5 Comments Posted on December 15, 2015June 22, 2016 by Reji Koduvath Canada, Travelogues

Icewine of Niagara

As one drives along the highway to Niagara, on to the West is the orchards and wineries. The orchards grow cherries, peaches, plums, nectarines and apples. The stalls along the roads in the country side sell their produce throughout the early summer to fall. Some orchards allow visitors to pluck the fruits, but all at a cost.

The wineries grow the grape vines vertically, unlike in most places around the world, where it is grown as a horizontal canopy. This vertical vine training systems is aimed primarily to facilitate photosynthesis without excessive shading that could impede grape ripening. The region has severe winter conditions from November through March and as the growing season is limited, the need for vertical vine training systems. This also facilitate mechanisation of tasks like pruning, sprays as well as harvesting the grapes. The grape bunches grow at about two feet above the ground and the leaves grow above it.

Growing grapes and wine making have been a tradition in the Niagara Region from the 17^th Century. European settlers who had been growing grapes in Europe, started with native grape varieties as well as the European varieties. They found that the European varieties were prone to disease and easily damaged by humidity.

Prohibition in Ontario from 1916 to 1927 did not affect the wine industry as the wineries were exempted from prohibition for export market only. After prohibition laws were repealed, the Government of Ontario issued a moratorium on the issuing of new winery licenses. This led to a decline in the industry and by 1974 the number of wineries in the province fell from 61 to only six.

1975 marked a turning point for the grape and wine industry as the government issued the first new winery license in the province since 1929. Since then, grape growers began to develop new techniques for better yield and to grow European grape varieties. The industry continued to mature and by the 1990s was beginning to compete on the global market. Today, there are over 180 wineries in Ontario, producing about 70% of Canadian wine.

The Niagara Peninsula is Ontario’s largest and most important grape producing region, producing more than 90% of Ontario’s grapes. The region is a narrow strip that extends 45 km between Lake Ontario and Lake Erie to the East and Lake Huron to the West. The fertile soils, enhanced by the moderating effect of the Great Lakes and moderate climate, combine to produce orchards and vineyards yielding fruits of unique character and supreme quality.

Vintners Quality Alliance (VQA) is Ontario’s Wine Authority, a regulatory agency responsible for maintaining the integrity of local wine production and enforcing wine making and labelling standards. Through origin verification, extensive laboratory testing and tasting by an independent expert panel, as well as comprehensive label reviews, VQA ensures precise adherence to rigorous wine making standards and label integrity that consumers can trust.

The Niagara Region produces three major types of wines. The Dry Wine – both red and white -makes up the majority of all Ontario wines. The most common wines in this category are Chardonnay, Riesling, Merlot, Pinot Noir, and Cabernet Franc. Sparkling wine is now on the rise and is made in the traditional way with fermentation in the bottle. Icewine is an iconic Ontario product made from grapes that have been left on the vine well into winter. The frozen grapes are pressed into a sweet, concentrated juice that produces a wine which is sweet but balanced.

Because of the lower yield of grapes and the difficulty of processing, Icewines are more expensive than table wines. The high sugar levels in the frozen grapes lead to a slower than normal fermentation. It may take months to complete the fermentation (compared to days or weeks for regular wines) and special strains of yeasts are used. Icewines are often sold in half-bottle volume (375 ml), and occasionally 200 ml and 50 ml gift packages.

When was Icewine was discovered? No one is sure about it. It is believed that it was accidentally discovered in the Franconia wine region, near the city of Wurzburg, Germany, in 1794. An unexpected frost froze the grapes, and the region’s wine growers wanted to salvage the crops by picking and pressing the frozen grapes. It wasn’t until the late 1960s that Dr. Hans Georg Ambrosi (“The Father of Eiswein”) began experimenting with Icewines in Germany. Germany and Austria continue to produce Eiswein but their moderate European winters do not always provide the cold weather needed to freeze the grapes.

