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| Title | Date | Details |
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| President's Report on Reunion 2009 | 2009-07-24 00:00:00 | <font color="#407f00" size="4" face="Times New Roman">Dear Georgians, </font> <font color="#407f00" size="4" face="Times New Roman">Reunion 2009 was sheer magic - we had 330 registrations this year & boy did the valley pulsate!! Max French from Sydney, Australia threw open the reunion & from then on OGs swamped the valley. </font> <img border="0" src="image1/!cid_ii_1229c538eb7e4246.jpg" width="576" height="386"> <font color="#407f00" size="4" face="Times New Roman"> <img border="0" src="image1/!cid_ii_1229c543b7dcb5d5.jpg" width="576" height="386"></font> <font color="#407f00" size="4" face="Times New Roman">You wont believe this but I have to tell you even the weather gods loved to have the OGs back in school for the sun smiled on the valley for the first time in weeks. During the inaugural function, stalwarts of the OGA movement OGs Ajit Mani & Thomas Abraham were recognised & bestowed with the Order of St. George for their incredible support for the onward journey of the OGA during the last decade. Noel French from Australia & Vikram Mathais from India were honoured for bringing laurels to their alma mater by representing Australia in the Veterans Hockey and winning the National Rally Championship respectively. Jacob David was also honoured for his services to the OGA. After the inaugural the OGA Walkway was inaugurated by Mr.Norman Wood & this was followed by the Annual General Body Meeting of the OGA - for a change we had a full house at the AGM. There were many OGs who thanked me for the walkway as the remember the many times they had their knees skinned by tripping over roots in the darkness! </font> <font color="#407f00" size="4" face="Times New Roman"> <img border="0" src="image1/!cid_ii_1229c55ac5b1613d.jpg" width="576" height="386"></font> <font color="#407f00" size="4" face="Times New Roman">I had OG Philip Connors telling me his mother would have been mighty pleased to walk up to School Flat now because she had fallen a few times coming down that slope.Mr. Shankara Pandian the current PT master felt the he now had a place for the kids to exercise their legs and build lower limb muscles on the steps of the walkway!! The AGM was followed by a sumptuous biriyani lunch which was followed by the much sought after Group Photo. </font> <font color="#407f00" size="4" face="Times New Roman"> <img border="0" src="image1/!cid_ii_1229c57032afdf23.jpg" width="576" height="386"></font> <font color="#407f00" size="4" face="Times New Roman"> <img border="0" src="image1/!cid_ii_1229c578b37ad899.jpg" width="576" height="386"></font> <font color="#407f00" size="4" face="Times New Roman">The OGs started their games on the wrong foot by getting a drubbing in football - Score 9-1 though I must say there was some stubborn defending put in by John C from Melbourne, Australia. The Smith house kids were entertained by Mr.& Mrs Kalayappan as the OGs held sway in most of the other games. The basketball match watched closely by Mr. & Mrs Gardner was a thriller 39 - 38 in favour of the OGs & Jenny Sait was one proud Mom to have been able to watch son Imran & his team perform beyond expectations. The Tambola for the kids as always is a hit & who else but the man for all seasons the one & only Sattar Sait had all the kids swaying & mesmerised by his words & numbers. </font> <font color="#407f00" size="4" face="Times New Roman">Saturday 11th July 2009 </font> <font color="#407f00" size="4" face="Times New Roman">Would you believe this -- we actually had 45 OGs for the march past at Hesketh pitch at 9.30 am on Saturday & I must say the discipline instilled in us is very much alive & the OGs rose to the occasion to be on time & participate & mingle with the kids as requested by Mr. Gardner & me, for that’s what I believe reunions are all about. </font> <font color="#407f00" size="4" face="Times New Roman"> <img border="0" src="image1/!cid_ii_1229c585c8e8862c.jpg" width="576" height="386"></font> <font color="#407f00" size="4" face="Times New Roman">In athletics the kids out ran us but we did manage to put up a team for relays (men & women) . We won in Badminton, Table Tennis & I am sure it must have hurt Mr.G to see the boys lose the cricket to us OGs. The quiz in the afternoon was of high standard & the OGs did it again but I must add there were a lot of OGs who said that hey had no clue that there was such a lot of knowledge out there in the universe which has escaped them!! To me the event of the reunion was the Pagal games conducted by none other than Mr Sait. The kids went 'pagal' ((Hindi for mad) & if Mr. Laidlaw was on school flat watching, he would have been mighty pleased to see the kids having a real rollicking time. The Pagal Games prize ceremony in which John C was doing the honours had to be seen to be believed. The kids almost brought the roof of the OGA stadium down & Mr.G (who was at home) did send out somebody to find out if all was well. Our traditional game of hockey however was won by the present & that brought the curtain down on the Past vs. Present sporting activities. </font> <font color="#407f00" size="4" face="Times New Roman">At the Banquet the MCs Baba Pujara & Sattar were the ones who carried the evening at the beautiful ballroom of the Fernhill Palace - the ball started with a beautiful song by Mr. G. That Man sure does have a voice!! The OGs let their hair down & how - even yours truly had the guts to belt out a few lines with the lead singer, thanks to the spirits taking control!! I must say however that I was not too pleased when someone told me that the bar had to be closed for want of the good stuff (by 0030hrs) & that’s a first time its happened, one milestone that I wont cherish in my tenure. </font> <font color="#407f00" size="4" face="Times New Roman"> <img border="0" src="image1/!cid_ii_1229c660000c7864.jpg" width="576" height="386"></font> <font color="#407f00" size="4" face="Times New Roman">Sunday 12th July 2009</font> <font color="#407f00" size="4" face="Times New Roman">Chapel service was reasonably well attended (considering that most OGs hadnt hit the sack before 0100hrs that morning!) & the fete & games was a booming success. At the valedictory function the N R Krishnamurthy shield came to rest with the OGs & Mr G egged the present lot to wrest it back next year. It was John C who exchanged the flags with the head boy with the school choir singing “Till we meet again” & as the goodbye hugs went around we suddenly realised that yet another remarkable reunion had come to a close. In between I was wondering how much money do people spend on rejuvenation therapies every year ,while all it takes for us OGs is to drive down to the valley & 48 hours later we are as fresh as daisies. That’s exactly what I said at the vote of thanks. </font> <font color="#407f00" size="4" face="Times New Roman"> <img border="0" src="image1/!cid_ii_1229c672ef2fb2a8.jpg" width="576" height="386"></font> <font color="#407f00" size="4" face="Times New Roman">I would like to thank all the OGs who took time out to be at Reunion 2009 & I hope all of you have carried back fond memories like I did. I would like to say that I was overwhelmed by the calls that I had received from OGs today – chaps that were not even a glint in their parent's eyes when I left school & that’s when I said to myself that these reunions are really well worth all the trouble & hassles. I am not joking when I say I did feel that lump in my throat when most of them said they will be back next year for sure. For those Georgians who missed out on these magical moments you still have the next year to make that pilgrimage to the valley, a trip that I guarantee you will always treasure for years to come. </font> <font color="#407f00" size="4" face="Times New Roman">Warm Regards </font> <font color="#407f00" size="4" face="Times New Roman">Sanil </font> |
| OG Vikram Mathias in the news | 2009-06-26 00:00:00 | Folks, Not many of you may be aware that Old Georgian Vikram Mathias is the current National Rally Champion of India - he will defend his title in Coimbatore at the National Rally Championship and a few OGs will be present there to cheer him on. Let us wish him well and hope that he defends his champion status once again. For those of you who have been to Masinagudi and stayed at the Jungle Retreat with Rohan Mathias - Vikram is Rohan's younger brother. Best of Luck Vikram from OGs all over the world!!! |
| Mysore Mystique 2008 - Offsite Reunion | 2008-12-19 00:00:00 | Folks, Its been two days and nights of absolute Reunion heaven for all of us who made it to Mysore for Mysore Mystique 2008. Before giving you all the run down let me hasten to thank Vijayendra & Ajay for some awesome organisation.I hope they get themselves a nice sleep now that we are out of their hair and back in our respective abodes!! The curtains are down after another Georgian extravaganza but not before the sandalwood city ,the city of Maharajas was given a taste of sheer Georgian cameraderie, warmth & fun. Viji, Aparna & I began our drive to Mysore from Calicut around 7am on 5th morning & reached Mysore at 11 by which time the Chennai gang, Doc Mathew Ninan , Glenn, Dawn & Gloria had descended on Mysore & had nicely settled down. Vijayendra had us all booked into his own hotel “Mysore Hotel complex” which is right in the heart of Mysore. After the customary hugs & noise we make, all of us were ferried to Hotel Metropolis a sister concern of Royal Orchid for lunch. The buffet on offer was awesome which had Vinoo Varkey complaining of the calories he was going to ingest, but that didn’t deter him with the number of helpings he had!!! The two hour lunch session over & the gang sent back to hotel to recharge their batteries Tusky, Sheila, Viji, Aparna , Vijayendra & I headed off to Royal Orchid to finalize some last minute stuff which took longer than expected & we were back at the hotel only by 7.30 pm. It was good to see Debbie & her daughter Natasha, Paul & Jaishree join the party that had already started. There was rummy, & poker being played & (I was told that Jenny made a pile) slowly but surely Mysore Hotel complex was being turned upside down. Dinner was arranged at Hotel Park Lane, it turned out to be another two hour affair. The entire place was ransacked by the OGs - the waiters did have immense patience with the orders dished out by us... The party I am told continued till 2 AM. Thamil & gang landed up at 3 am & u can imagine the rest--- The havoc was there for all to see the next morning as I found a bunch of haggard hotel staff & manager at the desk of the hotel waiting to be relieved. The Registration team left early on the 6th, all OGs were transported to Hotel Royal Orchid on an hourly basis by a Mazda van arranged from the Mysore hotel complex. Mr & Mrs Gardener, Mark & Sr. Rickets rolled in at around 12 & the inauguration was held at 1.30 pm. The customary welcome speeches were followed by the school song & a fabulous lunch. The Brindavan Palace Hotel was taken over