Outings - Millenium Centre and Hmuifang Tlang

Two holidays in a week! What more could anyone ask for?

I always have this compulsion to do 'something' on holidays. So on Monday, which was 'Id', I took Ruatfeli and her cousins to Millennium center. Some enterprising people have set up shop right on the front, with inflatable pools and beanbags and the likes. Feli went bonkers, giggling and laughing and falling all over herself; 'A nuam lutuk! A nuihzathlak e!!' etc.

We bought one, officially for Ruatsanga, his birthday is on the 13th, but unofficially, it's Ruatfeli's. Sanga is lucky if he doesn't get his eyes gouged out.

And today, we went on an impromptu visit to Hmuifang tlang. We asked some other people to come along, but they all declined, so it was just us, with my niece and nephew and Mami.

The road to Hmuifang was pretty decent, but full of turns. Feli puked all over me in the car, white pieces of rice on my clothes and the car seat. We all got out and Rina did his number too, in yellow. We cleaned up as best as we could and finally reached the place, everyone tired and some in a sour mood.Things improved after lunch, and we explored the more accessible areas. Hruaii got a leech on her foot, I was more freaked out than her.

The Restaurant

With Hruaii

With Rina

Wild berries?

Mushrooms, poisonous??

It was a great outing, wide open spaces, grass, trees, tipsy taxi-drivers on a day off (!). And on the way back, Feli bestowed a little more puking on me, this time Kurkure flavoured with a lot of tomato sauce.

It was fun, but no more road trips in the near future, the end does not quite justify the means.

Excerpt from the life of...

On the way to the toilet, I noticed Ruatfeli has scrawnier verions of my terrible legs.

'Do you want legs like Mummy or beautiful legs?'
'Beautiful legs!'
'Really? Don't you want legs just like mummy's?'
'No, I want beautiful legs, like Barbie's.'

Unsubdued laughter from dad in the bedroom.

The big 'L' and other things.

I've gone back to learning how to drive again. 'Again' being the operative word. So the silver A-star with a big, red 'L' on it is mine. I'm wondering if I should buy red electrical tapes in dozens, or buy a small can of red paint, either one could be a good investment.

I've improved quite a bit since my last learning episode. But taxis are the bane of my existence. They stop wherever they like, be it at the curve of a steep incline or just before a blind turn, you name it, they do it. And their crazy passengers open car doors whenever it suits them too. Some incessantly honk when I stop, making me even more nervous. Pedestrians make life hard for me too - chatting while walking slowly side by side, while I am haplessly trying to go as slowly as possible without the engine dying on me.  A seasoned driver would handle everything with ease, but me, I am definitely a slow learner, and sometimes I wonder why I try at all.

Onto brighter things. Feli can say most anything now. Yesterday she looked me square in the eye, pointed her forefinger at me, and asked me in all seriousness, 'I zun a chhuak em?'. I said 'No'. Then, in the same manner - 'I ek a chhuak em?'. I could hardly control my laugh, I guess she learned it from me. I have to constantly tell her, 'Lem tawh rawh' when she's having her meal. Somedays, I'd take her to the toilet, and she'd take her own sweet time, and I'd keep urging her to go, and I'd catch myself saying 'Lem rawh, lem rawh' at the loo. She'd tell her U Thlatei, 'Thlate, i cho rual ka ni hleinem', from the song 'Ka pi zunah maw..'. She's definitely loveable, but she could be turning out to be a little of a brat.

Malsawmtluanga birthday lawmna

A ngaihsan em em, 'milem' te nen

Ruatsanga, on the other hand, bears the brunt of his sister's ire. She was getting adjusted to him, but now that he can laugh, wave bye bye etc, her jealousy to him has resurfaced, with a vengeance! She swipes at him in passing, and sometimes in a more calculated way. If he is engrossed with a toy, it has to be instantly removed. I lectured her for half an hour one night, and after listening intently about how small and fragile her brother is, she goes, 'Kei chu bauh bauh te, miau miau te ka duat'. He was crawling on the floor one day, and she stepped carefully on his hand. In a hurry, I shouted 'A ke i rap a nia!'. She looked at me, and in all righteousness said, ' A ni lo, a ni lo, a KUT alawm'. Huiham. One day, he too shall have his revenge!

Nui mawi! :)

Joy is Like the Rain

You probably know this song. I think I learned it in Mary Mount School and sang it  in morning assemblies, its meaning unfathomed. Then I forgot all about it, till recently when, out of nowhere, I hummed it to my daughter. I looked up the lyrics on the internet, and found this video which I really like.

The words are simple, but I think I can understand what it says only now.

"I can see clearly now' performed later is also a wonderful song. If you haven't watched it yet, please do! You'll like it, promise.

 

I saw rain drops on my window, Joy is like the rain.
Laughter runs across my pane, Slips away and comes again.
Joy is like the rain.

I saw clouds upon a mountain, Joy is like a cloud.
Sometimes silver, sometimes gray, Always sun not far away.
Joy is like a cloud.

I saw Christ in wind and thunder, Joy is tried by storm.
Christ asleep within my boat, Whipped by wind, yet still afloat,
Joy is tried by storm.

I saw rain drops on a river, Joy is like the rain,
Bit by bit the river grows, 'til all at once it overflows.
Joy is like the rain.

 

Science Center, Berawtlang

We visited the Science center at Berawtlang last Wedenesday. It was thankfully open, unlike the other times when we travel for quite a bit only to realize the place is closed.

It's turning out to be quite a popular place to take kids on holidays. It would be great if they had a contact number where we can ask if they would be open on particular holidays, and also confirm timings of their 3D and planetarium shows.

There are wide open spaces and nicely designed buildings with different exhibits like Mizo utensils, handloom and beautifully constructed model villages. There was a Wildlife section, aptly dimly lit.

Feli deserves an Oscar for this one :)

Feli and Sanga,  mnwith his bib and bottle

The actual scientific area had fun stuff, like the different coloured liquids which simply won't mix, fun mirrors, lights and sounds.

The 3D theater was undoubtedly the biggest attraction. Kids were screaming, recoiling from snakes and reaching out for apples and other objects.  I spared my kids the excitement of the show, they don't take loud noises and enclosed spaces well. It was a day well spent. Although once we reached home, Sanga was a tired, hungry little boy and Feli passed out in the car :)