Wednesday 5 April
Clinging on very, very tight

We catch a taxi to a delightful Kindergarten that Muslim Aid have arranged for us to work at. Cetki, the Kindergarten leader, was delightful and spoke good English, which was really helpful. We had been expecting only 25 children, and there were 75 – which was great, actually, in principle, but it meant we had not brought enough badge components with us, so while the children designed and coloured in their badge centres, and I started to make them up into badges, Hags was motorcycled back by one of the Kindergarten gardeners to the hotel to get more badge components. It was only the 4th time Hags had ever been on a motorbike, and apparently they went really fast to the hotel and back, with Hags clinging on very, very tight.
Children singing

After all the children had made their badges, we played some simple parachute games, and then the children sang us some songs, which was really nice. Hags did his show, which was a huge success. There were masses of teachers in yellow costumes, and they acted as cheer-leaders for Haggis! It was really lovely. Just before we left, all 75 of the children lined up and came and shook our hands and pressed them to their foreheads or their lips – it was very touching. We will definitely visit again when we return (God and funders willing!) later this year.
We go back to hotel – thank goodness for an air conditioned room in the hottest part of the day between shows! I catch up with emails and diary, while Haggis goes to buy more fuel for fire ending to the shows. We make more pinned badge backs as so many were used this morning and we expect at least 100 children this afternoon. We get 180 of each component prepared, so as to be ready for all eventualities.
At the biggest camp in the area

At 1.30 we take a betcak to Yayasan Lamjabat and follow the YL transport that is going to collect the children from TVR1, the biggest camp in the area, with more than 2.700 living there. We find Mustapha, the camp co-ordinator, and, with him, wait for ages to get permission from the “big boss”. Eventually the “big boss” sees us, and we arrange to do a show at the camp from 5 to 6 p.m. on Monday 10th.
Tiny audience
Back to hotel and more emailing. Our taxi doesn't turn up at 4.00, as ordered, so Hags rushes out to find a new one. This new taxi driver gets very lost on our way to the ACR Daya (Traditional Religious) school where Muslim Aid have arranged for us to do shows and workshops. We eventually get there at 4.40. There are only 14 children and young people between the ages of 10 and 16! We are told that a few more will be arriving soon!

We decide to start with badge-making, and as there is a lot of time, we let each of them make masses of badges – they are thrilled to bits! Haggis does a bit of juggling workshop, and then presses on with the show. There are now 18 kids and 12 adults – a tiny audience, but a lovely one. Eddy (who seems to be in charge) promises to find an audience of at least 200 from the community, to join the children from the boarding hostel next time we come. They really want us to go back, and we reallyn want to go back. It was a very sweet and intimate afternoon. One little boy rushed in late for the show, grinning widely to see what was going on – he was ecstatic about the performance - Eddy told us later that it was the first time Eddy had ever seen this boy really smile. All the children at this venue were orphans, who had lost parents in the tsunami. They liked us and we liked them – a very happy afternoon for us all!
A free lorry?
Doug and Ista of Amurt pick us up, very kindly, and take us back to our hotel. They both have very good energy and it looks Amurt will be able to fill lots of gig dates for us. They think they will be able to find a house for us to rent next time we come, which would make things a lot cheaper. They also think they might be able to borrow a free lorry for us for transport – it won’t be the comfiest form of transport, but free is free, and it could really help our budget, as transport has been far more expensive than I had budgeted for.
In a perfect world Children’s World International, in November or December, would like to work in schools in the mornings and then in smaller camps and barracks in afternoons. This would be a very good mix for us, achieving high child-numbers in schools in the morning and then reaching the most needy venues in the late afternoons. Amort are going to help us get into the schools, hopefully.
Doug and Ista are off to a big Peace Concert, but we feel too tired to go. We eat quickly at the night market (sate and noodles) and topple into bed.
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