by the OGs & the Maharaja would surely have turned in his grave as bottles were being disposed off in minutes!! In between the fun we had to get some business done & the executive meeting was held at 5.30 pm which lasted an hour. I have the pleasure of telling u that the Raffle tickets were released by Mrs. Gardener & Paul Chater kindly accepted the first sale. Sattar gave a brief description on the school infrastructure development fund which will be largely used to put up a state of the art swimming pool at school. Sheila spoke on the progress made on the directory of OGs being prepared & Kishore Kumar threw light on the progress of the insurance project for the staff at school.. There was a healthy debate on all future projects & it was good to see all OGs chipping in with their views. Glenn Sargon & Doc Mathew Ninan addressed the meeting. Thamil rounded off the meeting by honouring Mr. Gardener & Glenn . Baba Pujara our fun loving Vice Prez thanked the gathering. A brief rest & it was Sattar Sait all the way.The master of ceremonies for the evening began with the a game (Cro0ssing the river Cauvery!), followed by Santa’s arrival,& then the party began. The salsa by Natasha & Lionel was magical especially for people like me with two left feet, the show was pure joy & treat to the eyes. The Garden reverberated with music, & dance & I have no doubt in my mind if the Maharajas were watching from above they would have been one mighty pleased lot. The joy was overwhelming, the warmth genuine & boy there was fun & talk of the valley all round. The dinner spread was awesome, and had to be seen & tasted to be believed. The last “official dance“ was at 12.30 & the Brindavan garden got a taste of the Georgian Magic. Tusky, thanks for coming inspite of the difficult period you & Sudha are going through. Although you left early , your presence was always felt which helped in get through the function majestically. Sudha ,the registration desk was not the same in your absence & I guess it will never be – the straight forward authoritiveness was missing but at the end your sishya Mary did a wonderful job. Thamil--- This country they say is short of leaders & I am not joking when I say that you should come into public life soon. I don’t have words to say to you & you know what I mean when I say THANKS for everything. I would be failing in my duty if I don’t mention a few words of THE GEORGIAN who single handily put on this show at Mysore .. Its been just three months that I got to know him at close quarters & this lad is something extra ordinary. Cool, Calm & collected with an infectious smile, there is nothing he cant do at Mysore & he is a sweet heart. I am talking of VIJAYENDRA the MAN behind the show. Did I shed a tear or was it the dust I don’t know but there were some emotions flowing when he said that he had found a brother in me. Equally involved was Ajay his cousin & former head boy & big thank you to both. Before I forget I have to tell you guys I did get annoyed with Vijayendra once or twice during the preparations of the meet because he would always say he had to get back to Bangalore on the same day when we could have finished a little more work, but I forgave him the minute I saw his pretty wife Anusha & I needed no further explanation on his anxiety & reason to be back in Bangalore. She has been officially invited by yours truly for the re-union 2009!! A big thank you to the band arranged by Vijayendra for belting out some wonderful Georgian numbers & also to Matthew Cooke for chipping in with his karaoke music. Those numbers took us back a long way. Last but not least I have to thank all the executive members who turned out & helped make this function a memorable one. A special thanks to Mary who as usual was her efficient self & Neetu, Sayilen’s better half a born banker in the way she handled cash!! I thank all the Georgians who turned up, to those who missed out all I can say is you missed out big time, but I know all Georgians will be at the valley in full strength ,come July. Before signing off I have a confession to make. Ever since Kadavu & Presidency I have been told by all that I appear tense during the functions. I would be lying if I said I was not apprehensive but for the record I would like you all to know its been a “pleasurable Tension “ till now & it gives me immense pride & joy to be amongst GEORGIANS Take Care & Good Day to all With Warm Regards Sanil |
| What a year it has been for me!!! | 2008-12-15 00:00:00 | Dear Tusky Thought I had better write before the New Year! What a year 2008 has been .... just unbelievable. If 2008 was a bottle of wine I would definitely call it vintage! Just to re-cap the year for me: 1. 6th Jan - surfing the net looking for a client on St George St and happen to notice the OGA site. Instead of carrying on with my report I "time travelled" to the last 35 years some of which was fortunately caught on film and rest from memories. A short text to you brought a laugh with a response like "how can we forget a beak" but also reminded me of the "top spins" that were dished out to juniors ...... if not appreciated it did wake us up in the cold climate. 2. 20th Jan (or so) - text received from Ivan Jacob about trip to S'pore - got to have lunch with Ivan - it was great meeting Ivan - first OGA I had the pleasure of meeting after "a few years". Since that first encounter we had many more. 3. Joining the OGA site and finally getting the nerve to contribute. Met the soon to be my "guide" to the girls cottages during the July reunion - Sharon! 4. 22nd Apr - got a great bday present - met Ivan, Tusky, Doc and the ever photo shy Sheila. It was great meeting all. Especially Tusky for the first time at the airport. Note sure if my neighbours appreciated Tusky's visit once he had gone to sleep. Just kidding. Ivan, Tusky & I spent quite a few hours catching up with old times with Heineken keeping us company! 5. July - The reunion - or should I say the pre-reunion at the club in Chennai - the yellow roses etc - it was a great start to a lovely week. Met so many in the first night - Sharon, Sudha, Satar, Jen ..... and the list would go on. And then the trek to the reunion and the close-out on Sunday - brought back a lot of good memories. Even got to speak to my ex-girlfriend at school! It was a total shock to my system as I wanted to do a lot more but did not have the time to do so. Given the chance I would have taken more time to speak to the juniors .... including the kids presently at school. And of course there was the trip down the banks with Sharon ........ to look at some flowers of course. Not forgetting a tour of the dorms .... girls ie! Finally, meeting 2 from my class Ashokan and Suryaprakash. And then the icing on the cake - a lift on the very sunday to Calicut from people I had met for a couple of days. Sanil, Viji & Aparna. On the way dropping in to see all at M'gudi. It was a great journey back to Calicut and I did not feel the trip at all as the company was great! My regret being having turned down a biriyani dinner (when I visited the Prez & family .. including parents) the next day. On my return to S'pore catching up with the Chennai crowd again and this time seeing PC, JC and daughter (who shared her chocolates with me)! 6. Sep - Met Imran for lunch. 7. Oct - Met Pat & family in S'pore - Ivan joined us. It was great meeting the kids ... I mean Pat's. 8. Oct - Met Count Monty of London - a pint and some great south indian food. 9. Nov - Met Jayakumar - on a quick visit to S'pore. 10. Nov - not related to OGA but met my ex-colleagues in Auckland after 18 years. On a general note it wasn't just meeting the OGAs but it was been a pleasure meeting their spouses and kids as well. Sudha, Doc, Mary, Viji to name a few. I have had a great year and must thank you and everyone else I have met this year at the re-union. Just disappointed that I could not make Mysore - looked like great time was had by all. All booked for "sunny" Chicago and looking forward to meeting Benny & family. Short note to all: Sudha - Sorry again about your Dad. I lost my Dad in 1982 and I still miss him so much. Just remember the great times you had and the memories will see you though this difficult period. I still laugh & cry at the same time when I think of my dad sometimes. Take care! Sanil,Viji & Aparna - It was great meeting you and thanks again for the lift to Calicut and the great company along the way. My regards to your parents and hope you have a great break - the photos were great. Sheila & Doc - Hey S - am still waiting for Thamil to post the video clip on the OG site. And Doc still waiting to see you again to share a wee dram(s) of the malt - and no rushing it this time. Sharonski - yes I have decided to change your name - it was a great pleasure meeting you in Chennai and thanks for the tour of the "banks" and the girls cottages. And to think I did not get expelled. Probably see you either in Sydney or July 09. Count Monty - The British economy seems "f##ked" but I am sure you with your "goldfinger" will make that change. Hope to see you in this part of the world sometime .... on your way to Sydney to visit Sharonski. Sattar, Jen & Imran - Sattar - tried to hook up on Fbook but could not find you. Please send me your FBook name. Had a great time in Ooty and then back in Chennai. Especially the Ooty chocolates! Hope to see you guys when you visit Perth! Indiana - It was great meeting you in S'pore and my regards to Susan & the kids. Message to Raoul - Liverpool still rocking it! (just about). Wishing you all a very happy christmas and a new year - keep safe! Regards & Best Wishes Chandran (aka Rama, Ram, Beak, Polly Wolly, etc etc etc) |
| Links to online albums of Reunion 2008 | 2008-07-23 00:00:00 | Folks, You can get to see pictures taken by different Georgians at Reunion 2008 by clicking on the links below or if they are not hyperlinked just cut and paste the link into your browser's address field and hit the Enter key on your keyboard: http://picasaweb.google.com/bhaskar.sailendra/Reunion200802 http://picasaweb.google.com/bhaskar.sailendra/Reunion08RamsPhotos http://picasaweb.google.com/veganba/10thAnd11thJuly08?authkey=Fq4oDUv_47g http://picasaweb.google.com/sanjay.gulvady/ReUnion2008 http://picasaweb.google.com/lukmanjee/SchoolReUnion2008Ketti Enjoy the pictures and the good times Georgians had! Warm regards Tusky |
| OG Noel French in Australian Veterans Hockey Team | 2008-05-06 00:00:00 | Old Georgian Noel French has been selected to play for Australia in the World Veterans Hockey tournaments to be played in New Zealand and Hong Kong in May 2008. Noel narrowly missed playing for the regular Australian Hockey team back in the 70's. |
| Australian OGs meet in Tanunda, South Australia - | 2008-04-05 00:00:00 | Click here to see photos of the offsite reunion of OGs in Australia - if the links are not clickable please copy and paste it into your browser's address field and hit enter: http://picasaweb.google.com.au/geewizzsargon/Tanunda http://picasaweb.google.com.au/newellsharon/Tanunda1 http://picasaweb.google.com/blobow/TanundaAttendees http://picasaweb.google.com/juene.walmsley/OGSInTanunda2008?authkey=0ZdRSw2gsp8 |
