In September, all the children from the four Howrah Homes went on a trip to Jalpaiguri to visit the other HSP centers.
5 different groups went over the month. They boarded the train in the morning in Kolkata and arrived in the evening in Jalpaiguri. They spent five days in the north before taking the train again and arriving in the evening in Kolkata.
Girls stayed in Bakuabari home, boys in Jordighi and Mogradangi homes. There, they made many new friends as they played, ate and did activities together. The children enjoyed discovering the big gardens, plantations, tea gardens, cows and goats. Some had good enough weather to bathe in the small river next to Bakuabari and all went on a one day excursion to the mountains leading to Darjeeling.
For many, it was the first time seeing a moutain, the fog, or a clear mountain stream. Some groups also went to the science museum where they discovered many scientific experiments.
Children are telling:
As soon as they came back, children did big posters explaining the details of their trips. They mostly remember the good tiffins (snacks) they had on the train, crossing the Ganga (4km width), the chicken biryani they all had once, the river (“small Digha” as some called it) and the mountain!
Many great memories and new friendship that will stay forever in their hearts!