In preparation for Icewine season, the grape vines are netted in the autumn when the grapes are ripening to protect them from being devoured by birds. In November, the grapes must be registered with VQA Ontario inspectors and the grape variety, acreage and estimated tonnage is verified. The grapes are then left on the vine until a sustained temperature of minus 8 degrees Celsius or lower is reached. Depending on the season, this could happen anytime from December to February. During the time between the end of the growing season and harvest, the grapes dehydrate and the juices are concentrated and develop the characteristic complexity of Icewine. Typically, a period of at least six hours is needed to harvest and press the grapes—usually during the night. Many wineries harvest by hand.

While still frozen, the harvested grapes are pressed, leaving most of the water behind as ice. Only a small amount of concentrated juice is extracted. Juice yields for Icewine grapes are much lower than for table wines. The juice is very sweet and can be difficult to ferment. High sugars can create a hostile environment for the yeast, and fermentation stops early, leaving relatively low alcohol and high sugar levels in the finished wine.

German immigrants to Canada carried on the tradition of Eiswein in their new country, with Icewine being made in British Columbia and Ontario beginning in the 1970s. With almost ideal climate conditions for the reliable production of Icewine – warm summers to ripen the grapes and cold but not too cold winters – Ontario is now a leading Icewine producer and has earned global acclaim for its Icewines.

Photos Courtesy Veteran Colonel Abraham Jacob and Major Shona George, Regiment of Artillery. Indian Army

5 Comments Posted on December 8, 2015June 6, 2017 by Reji Koduvath Canada, Kerala

Police & Media

It is a common practise for the Police in India to ‘show off’ their catch and also have the names of all the police personnel who participated in the investigation published in the print media. Luckily, the Indian Army does not follow this practice and one would rarely hear the name of the army unit or the persons involved in any such incidents.

Often the police parade the persons arrested, at times with their faces covered and the media goes full blast to carry out their ‘trial’ and declare the verdict. No one ever cares to issue any clarifications or do any sort of damage control in case the media trial is proved wrong. The way the media trial affected the Arushi murder case was well brought out in the Hindi movie made on the subject.

In case of the Sheena Bora murder case too, the media competed with each other to hype up the case and create a frenzy. There were always some ‘un-named police source’ that was quoted to give authenticity for all their saucy news stories, all in the name of Television Rating Points (TRPs). The media has not only put pressure on the investigating police agencies, but have also been successful in creating an opinion in the public’s mind that a woman, who could pass off her daughter as her sibling, ought to have murdered her.

After the police filed the charge sheets in the TP Chandrasekharan murder case in Kerala, a leading Malayalam Newspaper published an article on 14 August, 2012, with details of all the police officers involved in investigation and charge-sheeting of the persons involved. The details included the names, appointment, location and seniority. To top it all, the article was published with photograph of these Police Officers.

Why are they naming these police officers and compromising their identity and safety? Have you ever seen Canadian or American press ever doing this? When will these ‘James Bond’ journalists ever learn? Why is a reputed Malayalam newspaper publishing such articles? Is this the journalistic Dharma these journalists are supposed to uphold? Is it a deliberate leak by the Police to score some brownie points or for publicity sake?

These were a few questions which came to my mind on reading this journalistic blast. The way the media helped the attackers of Mumbai carnage (26/11) is fresh in our minds. If so, it is high time the Police across the country do a rethinking about their media relations.

The relationship between journalists and the police is a delicate one — a dance in which each party moves gingerly, trying to avoid stepping on the other’s toes. It is a symbiotic relationship in that the police and journalists need each other. But each has a clearly defined role guided by in-house policies, ethical considerations and time-tested practices.

The police disseminate information to further investigations, warn citizens of sudden dangers and educate the public about how to stay safe. In the Internet age, there are now more ways than ever for law-enforcement agencies to accomplish these goals. But police still depend on the media to quickly reach a large segment of the public.

Journalists are citizens, too. So they have an interest in informing the public and giving people the information they need and be responsible members of the community.

In Canada, the police take special care about their press releases and it is handled by a specialised Media Relations Team. This team advises on matters relating to media, community, public and government relations. They also develop, implement and monitor corporate policy, objectives and standards for corporate communication. The role of the Media Relations Team is to provide information to the various media outlets and facilitate the dissemination of information to the citizens that they serve.