| Juene Walmsley's report on Aussie Reunion of OGs | 2008-03-20 00:00:00 | Hi Everyone, Wow what a weekend that just went by! Thank you John for describing the events so beautifully. Had no idea that you were giving everyone a running commentary and that too, so early in the morning! The whole weekend came and went too quickly. Despite the shock at hearing Derek's news and having Coral, Deb and Bruce return to Perth so suddenly, the feeling amongst everyone was that life had to go on regardless, and I am sure there were many of us who would have been holding back from throwing ourselves whole heartedly into the weekends events. Nevertheless, the news about Derek is good! He came out of his coma and is progressing well. Still very weak from having no food in him all these weeks, but he's making a nice recovery. He is still not 100% and won't be for a while. Everyone are taking it a day at a time and he has still a long way to go. His sense of humor has returned, and he's got all the doctors scratching their heads at his remarkable recovery. They had given up on him and had prepared Coral for the worst. But, they under-estimated the man's sheer determination to live. We hope that he will recover fully and this experience will change the way he thinks and will change the direction of his life in a positive way. Derek's news shattered last Friday's program, and put us all in a sombre mood. Coral and Deb were so grateful for all the love and support from all around them. I was really proud to be a Georgian when I saw the way people rallied together, giving comfort and love to the grief stricken Coral, Deb and Bruce. Briony was magnificent in the way she handled all the cancellations and re-booking of airfares for all 3 of them. John took them to the airport and waited till they boarded the flight upgrading them as well. He was to pick up his wife Gita, but they both waited and saw the small group off before they returned to Camp. Christine picked them up from the Perth airport and took them to the hospital. Derek was in a real bad way when they got there, but Coral did not give up on him and she and Deb were instrumental in getting Derek back from death's door. You can be sure many prayers were said for him and with divine help and his sheer will power Derek made it through! Will walk you through the weekend! Day 1 - Meet and Greet The Sydney Group were amongst the last to arrive. Joe and I caught up with The Newell's, Taylor's and Lobow's at Adelaide airport around 3.30pm. They were in a happy and excited mood after scoffing down all the curry puffs before they even left Sydney! We collected our 8-seater van and the girls sat in the back and yakked non-stop till we got to Tanunda. Gary was the designated driver and with Bruce in the passenger seat and with the Voice of the GPS Man helping, we found our way to Tanunda. The temp in Adelaide was around 41deg, but we loved it! After we registered at The Park, we drove around to our cottages to find practically everyone had arrived and they had assembled in the BBQ area chatting away and getting to know each other. There was lots of noise and shrieks of delight at spying familiar faces in the group. It was wonderful to be with 'Family' again and meeting folk like John Castellas for the first time and also Delphine (Thompson) and Glen Cummin whom I had not seen since school. Peter Mac was also there having travelled from Perth in his motor home. The Fowlers also had arrived that afternoon towing their caravan after 2 night stopovers. Most of the Victorians had driven down a day earlier. West Australians had also landed a day earlier. Dorothea and brother Glen were there first! It was nice meeting the spouses of the OG's who must have found the whole event rather daunting. By the end of the evening, everyone were more relaxed and the first Dinner at the Tanunda Hotel went off well. There were about 50 of us present that night. More were to arrive later that night and the next day. The food in the Hotel was excellent and the serves were really big. They even had lamb korma on the menu - Aussie style! Only the brave hearted attempted it! After a hearty meal in a noisy dining room, we all walked/stumbled back to our cottages and set up an impromptu lounge room in The Eustace/Waples cottage where the drinks flowed with coffee chasers to help the sobering process. The little cottage was bursting at the seams and some folks stayed on the verandah where Madhu had them intrigued with his ghost stories. We all forgot about the time and kept going way past 10pm, but had to quieten down a bit when the Manager of the Park came over to complain that his phone was running hot with all the complaints from holiday makers (our neighbors) who were trying to sleep! Folks like the Fernandes' & David Alley still kept arriving throughout the night. It was quite late when everyone decided that we had better hit the sack. We walked back to our cottage to find our room mates had already re-arranged the sleeping quarters and had pulled mattresses off bunk beds and put them in the common lounge where Briony & Bernard had been allocated the sofa bed. It was also very hot in the cottage as the temp in Adelaide had been around 41deg during the day. The main lounge had the air con. All looked very cosy and comfortable. We made ourselves cups of tea and chatted away some more. Then we watched as Bernard tried to slip into bed and he could not get the sheet passed his knees! The look on his face was most puzzling! Briony sat in bed looking so innocent (she had been forewarned by Coral not to let on), even I was puzzled! When we realized that the bed makers (who I now found out were Genevieve, Coral and Dorothea) had Apple Pied the bed. They had slipped away earlier while we were 'bonding' over coffee and Port, and made up all our beds. Not for a moment did I think that they would also interfere with our bed as Joe and I (being the most senior in the cottage) demanded the separate bedroom on Doctors orders! There was lots of forced 'yawning' and 'pretending' sleepers that made Joe and I finally decide to hit the sack. After a nice hot shower, and making my way to the bedroom with sleepy sounding 'Goodnights' coming from the 'sleeping' figures in the lounge..I switched off the light and got into bed to find that I could not get my knees passed the bed sheets also! Joe was most comfortable on his side of the bed and looked to be asleep! After a few 'what the heck plus @#*%^%$' I heard the giggles from the lounge and knew we were set up. Briony even had her camera poised at our bedroom but I had partially shut the door in case Joe's snoring kept everyone awake! Joe realized the bed was apple pied, but stayed quiet so that I would get caught! All the others were waiting for his reaction, but he decided to say nothing so disappointed them. Once we settled down for the 'second' time and final goodnights were wished, we all slept like babies. Not for long though Day 2. At 5am there was a knock on our door with Deb asking us if we want coffee in bed! Everyone else were up and making quite a din. Coral decided she wanted to chat. and in spite of Deb's protests she finally persisted and Deb had no alternative but to stay awake and listen. Deb decided that if she and Coral were up, why not wake everyone up also! Bernard and Genevieve were playing toilet sleuths at some ungodly time of the morning with one wanting to get out of the bogs and the other wanting to get in. Lots of pushing and shoving going on with the toilet door until they realized they were on opposite sides of the door. More giggling! After refusing that early morning cuppa from Deb and banishing her from my doorway, I snuggled down for an extended snooze only to wake up, to find my husband missing at 6am! He decided to join dedicated walker Gene on her early morning walk and I think Bruce, Deb and Coral also went along. Peace descended on Cabin 40 at last! The Lobows were still asleep in bed and I sat outside on the porch with a nice cuppa and listened to the wild birds and watched 3 cute bunny rabbits hopping along in front of the cabin. It was a beautiful sight. Then it was time to get ready for the breakfast the Victorians were preparing. The Victorians put on a great brekkie. There was heaps to eat. When I eventually dawdled over, the cookers, fryers and toast makers were in full swing. Everyone filled their plates and sat around chatting and watching as each one came out of their cottages looking very refreshed and ready for the days adventures. Once all the clean up had been done, we decided that everyone were free to do what they wanted to do. Some had already visited places of interest, but there were still some places that were interesting. The Barossa Valley covers quite a big area with lots of things to see and some really nice wineries and cellars. We piled into various cars and formed a convoy of sorts then headed for the Whispering Wall. It's actually a Dam Wall that is curved. The water on one side of it is so deep it's black! The sluice wall is curved in such a way that it carries sound from one side to the other. Even if you whisper, the person on the other end of the wall can hear every word. We had been there once before and it impressed us and I thought the OG's would be impressed too. With Joan, Geoff, Joe and self in John's car we followed the leader (Gary) with The Taylors, Lobows, Shaz and Gene as passengers. All the other cars followed Gary to the Whispering Wall only to find it was closed due to the Total Fire Ban! Darn! Everyone turns around and we head off to the The Lavender Farm not too far away. Family owned business. As we got there, they put the chain across. 'Closed' - for what reason we don't know! Turn around again! We head off to Jacob Creek Winery which is quite a big wine maker in this country and their wines are available in all bottle shops. We all pile out and make our way in. Some try the Reds others the Whites. Group pics are taken. Joe and Geoff had to be ordered out of there as they would have tested the whole range and we had no time for that. It was onto the next stop. Geoff is an expert. He knows how it's done! Smell the aroma, swivel it around in the glass, take a sip, swish it around your mouth, taste the tannin, then you are supposed to spit it out in a special spittoon! Before you sample the next wine you drink some water to cleanse the palate! Most of us did everything that was expected of us except spit it out! Next stop was the Kellermeister vineyard. This is a boutique winery. You could choose to taste Dry White or Reds or Sweet Whites or Reds. We went for the sweet. We spent more time in this place as the wine appeased a lot of people, especially the non-drinkers who liked the sweet wines. We bought a few bottles from the selection which luckily for Joe and me, we had The Fowlers towing their caravan so our wines got a free ride back to Sydney. All the wineries are close to each other, so one can visit anyone as they are opened all weekend. The next winery was St Hilliers. By the time we got passed the talking parrot, we saw all the earlier arrivals coming out of the door. Our group was too big, moreover we had to book. 