I collected the parcel from the post office today.
We’ll reveal more …Of what’s in these wonderbly books once Kaveri receives her presents.
The officers tried their best but they were unable to delete the tax charges.
It was over 30 U.K. pounds or 3,000 rupees for two books. That’s the equivalent of what we pay for over a month of Kaveri’s education AND the cost of one of the very special personalised books.
Manjula complained about me filling the house with art and books —- and we were running out of space.
She decided that when I was seventy-five (that’s right, i’m —not yet) and stopped leading MYcycle tours (big assumption there) we’d open the house as a library.
In her memory I closed one of the bedrooms to reopen it as ‘Manjula’s Library’
Just one of the bookcases
There’s now hundreds of fiction and non-fiction books in English, including those about education, India, history, philosophy, for adults and children.
It’s an idiosyncratic mix already used by our guests, the members of ‘reflective space’ and the time I spend with young people.
My own favourites are the picture books.
It changes by the day ….
… check out the new arrivals.
Yes, it’s not JUST books, we now have a selection of cool badges.
Me and the dogs sorting out the children’s section of the library.
Fact is Lucie has scarpered. Nowhere to be seen, but frankly , it’s no loss as she can’t read anyway.
Billet-Doux is present, after a fashion.
Books are slowly finding their way to the shelves.
Manjula’s Sari’s protect the books from the get-everywhere dust.
Thank you to Judith Gilliland of the USA for the donation of the books you authored which started our library years ago.
I’ve now sorted over 150 young children’s books but I don’t agree with that classification as they’re for ALL ages. There’s many others: novels, india, management, thinking, politics, history, philosophy, uncategorisable for another day.
Lucie appears at the precise moment the work is over.
Meanwhile, it’s catching, Sowbaghya doing her own thing.
Mysore BnB and Mycycle tours officially reopened. Nicely Quiet with the wonderful team at Indiasomeday helping out
Spain
Like buses, Spanish come in twos. Two workawayers, the first since earlier this year contacted me about coming to work and one turns up a few days later. She’s from the area in Catalonia that I first visited at age six with my grandparents.
Eva (aywa) has already helped as chaperone so that Kaveri could stay here. Medium term she’ll be elsewhere for yoga teacher training but hopefully will be available now and again as chaperone and English (no not for me 😉 ) teacher.
To impress her with the fab ness of Mysore, we went to see a band at the Wodeyar Architecture College.
My new favourite shoes are yes….. also Spanish, from Camper.
On Saturday we went to see a play based on this book. It was organised by Anna Cheria (clearly she’s a mover and a shaker, someone to connect with and a really good sign is that many of our networks overlap). The book is one of my granddaughter’s favourites. The illustrator and his other books are heavily featured in Manjula’s library.
Kitten Wrangler
Kaveri and I let the kittens and Billet Doux into the house for the first time. Fun.
Dog planet was contained upstairs.
Rangoli
We did it, mine’s the worse.
Kaveri’s progress
I’ve started using phonetics books to help her read English. Her understanding of Yorkshire English is improving fast and her confidence in speaking moves on.
Kaveri was collected by mum and dad Sunday eve.
My Reading
More to do
Vaccination, pension, plan our young adults group thing.
Farrell Factoid
A chaperone enables Kaveri to stay here. I’ve given up on needing one when we do our general activities, it’s just too much hassle. Family issues means she currently can’t stay with her grandmother nearby hence the need for a sensible woman staying at my house.
Lucie is exhausted after reading too many of the children’s books in manjula’s library. Some of our favourite authors are Oliver Jeffers, Neil Gaiman, Michael Foreman.
Interested? Contact Stephen, Sowbaghya or Survesh tours@mycycle.co
The Heart and the bottle by Oliver Jeffers. This picture book story is part two of a series of three of my postings, number one is grief gravy. If you visit and read each one you’ll realise it reflects something of my recent journey which many of us share.
His stories and artwork are wonderful. My granddaughters favourite was the one about the crayons writing letters to the child.
whose head was filled with all the curiosities of the worldwith thoughts of the starsshe took delight in finding new thingsIt might never have occurred to the girl what to do had she not met someone smaller and still curious about the world.
Manjula and I have given many away as gifts. All his books are also available for our guests and friends at Manjula’s Library in Mysore Bed and Breakfast.
Look out for the third posting in this series, revealing more of my journey.
I refer to more of Oliver Jeffers’ wonderful books in other postings. Do look out for his work for the children and adults in your life.
Vanshika and her younger sister Samiksha with their gifts from Manjula
Vanshika was the first to borrow books from the library. She was worried that her English wasn’t perfect, well it’s much better than this Yorkshireman’s.
Her mum thinks she’ll love the books but she’s uncertain about that man.
Me and MYCycle 