Special care is taken by the Media Relations Team to ensure that the identity of their Police Officers is not compromised. In most cases we do not hear the names of Police Officers responsible for the investigations, let alone seeing their photographs. In many cases the information about those charged or arrested is not disclosed until the media relations team clears it. In case of minors, the identity is hardly ever disclosed.

In cases, especially those involving death or serious injuries, the identity of the victims are not disclosed until cleared by their family members. They uphold and respect the privacy of the citizens. In case of a very important case, a very senior police officer briefs the media about the developments.

In Paul Muthoot murder case in Kerala, India, the press briefing by a Deputy Inspector General of Kerala Police was so disastrous that it adversely affected the police investigations and the prosecution of the case.

Most press conferences in Canada is done with the speaker standing up including the Prime Minister. They follow a script and do not exceed the brief as given by their Media Relations team. In case of a Police briefing on any undergoing investigations, the brief ends with a thank you note and the speaker does not usually take on any questions. (Please read my earlier Blog : Stand Up While You Work).

In India, the speaker briefing the media is often seen sitting down and mostly without a script. There is hardly any specialised media management team. They end up adding spice and fat to the story and often add their ‘personal touches’. The speaker takes on questions and in answering them, often put their foot in their mouth. At the end of it all they come out with their clichéd excuses like “I was quoted out of context”, “the media twisted the facts” and so on.

One must study the operation to hunt Sivarasan and gang, killers of Rajiv Gandhi. Veteran Major AK Raveendran was the one who headed the commando team to capture Rajiv Gandhi’s killers. He has brought out all aspects of the operations in his Malayalam movie “Mission 90 Days.” The movie ends with a statement that the commandos would have captured all the killers alive had it not been for the delay imposed by former CBI director DR Karthikeyan, who headed the Special Investigation Team. Major Raveendran claimed that the delay was due to the chief’s media appetite to show up at Bangalore where the operations were in progress and earn publicity.

Let us pray to God Almighty that sense dawns upon Police forces of India in these modern day criminal environment and the press play a constructive role is safeguarding the citizens and the police. There is an urgent need to codify the Media Relations aspects for the Central and State Police Forces and also for the Army.

8 Comments Posted on December 1, 2015March 2, 2026 by Reji Koduvath Canada

Tap Water Vs Bottled Water

Our family friend, Major Shona George, during a walk around the city, was fascinated by a poster he found next to a drinking water fountain. He immediately clicked the photo below.

Tap water is regulated by Health Canada and the provinces and territories. The Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water Quality, spell out the maximum levels of potentially harmful substances that are allowed in drinking water. Municipalities test their water sources constantly to make sure that they are within these limits.

Unlike bottled water, the cities test their water quality on a daily basis. Toronto tests water samples every four to six hours and checks for more than 300 potential chemical contaminants. The results of this monitoring are generally easily accessible to the public, often on city websites or on request.

In Canada, bottled water is not subject to the same guidelines because it is classified as a food and falls under the Food and Drugs Act. Aside from arsenic, lead and coliform bacteria, the act does not set limits on specific contaminants but says simply that food products cannot contain ‘poisonous or harmful substances’ and must be prepared in sanitary conditions.

Bottled water producers insist they perform a comparable degree of testing on their water, as do municipalities, but the results do not have to be made public — although some companies post sample water quality analyses online. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) inspects and takes enforcement action “as required” if it becomes aware of a potential food safety hazard “via a complaint or other means.” There have been efforts to introduce stricter bottled water guidelines, but these have been stalled for years, largely leaving the industry to police itself.

Coca-Cola and PepsiCo, two of the biggest manufacturers of bottled water, have come under fire in recent years for not revealing that popular brands like Dasani and Aquafina are essentially treated tap water. Bottled water labels in Canada do have to specify how the water was treated and whether it contains fluoride and must list any added ingredients. Mineral and spring water must specify the mineral salt content while water that has had the bulk of its minerals filtered out must be labelled “demineralised.”

Some brands specify an expiration date, although this is not required, and there is disagreement on whether water — if kept sealed and stored in cool conditions that don’t promote the growth of bacteria — can ever “expire.” The industry has said bottled water has a shelf life of two years, but Health Canada suggests replacing water after one year while the US Food and Drug Administration considers it to have an indefinite shelf life.