'Snobs' we thought! Let's go back and have lunch, then plan our afternoon tours. We made our way to Tanunda town (so quaint), Joe, John, Geoff, Joan,Gene and self found a cafe which also doubled as a photo framing business which was attached to a rather quaint shop with a French influence selling wrought iron furniture, wall hangings and interior decorator pieces. After a nice sandwich consisting of a German sausage with tasty fillings and a nice cup of coffee each, we came out of the cafe only to meet up with The Rowles and The Singhs on the Tanunda high street. The had arrived that morning. A few doors down in another cafe were the WA group consisting of the The Lemerles, The Pears and the QLD group of Madhu, Nahid and their friends from Adelaide. The lady was Sandra Netto from Coimbatore and the gentleman was a radio announcer (John) who ran an easy listening radio station from Adelaide. He also entertained us later that night as our Bingo caller and organized a fun Horse Race using playing cards! You can't have an Oz OG get together without a little bit of gambling thrown in! When we returned to base camp to plan our afternoon events, we found a very distraught Coral and Deb. They had just been given the news of Derek's condition. Everyone concentrated on being there for them and as Briony organized flights etc, we farewelled them heavy hearts as John took them to the airport. It was decided earlier that instead of everyone eating out, we'd have BBQ chicken and salad with all the trimmings for dinner at base camp. Dianne was our Catering Manager and did a great job of organizing meals etc. Getting dinner ready was a job shared by all. We had folk preparing the salad and fruit salad, folk dismembering hot cooked chickens, folk setting up cheese and bikkie and snack plates. Booze was bought out of the 'kitty' money and as dusk fell in the Adelaide hills, the OG camp came to life! With bellies nice and full and everyone in a very relaxed mood, a Bingo game was organized. Briony had brought along her Bingo set and we all had fun with Aussie John from Adelaide calling the game. We even taught him what a Juldhi Five was! While the gambling continued with Odette winning 'big' change on the horse racing, the drinking men headed by Madhu formed a small group 'discussing' men's business. By the sounds of laughter that came from the group one could only guess what was being discussed. Trevor brought out his guitar, Bobby Lemerle his harmonica and Joe lent his tonsils and before we knew it the Adelaide Hills were ringing with the Sound of Music! This went on till late at night, even after the majority of the group went to bed. It was a beautiful balmy night and even the mozzies kept away. As the night wore on, tongues got twisted and Madhu had some of us trying to repeat some tongue twister about a pheasant plucker. There were no winners! The Manager of the Park came along and extended the noise curfew by another hour! We sang lots of songs including Pop Mac, The Indian and Aussie National Anthems and some Aussie songs for our young friends, Callan and Jenna King, children of Michael and Linda. Finally, it was time to go to bed and this time the cottage was so quiet without Coral, Deb and Bruce. No apple pie beds to get into! Our last thoughts were about Derek and our hopes that he'd make it through the night. Day 3: It was NSW and ACT group to make breakfast. It was nice to see how everyone took to their chores. The tables were set up so nicely, this time we had baked beans (for fibre and energy) and a large bowl of fresh fruit (for fibre and energy)! The Begum was commissioned to make the Toast. She commissioned Genevieve to help her! Gary took over the Egg frying. Noel, Geoff, Annalie and gang took over the sausage and bacon BBQ. Again, there was ample to eat. After breakfast, some got into their cars and took off for more sight seeing and produce buying! The ones remaining decided to have a game of cricket. A request was made, the Manager brought over a set complete with wickets and ball, and everyone made their way to the Mess Hall and playing field! Once there, the ladies grouped together to cheer their men on. Sides were decided. OG vs The Others! There were plenty of OG's but not enough of The Others. Joe had his good shoes and refused to play with them on! He made me take his place! I walked onto the field and told the Cricketers I was playing for The Others! I was warmly welcomed by Bob and Brian Lemerle (ex Stanes), Rodney and Bernard (ex St Mary's Madras). I bowled, I batted, I fielded, I scored!! Facing bowlers like Noel and David Alley was daunting enough. Being the only girl on the field, I got away with murder. The boys were very well behaved and were true gentlemen. Even when they got hit in most inappropriate places, I winced for them, but there was no swearing and no demonstration of agony!! Geoff Fowler was the first batsman in. With a knee replacement op only recently, he thought he could hit runs and run between wickets! After all, he was a good sportsman in his younger day! We watched with bated breath as he hobbled and limped across the wicket when he made a run, hold onto his back as his muscles protested at their use and stubbornly played on! He forgot his glory days of cricket was only in his head! Before long, he found himself sitting on the pavilion stage wall by himself keeping score for both teams! I am happy to report that the The Others lost by only 1 point! Bob Lemerle said it was so typical of those Stanes and Ketti matches where Stanes always 'narrowly' lost' to Ketti. I was so glad to see Trevor Addie (hubby of Shirley Rodrigues) come onto the field! Told my Team it was time for my Gin and Tonic refreshment and made my way back to the Group in the Mess Hall to be greeted with applause by the ladies watching the game. Even hubby Joe discussing the music scene with that other muso and non sportsman Trevor was proud of my efforts! When the game was over and all the boys returned to the Mess Hall, they were all given a standing ovation! Lunch was then organized and we dined on pea pilau (made by Brian Lemerle), salad and left overs from brekkie and dinner before. Back to the Cottages, before reporting at 4pm for Belly Dancing lessons. Some of the folk who went off earlier in the morning had returned so we all assembled in front of the BBQ area and Jenna was all dressed in her sparkling jangling best and the Turkish music came from the car's sound system. First it was the girls turn to get a lesson. Hip and chest thrusts, shimmies and shoulder rotations later, it was the boys turn! Watching the men perform dainty moves was too much for us girls on the sidelines. John C was trying so hard to get it right, all his buttons popped off his shirt and his belly really danced for all to see! We all had to remember what we had learnt as we were to perform that night also. Shortly after that we had to get ready and re-assemble at the same place in our Bollywood gear for photo shoots and Parade down the main street to the Tanunda Hotel where we had booked out the Beer Garden. What a glamourous sight it was. Everyone looked stunning in their outfits. The girls were gorgeous in their outfits complete with Bling! The boys looked smashing in their long shirts and turbans and on some it made them look regal. Glen Cummin looked a pukka pathan! Then again, he was told hecould pass off for a Central Station coolie!! Once the photos were taken it was time to Parade down the main street. We were walking past two young Aussie lads getting out of their car when I overheard one of them say "Must be a fancy dress party going on". Noel was walking behind dressed up in his purple outfit complete with cream and gold turban! I told the boys that it was not fancy dress, that the person behind me in the turban was a real live Maharajah and he was to be greeted with a Namaste! Unsuspecting Noel saw them staring and gave them a friendly Aussie greeting. I had to laugh as I saw them putting their hands together giving him a Namaste greeting in return. Once dinner was over, it was time for Bollywood to Begin! The music that Sharon and Madhu brought had the brave on the floor in no time. The Begum outdid any Indian actress with her fine playacting and dancing skills. She and David Alley re-created their own Bollywood movie version and had everyone in stitches. It's been documented on Bernard's movie camera. We shall title it The Tanunda Tandoori Story! While all this was going on, I slipped away and conscripted the Aussie patrons onto the floor. Some were shy and resisted, but with a little bit of prompting they got on the floor and joined the very animated and energetic dancers They had a ball. So much so, when the western music came on, they referred to it as 'rubbish' and wanted us to put the Bollywood music back on again. Even the bartender James said he'd have a go! The Aussie patrons were most intrigued and amazed at the reason we were all in Tanunda. Young Jenna then gave a Belly Dancing performance and then we all joined in. We spent the night away dancing and bonding and meeting the locals. I got a lift back to the cottage with the girls, only to find that the boys had the keys to the cottage. None of them had the little black key to open the gate that allows them access from the main road into the Park. But David Alley, had the presence of mind to use a skill he learnt in school and picked the lock with a twig! Tired but happy OG's went to bed and slept soundly that night. It was lights out in our cabin at 2.30am! Day 4 We were up early to pack our things. Breakfast duties perfectly performed by WA & QLD group. What a breakfast they served up! I never dreamed that we would have Indian scrambled eggs and omelets served up in a Tourist Park! Most of the folk were packed and ready to move on after breakfast. Check out was 10am. The only ones remaining behind were The Fowlers and The Rowles'. I was still in my pj's when in comes Cookie (Timmins) Lemerle with breakfast for me to be had in bed! I felt spoilt! We quickly joined the group for breakfast, then it was back to our cottages to finish the packing . Some folks left before we could re-surface again as they had early flights and long trips back. As the numbers dwindled, my phone went off. I saw Coral's number and my heart sank. When I spoke to her..she put me onto Derek! He had come out of his coma and wanted to talk to us. He had a chat with Joe, Joan and Geoff before the coughing and weakness got the better of him. Called me an old foogard and a dhudhoo! I knew he was back in the land of the living. Made our day! Final goodbyes were said. Everyone were told to re-assemble in Perth next year same time! Our group then packed our 8seater and made our way to Glenelg a beachside suburb in Adelaide. Little did we know that The Rowles followed us all the way from Tanunda. The Fowlers had more sightseeing to do and were visiting the casino. Walking around the cafes in Glenelg we came across the WA group of the Lemerles and Pears having a cuppa. Joe and I joined them for a quick snack and a cuppa also. The