this shot taken outside my classroom door in Samtengang in 2014
TUESDAY 12th
HOLE: Lately this delicious breakfast treat with the hole in the middle has
become our favourite breakfast. We can justify our growing addiction knowing
that "Big Bakery" is one of the few sheltered employment options for
people with disabilities in this kingdom.
WEDNESDAY 13th
CARD: I love to buy real greeting cards preferably handmade and especially when
we travel. It encourages me to write on them and send them snail mail or give
them away. This is part of the current collection spanning Tanzania,
Vietnam, Australia and Bhutan of course
THURSDAY 14th
FRESH: The fresh young faces of some of my class 6 students checking out photos
of their American pen pals in Nebraska today in English period. Thanks to
budding photographer Toffy for taking the shot on my phone
FRIDAY 15th
A LOGO: Smateria logo
is simple and effective. It is a small community based
group from Cambodia and also the products are made from recycled materials. My
up cycled phone case made from mosquito nets among other things
SATURDAY 16th
GLASS: In the spirit of Dry July we decided to attempt Arid April so the glass
is full of trail mix I made this morning to take to the Rhododendron Festival.
Cheers...
SUNDAY 17th
HOME MADE: mushroom, asparagus, spinach and tomato frittata for our lunch boxes
this week. Perfect Sunday night chore and a brilliant match with roasted veggie
salad that has recently become a staple
MONDAY 18th
OPEN: We went to the rhododendron festival on Saturday and despite seeing
plenty of trees in bloom on the way there, this tiny specimen was one of the
few flowers that was actually open in the gardens. It was about the size of my
thumbnail. I had no idea there were so many varieties or that they could be so
tiny
TUESDAY 19th
MY CITY: I have had the privilege to call very many places in different
countries home but it still seems the greatest blessing to be able to call
Thimphu "my city". Move over Adelaide, Taiyuan, Hiroshima, Changzhou,
Xiaguan, Nakhon Pathon, and Arusha, Thimphu is it for the time being ...
WEDNESDAY 20th
ENTRANCE: Now that the lock and hasp for this little door to the water powered
prayer wheel has gone west, the entrance door flaps open and bangs in the
breeze. Our local environs are full of such lovely treasures waiting to be
discovered on our after school walks
THURSDAY 21st
CUT: we have recently discovered that many salad greens and lettuces can be cut
and will regrow fresh leaves if placed in water making a simple kitchen window
garden
FRIDAY 22nd
EARTH: an archive shot as I have been trapped indoors all day. The earthly
delights of an outdoor bath heated with hot stones from the fireplace. Squeals
of fun and laughter filled the air as we approached this farmhouse near
Bartsham in Trashigang
SATURDAY 23rd
ARROW: The national game of Bhutan is archery and it is played with both
compound and traditional bamboo bows. This is after the senior boys high school
competition and the scoring arrows are all lined up against the target
SUNDAY 24th
MY FAVOURITE FOOD: I have a lot of favourite foods but when my Bhutanese fave
(momos) wasn't available downtown today I was inspired to come home and make my
fave Japanese Food instead. Whatever is difficult to acquire seems to become my
fave food....
MONDAY 25th
OUT OF THE BOX: We have had this HD pocket projector for several years now and
it has been in and out of the box a zillion times and survived journeys in our
luggage across Asia and to Africa because of the best packaging and the
original box. It was brought for classroom use but it has also proved to be a
real boon for home entertainment too. It is photographed with the phone to show
just how compact and convenient it is.
TUESDAY 26th
THE SKY: Intense colours as the sky finally gives the season a chance to shine.
No more winter grey skies here in Thimphu
WEDNESDAY 27th
MESSY: I don't really do messy. I'm pretty good at keeping it tidy and lucky
for me Ian is good at keeping it clean so it works well as a combo. The pinup
board I made from a shopping bag and the cardboard from our new fridge in 2014
is about as close as it gets to messy. Lots of additions and no subtractions
THURSDAY
28th SEASON: It can't really make up its mind what season it is here
currently. It's cool in the mornings, bright and sunny in the early afternoon
and often wet later. I have used all these accessories today. The umbrella for
both sun protection during the concert practice on the grounds and rain
protection walking home!! The monsoon is on its way
FRIDAY 29th
MAN MADE: These awesome structures called "Dzongs" are centuries old,
located in incredibly precipitous locations and scattered all over Bhutan; -
the defence fortresses of ancient times still functioning as monastic and
administrative centres today. This is one of my favourites the Trashigang
District Dzong
SATURDAY 30th
BOOK: This is just about my all time favourite children's book. I have left
copies in several countries and schools and love introducing it to children
with no experience of Japanese culture and teaching them how to make cranes. My
first ever home class in Bhutan was the first group of Bhutanese students to
send a thousand paper cranes to Japan and got a letter from the major to prove
it
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