Mission Updates

Blog: Week Four. Site: Patan, Kathmandu.

December 20, 2011 By Andy

Hunting for Fairy Tales of the Yeti

Blog: Week Four.

Date: December 20^th 2011.

Site: Patan, Kathmandu.

What I’ve done: Having travelled for four days in trains and buses on very bumpy roads I arrived in Kathmandu. I am staying at Sanu’s house in Patan and the house keeper Sanita is very helpful in our hunt. She has stories that she will tell us and I will put them on the website for you to read and listen to. She is also asking lots of her friends to help us. I have invited her to join the Guild of Fairy Tale Hunters along with Eric (do you remember him from my time in Kokata).

I met the teachers and the children at The Life Vision Academy, which is the school for Youth and Children First. This school is our team base in Kathmandu and gave them a big WELCOME ABOARD as they join us in our hunt. The schools in England can see the Academy in the articles and galleries. It will be very interesting and fun to see their art work too. I must go and buy some art materials to use.

All of the teachers are going to help me and the children are going to teach me Nepalese. We also have help in translating any local fairy-tales we find. The children of Life Vision Academy are from several different parts of Nepal, so I will be able to visit lots of places over the next six weeks here. You will be able to find the places on the map on the website.

I have spent a day only carrying my sketch book for a change and trying not to speak English, which was very difficult.

What you’ve done: I hope that you are enjoying following the website during your holidays and that you are able to ask your families to tell you old fairy tale stories, so you can bring them back to school in the new year. I hope that you are finding the website easy to use?

What I want you to do for me: I would like both schools in England to send me messages, articles, videos and pictures so I can show them to the children in Nepal over the next six weeks as we work together. I will also put all of them on the website.

OH YES…….Don’t forget to send me my next mission (that includes our new hunters from Life Vision Academy).

Where next: To begin creating art work and finding fairy tale stories with the children of Life Vision Academy. I will also show the children in Nepal the work of the children in Engaland.

I hope that you enjoy your holidays. Bye for now.

Filed Under: Control Centre, Mission Updates

Site: Nagaland.

December 17, 2011 By Andy

Blog: Week Three.

Site: Nagaland.

What I’ve done: here in Kohima I visited a school where sister Atula told me of her tribal home near Mokochung and said that I must try to visit her brother in the spring time when he will have collected fairy tale stories for me to take home to you. Many people here call me the alien, as if I was from outer space! They are very friendly to me and we are having a lot of laughs. I have tried to send you emails from internet cafes which are powered by batteries and home-made computers, but they are too slow to upload videos. Imagine making your own computer from scratch. The internet café was looked after by a child of 10 years old. Many children all over India and Asia cannot go to school and I have seen many many children working. Sometimes they are doing very difficult jobs.

I have met two people who are going to translate and email us local fairy-tales (one is about a wizard and a giant cracked boulder). They will talk to the elders and I was told to return here in the spring to visit their long houses.

I have received messages from the teachers in Kathmandu and the children there are very excited to meet you on the website.

I am always drawing in my sketch book and I use it to communicate when I cannot understand the local languages (there are over 20 in Nagaland alone).

What you’ve done: I hope that you are enjoying following the website in your classrooms and that you like what you are seeing. Your teachers are planning exciting things for you to do soon and maybe you have your own ideas of what you would like to see on the website, if you do tell your teachers. I hope that your fairy tale stories are looking good and I am looking forward to seeing them on the bookshelf on the website.

What I want you to do for me: I would like you to send me fairy Tale newspaper articles, so that I can put the on the website next to the ones I am uploading about my journey of discovery.

Don’t forget! Send me my next mission.

Where next: The long journey towards the roof of the world and the home of the Yeti!

I’m looking forward to hearing from again you soon. Bye for now.

Filed Under: Mission Updates

Site: Kolkata to Guwahati, India to Assam.

December 12, 2011 By Andy

Site: Kolkata to Guwahati, India to Assam.

What I’ve done: Discovered the best English translation book shop of all Kolkata. In the shop I met the book keeper and he gave me three special fairy-tale books, one that has story of a ten year old girl who saw the yeti. In the shop I also met Eric, who is also on an artistic hunt. His art is music and he is searching for an Indian musician and singer, armed with only a CD track, his accordion and his camera. He is very interested in our project and he is making a film of his journey at maybe-bangladesh.com.

I have two clues. The first is that the book shop keeper said to travel via Nagaland on my way to Nepal and the second happened when I met the great niece of Rabindrath Tagore who said to visit a very special Indian school in Shantiniketan created by a fairy tale writer, on my return from Nepal. Perhaps this will be another school we can link up with on the website? I’ve put both these on my creative map, you could do the same.

I continue to draw in my sketch book, take lots and lots of pictures and films, so keep watching as I send them across the world to you. Sometimes it is very hard to send emails or uploads from here as there can be no electricity or internet for many hours or even days at a time.

What you’ve done: your teachers have shown you the website in your classroom and I hope that you have watched it at home too with your families. Perhaps you could send me more stories from your families. I know that your teachers are now using skype so we will be able to talk to each other live in your classrooms soon.

What I want you to do for me: I would like you to remember the maps you created for me. It would be great if you could make a big one in your classroom and put fun pictures on it. Then you could send it to me and it can go on the website.

As ever don’t forget to send me my next mission.

Where next: into Nagaland!

I’m looking forward to hearing from you soon. Bye for now.

Filed Under: Mission Updates

Blog: Week One. December 5th 2011.

December 5, 2011 By Andy

Hunting for Fairy Tales of the Yeti
Blog: Week One.
Date: December 5th 2011.

Site: Kolkata, India.

What I’ve done: I landed safely and the family of a man I met in the sky on the way here drove me in their car all the way to where I was staying (the area is called Swiss Park). Then I slept for a whole day! I ventured into the colourful and noisy streets many times, sometimes getting totally lost and having to use the underground train to get home. I started by following your mission to learn the language. It is Bengali; though so far all I can remember is “dude” which means milk.

I’ve met some children from Tibet at an art exhibition and they say that I will definitely find fairy-tales of the yeti in the mountains where they are from (see if you can find their country).

I’ve taken lots and lots of pictures and films, so keep watching the website to see them as I send them across the world to you.

Oh yes I have to eat with my hands here (only my right one of course). Goodness the food is very hot and spicy.

What you’ve done: your teachers have sent me a lot of pictures from the work that we did together and it is great to see them in the galleries on the website. I hope you can see them in your classroom. You had lots of fun using your imagination to think about what you would like me to do and you started your own stories by drawing pictures and making sculptures (can you remember what they were?). Thank-you very much for doing your homework and joining the Guild of Fairy-tale Hunters I’m sure that you are proudly wearing your special badges. See if you can spot them in the pictures.

What I want you to do for me: I would like you to remember what the tools were which you designed for me. Maybe you could send me some funny and imaginative pictures from your schools so I can show them to the children here. Can you send me a message with the best ones and don’t forget to send me my next mission.

Where next: I’m heading to the book bazar to hunt for fairy-tale books then to catch the river ferry to the train station. From there I will catch the over-night train to Guwahati in Assam (try and find it on the map on the website, remember you can follow where I am on the map as well).

I look forward to hearing from you. Bye for now.

Filed Under: Featured, Mission Updates