Lobows, Newells and Rowles decided to visit the Glenelg museum nearby. Enjoying our cuppas, in pops Noel to say they are also nearby. We all agreed to meet at the airport. Once we said our goodbyes (again) to the WA group, we drove on to the airport dropping off Shaz and Gary at their relatives home en route and making it to the airport in plenty of time to hand over the hired car. The Singh's were also doing the same thing. Once we all checked in, we re-grouped again at the Departure lounge and as soon as the plane took off, we slept till it was time to land in Sydney 1.5hrs later! Got back safe and sound. My throat is still croaky. I came back with a really bad case of laryngitis! I wonder how I got that! It was a great weekend had by all and the whole weekend would not have come together so well if it wasn't for the folk who took time out to make the effort to get to Adelaide with their spouses and family and blend in and go with the flow. Special mention must be made of folks who made it extra special by taking control of situations and making it all come together so beautifully. Noel - our Accountant and Kitty Manager. Dianne - our Catering Manager and Menu Decider. Briony - our Travel Agent and Book-keeper. Deb and Coral - CoOrdinators. Consultants & Assistants. Trevor, Joe , Bobby, Jenna - Our Entertainers Extradonaire. John C - Travel co-ordinator and Roving Reporter. Our spouses - for putting up with the OG jabber and supporting us throughout the weekend. Sandy and John - for organizing the Horse racing and calling the Bingo. To all the Cookers, Movers and Shakers (which includes Everyone) THANK YOU ALL! Geoff and Joan especially wanted me to pass on their appreciation at the way We Younger folk made Them Older folk feel so welcome and loved! I've been telling them for years that That's How Georgians are! Irrespective of the year you passed out and the country you live in - you are still part of a very special family! Perth 2009! Here We Come! Photos will be posted soon! Cheers for now! Take care everyone! Have a Great Easter weekend and Stay Safe. xxx Juene |
| Malabar Magic 2007 - Offsite Reunion of Georgians in Calicut - 1st and 2nd Dec 2007! | 2007-12-19 00:00:00 | <p><font face="Arial" size="2">Folks,<br> Its been three days and two nights of absolute Reunion heaven for all of us who made it to Calicut for Malabar Magic 2007. Before giving you all the low down let me hasten to thank Sanil and Viji for some awesome organisation - they had it all covered all the way to the very end!! A million thanx will not do for all the effort these two put in - I hope they get themselves a nice sleep now that we are out of their hair and back in our respective abodes!! And Viji, I hope the chikanguniya keeps away after all the exertion that you were put through! </font> <p align="center"> <img border="0" src="imagesKadavu/DSC_0011.JPG" width="780" height="518"> <p align="left"><font face="Arial" size="2">For us in Chennai Malabar Magic 2007 started on the 29th of December when we all gathered at Chennai Central Station at 2000hrs to catch that train for Calicut - there were 16 of us noisy folks on the train and there was lots of the vodka being dished out as Sprite to all who cared to imbibe it! The ladies had organised for some awesome grub to go with it - there was a dryish Chicken curry that Sheila brought, there was some amazing Veg cutlets that Jenny carried, Mary made her patented Beef fry and Anita Fredrick sent out some amazing sandwiches with Ravichandran (from Penang,Malaysia)!! The newbie in the group was Guru Anand (Collin's classmate in Ketti) - he hardly uttered a word all the way to Calicut and watched all the fun - you should have seen him on his way back from Calicut - he was a changed man and was last heard enquiring when the next reunion was!!! The guffawing and fun times on the train went on till well past midnight, well after some of us had retired to our berths! <br> At Calicut Station we were received by the ever smiling Viji and Sanil! They were a bit worried because the unusual wet weather but that wasnt going to bother us folks from Chennai! We were ferried to three different hotels because rooms were difficult to come by in Calicut. By about mid day we all headed out to the Beach Hotel where Colin and his family were put up - from there Viji, Sanil, Sudha and I headed off to the Kadavu Resort to finalise some last minute stuff while the rest of the gang went around Calicut and its neighborhood! Sanil took us all to Paragon for lunch after we had done our little preparatory run at Kadavu. Those photos you saw of me tucking into a Malabari meal were taken at the Paragon restaurant - the food was to die for, little wonder Paragon is jam packed with people at all times, but one call from Sanil's mobile and we had a place reserved for us while folks waited outside to get in! <br> Monty, I'm sorry but I just had to get Viji to take that photo of me tucking into all that awesome grub because I was sure it would make you salivate so much that the Thames may have flooded!! Having fed my six pack - we headed back to our hotel rooms so we could change and get ready for the evening bash that Sanil and Viji had arranged at the Beach Hotel (its a Heritage property that dates back to 1890!). Before the evening had become night the number of Georgians had swelled from 16 to 30! The Coimbatore folks, JP, Raja, Kalayappan were there as were Baba Pujara, Maria & Nirmal, Ivan had come in from Kochi and some of the others from nearby like Kunjali, Ashraf and later Anil from Mumbai and my son joined the gang!! It was a lovely evening and the food that was on offer was typically Malabari stuff - Tapioca and fish curry and Chicken Roast was what I tucked into! Yep, my six pack was getting to look like a twelve pack! </font> <p align="center"> <img border="0" src="imagesKadavu/DSC_0012.JPG" width="780" height="518"> <p align="left"><font face="Arial" size="2">Late that night Mr Gardner and Mr Wood with their respective wives were coming in at about midnight - Sanil, Viji, Ashraf and I were there to receive them and ferry them to the Kadavu Resort - I went in the 8-seater Chevrolet Tavera with the Gardners and the Woods while Sanil and Viji followed in their car and Ashraf in his! As luck would have it the Tavera had a flat tire and it didnt look like it would be fixed in a hurry because nobody knew how to disengage the spare tire from below the Tavera!! So the Gardners and Woods were packed off in Sanil's and Ashraf's cars to Kadavu Resort while I stuck around with the Tavera driver trying to figure out how to fix the tire, which we finally did by about 0200hrs that night so I headed back to my hotel and tried to catch a few winks of sleep before the early morning pick up of Ma Lovacah, Suzanne and Rupa Paul who were coming in from Chennai. By about 10 am on 1st Dec we had ferried about 30 Georgians from all over to Kadavu where the registration team (all dressed in the gold bordered traditional Mallu Set) of Viji, Sudha, Mary and Sheila were collecting money and giving them their rooms. By around noon the rush at the registration counter was getting substantial! We clocked 102 registrations with 82 of them staying at Kadavu while 20 were to stay with relatives in Calicut. </font> <p align="center"> <img border="0" src="imagesKadavu/DSC_0015.JPG" width="780" height="518"> <p align="center"> <img border="0" src="imagesKadavu/DSC_0086.JPG" width="780" height="518"> <p align="left"><font face="Arial" size="2">Post registration and prior to lunch there was plenty of action by the poolside - it was full with Georgians making merry - throwing unsuspecting Georgians into the deep end! There's plenty of video footage about all this tamasha! Then we all gathered under the shade of some coconut palms to sing the School song to inaugurate the offsite reunion! It was followed by an awesome buffet lunch at the Uru Restaurant which overlooks the beautiful Chaliyar river - it really is a sight for sore eyes. After lunch the swimming pool fun continued - somebody approached Sattar and asked him if he had his cell phone on him and he innocently said, no, it was in his room, they then asked him if he had a camera on his person and he said no again! So then it was ok to throw him into the pool and that is what they did! Thamil was the next victim - thankfully I wasnt anywhere around or else they may have had to refill that pool!! </font> <p align="center"> <img border="0" src="imagesKadavu/DSC_0095.JPG" width="780" height="518"> <p align="left"><font face="Arial" size="2">Many Georgians opted to take their kids and families for the boat cruises on the beautiful Chaliyar river! Come 1730 hours some 43 Georgians gathered at the Chaliyar Hall in Kadavu for the Executive Committee Meeting of the OGA where, inter alia, we felicitated Mr Gardner on his receiving the DeRozio Award for Education and Human Achievement, we also felicitated Mrs Lovacah who spoke very emotionally about her experience of being in contact with her old students. </font> <p align="center"> <img border="0" src="imagesKadavu/DSC_0213.JPG" width="780" height="518"> <p align="left"><font face="Arial" size="2">By 1900hrs the action had all shifted to the open air amphitheater at the Kadavu resort where there was a beautiful Mohiniattam dance recital followed by an exhilarating display of the Kerala martial art form called Kalaripayattu by the CVN Kalari which is considered the most accomplished Kalaripayattu training center in the world. This followed by the live band getting into action! The band was led by Pramod Reynolds who had spent three years teaching music in St Georges back in the early 90s! There was also a presentation of a bottle of champagne to Mr G for his DeRozio award - ofcourse it was popped and dutifully by yours truly and sprayed all over Mr Gardner before he himself sprayed the rest of the Georgians with the bubbly! Santa Claus in the form of Anil Mani came by to give away lots of gifts to the kids of Georgians! Then the inevitable had to happen - Sudha and I, Viji and Sanil and Mr & Mrs G were asked to get on the dance floor and get the ball rolling! For someone like me with two left legs when it comes to dance the song seemed to go on for an hour!! </font> <p align="center"> <img border="0" src="imagesKadavu/DSC_0301.JPG" width="780" height="518"> <p align="left"><font face="Arial" size="2">The 1st of every month in Kerala is a dry day - no liquor is sold or served on the 1st anywhere in Kerala! Malabar Magic was scheduled for the 1st too but Sanil had prevailed upon the owners of Kadavu to make an exception for us OGs!! They were taking a huge risk allowing us to drink publicly but they did it for Sanil! Sattar got into his MC act and got the whole gang of OGs onto the floor of the amphitheatre and what followed was one and a half hours of great dancing! This was followed by dinner under the palm trees and by the poolside - I am happy to say OGs behaved themselves impeccably and didnt throw any more folks into the pool at night. After dinner folks hung around talking Ketti till way past mid night while others retired to their rooms. </font> <p