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Miscellanea: An amazing Flower show
The 53rd flower show held at Seaview Park in Defence brought immense pleasure and fun for children of that area who had enjoyed a show of this magnitude and thrill for the first time in this part of the city, formerly such shows were held at the Polo Ground or at Bagh-i-Quaid.
Participation by school children in the “As you like it” section was keenly competed right from Montessori level to the primary level. The floral decoration by youngsters surprised the judges who did not expect deep insight and involvement by youngsters who had done very well in making decorations that could be kept for guests on the dining table.
The best part of the show was the freedom that the kids enjoyed. While the naval band played familiar Pakistani tunes, they romped and frolicked on the green lawn amid flowers and friends while the elders left them to have fun.
But the exhibits were delightful. A naval destroyer karsa bedecked with flowers on one side and dud-explosives on the other silently said, “we love peace but we know how to defend ourselves.”
The bonsai stall had an amazing collection of trees that grow 30-40 inches to merely a foot and half in height by a special technique and looked like a true miniature specimen of the original. Even the flowers and fruits seemed to be from Lilliput.
Cacti and succulents displayed by Fahim’s Society had an amazing array of the monks of the desert. Although Cacti bloom at night, some like the sun. They were in spectacular size, shapes and designs from all over the sub-tropical and tropical zones in the world. Many were huge with fearsome spines, while others had white fur resembling an old man. Many had no spines at all, the smooth shiny skins, looked as if they were made of plastic. One of the species resembled pebbles, visitors, were zooming on them to verify if they were live plants.
There were orchids from the far east — colourful, iridescent with superb combinations of forms and shades.
Defence Society must continue to hold such shows in summer and fall as well of flowers that grow in those seasons. One show a year is not enough.
Walk for a cause
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The Citizens Foundation (TCF) held a walk, ‘Ilmathon — turn strides into school’, to raise funds led by world number one fastbowler, Wasim Akram; Saqib Khan, a young marathon runner and former Olympian, Hassan Sardar. The cause of the walk was to raise funds to build schools in poor localities.The walk started at 7:30am on Sunday from Area 51 and continued for 6 km along the creek. The start-off point held a wonderful festive look with colourful banners and an impressive backdrop.
The children of the TCF schools were particularly thrilled to be able to meet and shake hands with Wasim Akram and other guests. The walk was a great success and at least 10,000 people participated.
The Citizens Foundation is a charitable organization that has built 140 schools in the lower income localities of cities across Pakistan. They provide education to thousands of students who would never have had access to any education if it had not been for TCF. Presently about 18,000 students are enrolled in these schools and 1,100 trained teachers offer a good educational experience to these children.
Jamil Khan
Essay competition highlighting the importance of space
To raise awareness amongst the youth of the important role of space in our daily life and to encourage them to imagine the future contributions of space for the well-being of society, EURISY and UNESCO are holding an international essay contest for students during the school year 2003-2004.
The theme of the competition is: “Space in our lives”
Students aged 11-15 years old are eligible to participate. Girls are also encouraged to participate.
The students are invited to describe, in their essay, how space improves and facilitates their daily lives and how space contributes to their social, economic and cultural development, as well as to give a futuristic description of the role of space in society in the coming years.
Contest rules
Language: The essay can be written in English, French or in any European language which can be translated by a Focal Point.
Submission of essays: Those willing to contest should email their submissions to National Focal Point, Pakistan (imran@unsgac.org)
Language: Urdu (either typed or scanned), English
Further details can be fetched from the following website: http://www.unesco.org/ science/earthsciences/essay_contest_20034.htm
Scuba diving course for children
Yusuf Ali, a qualified open water diver since 1979 after having graduated as Gold Diving Instructor from Dubai and with a refresher course from Institute of Oceanography from California has started a scuba diving course for adults and children in Karachi. Eighteen students have so far learnt the technique under his guidance from the Karachi Scuba Diving Centre.
There will be five academic sessions, five confined water sessions and five open water dives in four weeks. The students should have a Padi diver manual, snorkeling gear and must be above twelve years of age.
The course is designed to provide the student with the knowledge and skill needed to safely gain experience in the diving environment. Qualified children can dive up to 60 feet which is considered a safe limit.
Those interested can reach Mr Yusuf Ali on 5340595, 5871004, 5340528 or a e-mail dive_in_karachi@yahoo.com
Dr A.A. Quraishy
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