align="center"> <img border="0" src="imagesKadavu/DSC_0315.JPG" width="780" height="518"> <p align="center"> <img border="0" src="imagesKadavu/DSC_0318.JPG" width="780" height="518"> <p align="center"> <img border="0" src="imagesKadavu/DSC_0379.JPG" width="780" height="518"> <p align="center"> <img border="0" src="imagesKadavu/DSC_0388.JPG" width="780" height="518"> <p align="left"><font face="Arial" size="2">Sunday 2nd Dec morning saw us awake late and drag ourselves to breakfast at the Ootupura Restaurant where reluctantly we had to start our bye byes! Another great Reunion had come to a close and it was time to go home! The Taveras were at hand to drop off folks headed to the bus or train stations. Sanil and I went about the job of closing accounts with the Kadavu Resort - we were short by about nineteen thousand Rupees and as we were trying to figure out how we were going to make up the shortfall we had OGs from all over coming forth offering to close the cash gap! Thanx to contributions from Anand Naidu, Sanjay Gulvady and Colin we could close accounts right there and then! That was a huge load off my chest and I'm sure Sanil and Viji must have been relieved too! All was well that ended well! <br> For the Chennai folks our train was only later that evening so we were ferried to Sayilen's in-laws huge house in Calicut where a massive lunch awaited us! There was fish, beef, mussels (in three forms), chicken and Pathiri along with a whole lot of other stuff to eat! Neetu's dessert had lots of folks asking for second and third helpings! It was nearing four in the evening by the time we were through with lunch that's when we were bundled into the waiting vehicles and taken to Sanil's house where a veritable tea party was laid out for us! By now many of us were holding our stomachs and wondering where all the food was to go!! <br> While at Sayilen's in-law's place we learnt that JP and the Coimbatore gang had had an accident with a bike in Perinthalmanna on their way back to Coimby - they had been taken to the cop station for investigation and that was bad news because every one of them in the car had had a bit to drink! A few calls from Sanil to some cop friends had it all sorted out and the Coimby gang were on their way back home! The things that Sanil had to do!!! <br> Sanil had organised for us to retire to three rooms at the Alakapuri Hotel so we could relax for the rest of the evening before we boarded the train for our journey back to Chennai. I got myself a much needed nap while a bunch of the Chennai OGs piled into Anil's room and continued to down their pegs! Some time into the evening Guru Anand revealed that he had gotten himself a massage by not one but two female masseurs at Kadavu which had a lot of guys groaning at the thought of what they had missed out on by not getting themselves a massage! They prodded Guru to tell them whether his massage had a happy ending and Guru wasnt about to reveal anything further!! So Guru has got himself the epithet Happy Ending Guru!! <br> Sanil and Viji saw us all off at the Calicut station with dinner they had packed for us - this is why I say these two had thought of everything!!<br> Happy ending indeed it was for all of us who made it to Kadavu! For those who didnt make it, all I can say is you missed out big time!! <br> Thank you again Sanil and Viji for giving us all so many lovely memories.<br> Warmest regards<br> Tusky</font> |
| Reunion 2007 - Ketti, July 13, 14 and 15 2007 | 2007-07-17 00:00:00 | Dear Friends, Greetings to all you fine people, my thanks to you all for the gift of your company during Reunion 2007! I truly believe that the ripples we send out through meetings and reunions like this will go out into the world and become tsunamis of good, positive feelings about our lives in Ketti valley. It all starts with a few people around the world beginning to talk about our days in Ketti, of the lessons on life that we learned and experienced back then. Meeting you all was an honor and a privilege. Reunion 2007 was one helluva re-union - 412 registrants coming from as many as 45 cities across 11 countries spanning the globe!! A Banquet and Ball that featured 376 people (when the number originally committed to the Fernhill Palace Hotel was 300!!) was the highlight of all the festivities - it went on till 0230hrs, Kalayappan and I got away only at 0330 hrs after finishing the accounts!! Ofcourse, the business end of Reunion 2007 was also very good. We had the 16,000+ sq.ft. OGA Indoor Stadium inaugurated by the Inspector General of Police and the Commissioner of Income Tax and the event was widely reported in the Press - there were Journos from leading papers Times of India, The Hindu, Indian Express and the Tamil press. There was also local TV coverage. I'll confine this report to a heartfelt thank you note to ALL those Georgians and their spouses who made this three day jamboree such a fantastic event - I just have to mention a few of the names but that must not deter from the fact that several others have contributed to making this Reunion such a fantastic event: 01. T(ireless) R(esourceful) Thamilarasu - this man is organiser par excellence 02. Jayakumar - this guy was amazing when it came to getting the Indoor stadium done in record time 03. Kalayappan - I could simply hand out a zillion responsibilities to this guy and forget about it all. 04. Rajashekhar - We could just leave the cash to his charge and be sure he'll account for every penny meticulously! 05. Jaishree, Cherie, Sheila and Sudha - I dont know how these girls manage to pull off the procurement and distribution of those thousand five hundred plus gifts at the School Fete - Raja, JP and Kalayappan were a great help with the distribution at the prize stall. 06. Mary Varkey, Sheila, Viji and Sanil and Anil for the amazing job they did in keeping the Memorabilia stall going at the Fete and Mary, Sudha, Sheila, Viji, JC and Hema (ARO) together with Raja and Kalayappan for handling those hordes of registrants on the opening day at the fork road and in the School Office. 07. Pat Kerr and Babu for getting tent city up on Friday evening in fast fading light 08. Sattar and Pravin Pujara for getting the Fete going and for arranging so many things for so many stalls - Paul, Bhageerathan, Vivekanandan and Murali Babu for their coordination in the Fete and other events 09. Pravin Pujara for the Barbeque on the night of Friday 13th 10. Joe Walmsley from Sydney, Australia for the great live music at the Breeden Hall social on Friday 13th July 11. Rajashekhar, Murali Babu, Pravin Pujara and Paul C for their individual parts in the AGM proceedings and JC for the minutes of the meeting 12. Sattar for the fun times he gave the kids in school at the Electronic Tambola sessions - you should have seen the fun these kids had! 13. Anand & Dinesh Naidu, Vijendra, Richie Smith, Rajaram for the cash donations towards the organisation of the Reunion 14. All those sponsors (too many to name but acknowledged in the hand out given in school at the time of registration) who extended themselves to help with printing, logistics, photography, PR, the Magic Show etc 15. Ashokan and Bhageerathan for the awesome fireworks display they put up for all of us. 16. The Aussie Georgians for the Hamper they carried all the way from Oz for the Fete 17. Rajeev and his wife as well Kalayappan and his wife for the games they conducted for Smith, Hesketh, Blackburn and Preston cottage kids I would be remiss if I didnt specifically mention the good wife Sudha for her terrific support and for putting her shoulder to the wheel wherever possible and in the process making so many Georgian friends!! To those not mentioned in the list above I humbly request that they please understand that I value each and every one of you for your help with so many of the countless things you got involved in to make Reunion 2007 one of the most memorable of reunions. Warmest regards Tusky |
| Cotton city chaos - Coimbatore reunion 2006 | 2006-12-07 00:00:00 | <FONT COLOR="#ff0000"><P>Friends,<P align="justify">I am back at work after an absolutely refreshing two days in Coimbatore and thereabouts amidst a huge bunch of great Georgians who made the whole experience almost sublime.<P align="center"> <img border="0" src="coimbyreunion/Coimby2006-AkshayaArunwithCollinsdaughterRiddhi.jpg" width="600" height="480"> <P align="justify">Ofcourse for us here in Chennai the reunion thingy starts a few days before the real thing with all the planning and the hooking up for the journey to the venue. We all landed up at Central Station for the Cheran Express, well ahead of time and found our train and coach without much difficulty. Its amazing how light everybody feels when they are headed off to one of these mega bonding events! Everybody is smiling and hugging and pulling an occasional leg! In the train its often chaotic because of all the alcohol-induced frivolousness. Ofcourse, the garullousness does get on the gizzards of some of the co-passengers after a time - by 2330 that night we had a passenger come by and say ' whats with you folks, dont you guys want us to sleep or what?' - well, we quickly decided to let sleeping dogs sleep and retired for the night.<P align="justify">At Coimby there was Baba Pujara, Jaikumar and JP to welcome us - lots of Georgian hugging and we boarded our bus to the venue of the reunion - Jenny's Club, some 10 km out of the cotton city. Its a huge place this club and we had fancy accomodation organised for us - superb rooms, typically four to a room but families were exempted from having intrusive company!! Post breakfast , great breakfast too, trickle of Georgians from Hyderabad, Bangalore, Kottayam, Calicut, Ketti, Ooty and the deep south became a steady flow and we had about 65 folks registered by the registrars JC, Cherie and Sudha. After registration some of us went to play a few tiring but refreshing games of badminton - I hadnt touched a raquet for 5 years but I managed to win a few games and lose a few too!!<P align="justify">Collin's little one Riddhi wanted to head to the swimming pool so she latched on to me to take her there - she looked awesome in her itsy bitsy pink two piece bikini! After the pool session we got to the lunch venue on the campus - it was a superb spread of some delectable grub - chicken, mutton, rotis, naans, veggie stuff, curd rice and salads!! Gulab jamun and ice cream formed the dessert. After something as lavish as that we had to retire to an afternoon siesta before the mandatory business session - the second Executive Committee meeting. The proceedings of that very well atttended EC meeting will be circulated separately.<P align="center"> <img border="0" src="coimbyreunion/BreakfastatJennysClubCoimby2006.jpg" width="600" height="445"> <P align="justify">Soon it was time for the dance, fellowship and dinner session by the poolside - it was beautifully lit and the blue waters of the pool made the backdrop absolutely superb. By 2000hrs that evening we had clocked up about 110 Georgians by the poolside. The live music was great and the dancing was feverish! Ofcourse before it all we had the Karagattam dance by some shapely, scantilly clad local dancers - there were rumours floating about the poolside that those lissome looking things were actually men with shaved legs!! Photos of all this will follow from the officially appointed photographer so hang in there till those photos hit these pages!<P align="justify">The dinner was absolutely superb stuff - the made-righ-there-at-site dosas were an absolute hit and with the jilebis and icecream there was nothing else I could have wanted!! The bar was ofcourse the scene of feverish drinking and by 2230hrs the fellowship was at its peak. That meant the poolside could be a dangerous place to be - a light brush on Jagan and he soon found himself in the middle of the pool, wondering what was happening around him!! Quickly Arasu found himself in the pool and before long Paul Chater too found themselves going in head first in a peculiar slow motion action replay format!! These poor folks ofcourse never planned on being in the pool so they had their cellphones on their person and that means a lot of electronics has gone unserviceable!!<P align="justify">We wound up the music that night when the other residents of the Club objected to the music going on till so late! But many of us hung around about the poolside to continue our Ketti talk!! The last of us straggled out of the poolside area about 0130hrs that morning!<P align="justify">The next morning I woke up with so many of muscles protesting but we had to check out early to catch the bus that was organised to take us to Georgian Rajaram's farm some 70 km away near Pollachi. The bus was followed by several cars filled with Georgians who were planning to leave directly from the farm to their respective home bases. The farm at Vettaikaaran Pudur was something out of Jurassic Park - simply awe inspiring stuff. The Indira Gandhi wildlife sanctuary borders the farm area and makes for great trekking country. A few of us actually did some of that trekking and enjoyed every moment of it even if we wound up having tired legs - we actually spotted a cobra, the giant Malabar squirrel, plenty of elephant dung, some truly exotic birds and millions of snails!! Some others among the 30+ Georgians there decided to take the jeep and head out into the wilderness - JC actually taking to the wheel of the jeep!! While and after the forays into the jungle the open air bar was in full flow - exotic stuff like coconut water with vodka, gin and whisky! There was even some nice home made wine brought all the way by Alice Grubb (now Hawkes) from Ooty.<P align="center"> <img border="0" src="coimbyreunion/Coimby2006-ArulKarthikeyantakesJCandMariaforaspin.jpg" width="600" height="445"><P align="center"> <img border="0" src="coimbyreunion/Coimby2006-CobraatRajaramsfarm1-noticethehood.jpg" width="600" height="445"><P align="center"> <img border="0" src="coimbyreunion/Coimby2006-Nirmaltakesacountrydyke.jpg" width="600" height="445"> <P align="justify">Soon it was time for a terrific spread of lunch - chicken and mutton curries with biriyani and parotas! After lunch the Gardners and the Hawkes' left for the hills and some of the Bangalore folks too left. Those that stayed on were treated to a few rounds of Arul Karthikayan's bullock cart rides - he is a veritable expert at handling bulls, complete with those strange commands Ho, Hai, Hum and more! After the bullock cart rides it was decided that we would all head to the water fall behind their home - a beautiful fall that leads on to a lovely rocky brook. We all piled onto the trailer hitched to his tractor and headed off to the falls! That was almost like a roller coaster ride for most folks on the trailer (I chose to sit atop the tractor's mud guard!) - the waterfall was simply divine. Even my none too adventurous wife ventured forth to base of the waterfall and fell into the brook in the bargain!! We have some great photos of all this. We returned to the farm by about 1800hrs and Arul Karthikeyan decided to operate the hydraulic mechanism on the tractor trailer to dump the whole gang of Georgians back at farm - you should have seen the Georgians slide down the trailer in a heap!!<P align="center"> <img border="0" src="coimbyreunion/Coimby2006-Trekkinggroup1.jpg" width="600" height="445"> <P align="justify">Come 1930hrs and it was time to board that bus back to Coimby to catch our train! Rajaram and Arul were great hosts, so typical of the Gounders of that area - they even packed some great Uppama and sambar for our train journey!! The journey back was, as always much quieter, people looked dead beat but smiling away for all the fun and fellowship that the Coimbatore Georgians dished out for us!! For those who didnt make it to Coimby, all I can say is you missed some great fun, fellowship and bonding experiences!! <P>THANK YOU ALL YOU GEORGIANS IN COIMBY FOR THE TREAT YOU GAVE US ALL!! <P>Warmest regards <P>Tusky </FONT> |
| Nivas Ramanathan discovers Peru | 2006-07-29 00:00:00 | Nivas Ramanathan has been travelling the Peruvian Andes and has filed a terrific travelogue online for anybody to check out. Click on the link below to access some great photos and stories of his travels in Peru. http://www.sixworlds.com/nivas/peru/index.asp |
| Pop Mac passes away | 2006-05-29 00:00:00 | Pop Mac (Mr. D.O.Mackenzie) passed away at the age of 93 in Bangalore. He spent many years in Ketti as Head Master of St.Georges and was loved and revered by his students, colleagues and friends. He is survived by his wife, his children David, Keith and Alison and by his grandchildren. |
| THANK YOU EVERYONE - Extended Version! - from Juene and Joe Walmsley, Sydney Australia | 2005-08-05 00:00:00 | Dear Friends, Joe and I arrived back in Sydney safe and sound with all bags and baggage accounted for complete with a little stowaway virus which knocked us for six after we landed! I caught the bug 3 days before I left, and envied Joe who was unaffected. Everyone around us were falling like flies with this flu bug except him. On the day we were leaving he was complaining of symptoms and I think he got hit after we landed. Both have spent the last few days in bed absolutely knackered. Still feeling woozy in the head, but other than feeling ever so lethargic and drained of energy, we are fine. Joe's still in bed and the Doc confirmed he has a virus. He thinks he may have a kidney infection! Me thinks his body is missing that Old Cask rum he enjoyed most nights! Just opened my email and had to wait for 1264 emails to download. Before I get stuck into reading all that mail, I need to send this email off to all of you. We have had the most awesome holiday in India and the highlight just had to be meeting with all you OG's in Chennai, Ketti and Bangalore. We thoroughly enjoyed meeting you all and thank you for making us feel so welcome and loved. There are several people we just have to thank publicly:- Anil - our first OG contact in Mumbai when we were sort of stranded at the airport after Qantas, Jetair and Sahara stuffed up our connecting flight! One phone call and you were there! Thank you matey, we were only kids when we last saw each other and thanks to this website, we just picked up the threads of conversation as if we had known each other all our lives. You were so helpful and dropped all your own work to look after us by driving us to Air India and making sure we got the flight to Chennai. Your son Niki is one super dude and we love him to bits. You have done a wonderful job as a single parent and you can be very proud of him. Pity about the Mumbai floods, we also were looking forward to seeing you both again as we had 6 hours to kill. Hope the rains have subsided and you and Niki have not been affected and are safe. That was quite a catastrophe. Joe and I were unaware of all the worlds and local happenings as we did not have a radio or TV that worked. We were completely shut off from the news. Tusky, Sattar - Thank You for staying up half a night waiting keeping Peter company and waiting for us to arrive in Chennai at the start of our trip. Arranging the several get togethers we had in the various Clubs in Chennai and going out of your way to pick us up and arrange drop offs etc. Thank you and Sudha for also seeing us off at the very crowded airport! That was an experience in itself! It was lovely to meet Sudha and Jenny and your delightful kids Sattar. Joe thinks the world of all you guys and gals. He was bowled over by the warmth and friendship extended to him. This is one experience that he and I will never forget. The memories you have all left us with are precious. Ivan - Thank You for the lovely surprise Indian Airlines gave us! I half expected you to surprise us from behind the cabin curtain. Your mates did a lovely job of looking after us and thank you for the upgrade. We were treated like royalty and they spoilt us. That was so sweet and thoughtful of you! As it was too late to have a drink, your mate packed up several bottles from the mini bar for us. We only took off from Chennai at 2am and had 20mins before we boarded Qantas, so as much as I was impressed with Changi Airport in Singapore, did not have time to do any Duty Free shopping. It's a huge airport and it's got to be one of the nicest in the world. Beats Sydney's International airport hands down. The only downside on our Journey Into and Out of India was the airport procedures. So many check points and everyone pushes to get to their reserved seats! I suppose after India's tight security, all the other airports relax slightly when they know you came out of India! Hope to see you and Bertha in Sydney one day?! Arun - Joe is really chuffed with his leather jacket and I love the handbag. Customs in Chennai wanted to know what I was carrying and I had to tell them that it was a gift and I was instructed to open it after I arrived in Sydney. They did not insist I open it, so I followed your instructions and it was a lovely surprise when we got home. Thank You to you and Shanthi and your gorgeous daughters Akshaya and Amritha. Thanks for seeing us off also and also for arranging that disco night at the Park Sheraton and the proposed picnic and cataraman ride which was cancelled in the end because the flu bug took me over completely. My brain was ever-ready for the adventure, but my body just refused to come to the party. Next year will be a different thing, but I will still insist on having my feet firmly planted in the sea sand while I wave all you cataraman wave riders off on your deep sea adventure! Cherie - Thank You dear girl for meeting us and taking us to Qantas to organise our tickets back home and sharing your day with us. I really appreciated your feminine company after sharing an apartment with 3 blokes for 10 days! It was nice to have a girlie opinion on my shoe choices and I will practice my P language till I see you next year! I had such a fun day with you. Joe is also very appreciative of the time and effort you took. It was lovely to meet your hub Mahesh and your delightful sons. To all you Chennai OG's and our first contact from the time we arrived, you guys sure know how to party. OG ladies and spouses - it was wonderful to meet you all in person - JC, Maria, Sudha, Nimmi, Suneeta, Sophia, Jenny, Bertha, Susan (Kerr), are just some of the names that come to the forefront of my exhausted brain - thanks ladies. We (Peter, Joe and I) have never felt so loved and spoilt at the same time. OG fellas - Lyndon, Paul, Collin, Pepsi, Babu, - thanks for being such super guys also. You are all a credit to the old school. Thomas Chandy - seeing you at the first Chennai get together was such a nice surprise. Next was the Ketti leg. What a blast that was! Emotional for me and mind boggling for Joe. Meeting up with Thamil, Ramesh, Baba Pujarra, Pat the Man, the Mani Bros, together with the Chennai and Bangalore OG's. Those 3 days were so enjoyable and I spent quite a lot of the time filming inside cottages. Just imagaine, I had not been inside the boys cottages during my time in school and here I was filming beds on which many a fantasy was fantasised! Howie, pity you were not with us and us with you when you visited Preston! I guess Mr and Mrs Gardner were instrumental in allowing us OG's freedom in moving around the school. Thanks to both of them for allowing us all to do so and reliving memories. I was very impressed with all the new changes and new buildings, but what delighted me was that all the desks from Smith House to Big School had not been renewed since we were there. Those desks must be close to antique by now! The school valley is still beautiful and Joe and I walked from the station filming every curve and smelling the pine needles as we went. Something about that pristine clean air and that 'foresty' smell that evoked even more memories. Baba Pujara - you were such a delight to meet after all these years. The years and L'Oreal have been good to you. We enjoyed every minute in your company and we really appreciated the time effort and money you put into making those 3 days for OG's so enjoyable. The fete you and Sattar sponsored and which was run by OG's and their spouses was one such event enjoyed by all. The ball at Fernhill Palace was fantastic. Venue and food was awesome. Sports day and trivia night was just as enjoyable. Pat and Susan Kerr and their lovely kids - Tent City was superb. I enjoyed sitting on that grassy mound and taking it all in. The setting was idyllic and so peaceful. The tales that came out of there was mind boggling and side splitting. What you did for the small kids and us big ones was very heart warming and ever so generous. You are indeed a quiet achiever and we wish you all the success in the world as you embark on your big record breaking adventure. Thank you for the beautiful medallion you gave me in Chennai, I will wear it and think of you. As soon as I download my photos, will post the one of me over your shoulder touching the Ketti signpost at the railway station. Anyone who can pick me up and haul me over their shoulders has my greatest admiration and is in my opinion the strongest man in the world! Jagan - my guru! You are da Man! It was a pleasure to meet you in the flesh. You have another disciple in Joe. He thinks you are wonderful and another human touched by the Old Cask spirit. Don't change Guru stay the way you are! Ajit and the Bangalore OG's - Thanks guys for putting on one great night for us visiting OG's. My throat which was already affected by the non stop talking and laughing, was shot to smithereens from all the dust on the Mysore-Bangalore road, but that still did not stop me and Joe from having a ball. It was a great turnout and we enjoyed the food and the night. Ajit you sure know how to put an event together in spite of your busy work schedule and traumas in your life. I am sure the Bangalore OG's are blessed to have such a good 'leader' in their midst. Gillan, Lindy, Matthew, and all the Bangalore folk who put on such a fantastic night for us - Thank You from each one of us who attended. It was lovely to meet up with Sherry Lee and her gorgeous little daughter who charmed the pants off us. Then of course, the Man Himself, Pop Mac. I had to hold back the tears when I first saw him but we spent the next 45 mins in their home enjoying his interaction with his granddaughter and watching his face light up when she came near him. You could almost hear his brain ticking over as he tried to remember our names. What a dear man. He and Mrs Mac look well in spite of their age, and Sherry Lee, we thank you for allowing us to visit and spend such a memorable afternoon with you all. You are one incredible lovely lady and it was a pleasure meeting you and your hub and of course DJ! Ramesh - thank you for being adventurous and taking us Aussie OG's on a private party gate crashing ride halfway to Mysore! I am sure the blokes we were following got cold feet and ditched us after a while. Howie's relief was immediate! At our age, we were crashing someone's private party - that too complete strangers! Glenn was most disappointed and I was curious to see what sort of re-action we would have got! After Bangalore - came Hyderabad. Doc Greene, I do apologise for not getting in touch with you. Those 2 nights we were there were choc a bloc with programs. However, we did get to see the veiled Rebekkah and the Woman/Man sculpture in the museum. We only had time to see those 2 exhibits. I found Hyderabad very clean and quite a beautiful city. Last of all, to the visiting OG's, Tinker, Glenn, Howie, Jonathan and of course the Sydney and Melbourne ones. We had a ball didn't we? Tinks dear girl, it was an absolute pleasure to meet you and share some good laughs. True, many of us fell foul to bugs and viruses, but in spite of all that we did manage to come up smiling. Glenn and Howie, thanks for making my holiday by being there as well. It was such fun having you all as part of the scene. Your presence did make a big difference and it's a pity you guys live in Perth and Tinks in the US. Talking of which, Philip K, and the Varkey Bros - nice to meet you all as well. Once I'm over this bug completely, will join you all in the Chat Room one Saturday night. To all the OG's on this website who could not make this trip, believe me you missed out on one terrific re-union. We are very blessed to experience the OG Hug for real, and to all the folk who organised the events and took part behind the scenes quietly and without fuss, a Mega Thank You for making it all come together. It's been such a wonderful experience and Joe and I thank each and every one of you for making our trip so unforgettable and special. Love you all heaps. Take care and love to the families. Big Hugs and Thanks from Joe and Juene from Sydney, Australia |
| Surprise!!!! My arrival in Chennai from Australia | 2005-07-31 00:00:00 | My attending the OG Reunion 2005 was going to be a surprise. Jaishree & Paul were the only folks who knew of my arrival though I felt a few sleuths were begining to read my clues. However, I arrive in Chennai and collect my luggage and get the green light to continue out by the customs. So I casually stroll out,past the sea of people who had all come to meet relatives and friends from Singapore, trying to find the Chater's friendly wave........ Nothing, absolutely nothing friendly....just this Dude with a camera filming me walking to the exit.....I looked back to see who he might be clicking and next thing this young guy blocks my way to enqiure if I needed help in changing money, hotel, women etc & a good time Thank goodness for the website as on a second look I notice who it was and yellowed out.... "F--K Arun its you." Then the Dude hidden behind the camera bursts out laughing, its Tusky & Sudha hidding behind his large framework,then another welcome yell from the midst of the crowd and PC & Jai's smiling faces appear. Was I happy to see them all. We then decided to wake up Sattar & Jenny, who felt they were dreaming with my presence. A few drinks and plenty of laughter till we called it a night. There was a party every night till our convoy left for the Nilgiris on the Thursday morning. We also met up with the lads from the Middle East, Oscar, Bob & Richard all keeping the OGs laughing with their yarns. We met Howard on the Monday night and Tinker on the Tuesday. They both were such terrific and memorable meetings at the Airport. However, meeting Tinker for me was very special as I had'nt seen my little sister since 1995. Then in the carpark Arun bails her up and tells her he is from the FBI and needed to check her luggage. For a moment there she froze but who can forget the Badmash's laughing face.......and she too recognized Arun. In Chennai we met up with Noel, Trevor, Peter and Johnathon, Juene and Joe over dinner at Sattar's Club before they took the train to School and had a terrific trip too and have plenty of pics and videos of their trip, which I am sure we will see too. Sattar also kindly organised a game of Badminton for Jaishree & myself at the Club. This practise helped me face tough opponents in Breeden Hall on Saturday in Viji, Kishore, Pat,Josephine, Sai hi and Jaishree. Thanks for the games guys....shall practise harder for next time. Wonderful hospitality was afforded us by all our OG friends and the families in Chennai. Cheers........Glenn Sargon |
| Thank you for the Happy Memories | 2005-07-31 00:00:00 | To all my OG Friends It has been over two weeks that I have been back in OZ and I have not had time to catch up with the OG mails . I came back to work and had over 200 emails to reply to plus the daily issues of correspondence and tedious long hours of work 7 days a week and I have been meaning to pen a few lines just to say Thank You to all of You for such a great gathering and time we had to gether . To th chennai Group Sattat, Jenny,Ismail,Saffira, Mrs Sait , Sophie,Adnan,Valiero,Tusky&Sudha,Paul & Jaishree, to the boys form Duai whose names slip my mind at the moment, Glen , Howie, Trevor,Maria, Cherie and your hubbies and to all the others whose names I dont remembr so please forgive me. Thank you for the most enjoyabele dinner and drinks at the Guindy Club. Sattar & Tusky you are a very good Hosts. I would love to return the gesture to all OGS in OZ. whether it is you or your family. A few of you have your children studying in Sydney and Melbourne.get them to contact me to keep in touch. or should they need anything or get themselves into any minor torouble To the Ketti Group - NRK , Chandrasekhar, Rajashekar,Thamil,Ashokan, Jenny Alice, Chris,Mrs Rickets,Eve,Gordon,Neelu,Anil, Romesh,Ajit, Mr and Mrs Gardner,Puji, Linda,Max,Juene,Joe,Johnathon,Peter, the Beautiful Charming and generous Tinkerbell and to all the other lovely OGs whose names I will mention in my next follow up. Thank you for the wonderfull time and Happy Memories and a most enjoyable time had by all of us the Fire works was spectacular and is on par with our Sydney Fire works on New years Eve. Ashokan you should tehnder for the Sydney Fireworks display. The Ball was fantastic and the Church service for thanksgiving for the finale. Thanks once again Love to all Noel French (Sydney, Australia) PS Tinkerbell The Draft has been cashed and I will be sending draft in Rupees to MR G as instructed ( Thamil thanks to you for being such a good president) |