As more consumers sip bottled water, fewer of them ingest enough fluoride to prevent cavities. According to the American Dental Association, if bottled water is your main source of drinking water, you could be missing the decay-preventive benefits of fluoride.

It is really hard to recycle plastic bottles. Most of these plastic bottles are not recycled and end up lying stagnant in landfills, on our streets, on the sidewalks, in parks, front yards and rivers. They end up discharging heavy toxins into the environment and also clogs up the sewage lines. They prove obstacles to the natural drainage of rainwater and causes stagnation. Stagnant water causes many germs to multiply and is an ideal breeding ground for mosquitoes.

These inputs prompted me to study the municipal water supply system in our City of Mississauga, which comes under the Peel Region and investigate the claims of the Government of Ontario.

Lake Ontario is the source for the Peel Drinking Water System. The lake water enters the intake, located about 2 km from the lakeshore and is treated at the treatment facility at the pumping stations. As the water enters the treatment facility, it passes through travelling screens. These screens prevent items such as fish, sticks and aquatic plants from entering the treatment facility and damaging equipment. Water is then treated by ozonation, reverse osmosis and carbon filtration. Prior to supply into the water supply system, water is disinfected by chlorination for inactivation of bacteria/ disease causing organisms and Fluorine is added for better dental health and to protect teeth from cavities

This water is then supplied through pipes, buried 10 feet below to prevent freezing in winter. Water in the pipelines is maintained at about 100 psi. There are three water towers in the city which are also connected to the pipeline. During low water usage hours, the tanks on the water towers get filled and they discharge into the pipeline when the pressure falls due to high usage during peak hours, thus maintaining the optimum pressure. There is thus no need for overhead tanks at the end users’ home as the city guarantees 24 hours water supply at optimum pressure.

As the water in the pipelines is maintained under high pressure all throughout, there is hardly any chance of muddy water from the ground getting into the pipes. Entry of dirty water or sewage into the pipeline is possible only when there is intermittent water supply and there is a crack in the pipe. The water in the pipe leaks into the soil around when under pressure. When the water supply is shut down, the pressure in the pipeline drops below the pressure of water in the soil, forcing muddy water into the pipeline through the crack. When water supply is restored, this muddy water in the pipes reaches the consumer. Thus one often finds muddy water flowing down for a few minutes when water supply is restored.

This is why the claims of the Ontario Government that the best drinking water is the municipal tap water, stand fully vindicated.

“If there were water
And no rock
If there were rock
And also water
And water
A spring
A pool among the rock
If there were the sound of water only
Not the cicada
And dry grass singing
But sound of water over a rock
Where the hermit-thrush sings in the pine trees
Drip drop drip drop drop drop drop
But there is no water”
—-TS Eliot (The Waste Land)

8 Comments Posted on November 24, 2015July 11, 2022 by Reji Koduvath Canada, Travelogues

Welland Canal

Visitors to one of the greatest natural wonders of the world, the Niagara Falls are often unaware of an amazing man-made wonder of the world, the Welland Canal, located close by, on the Canadian side. The Welland Canal is a navigational canal, 43.5 km long, crossing the Niagara Peninsula, from Port Weller on Lake Ontario to Port Colborne on Lake Erie. It overcomes a height difference of 100 m between the two lakes and bypasses the turbulent Niagara River and Niagara Falls. On average, about 37 million tons of cargo is handled each year through the canal, mainly iron ore, wheat, corn, soyabean, steel and cement.

The first Welland Canal opened in 1829, costing 8 million dollars, under the management of William Hamilton Merritt. It was originally built to solve summer water shortages that affected the operation of a mill owned by Merritt and later converted for passage of ships. It was 2.4 meters deep and consisted of 40 wooden locks. The operation of the canal required a great deal of physical labour as horses, mules and oxen were used to tow the ships from one lock to another.

With the increased traffic and to cater for bigger ships, the canal was reconstructed in 1842 and 1887. The fourth and current 9.1 meters deep canal was constructed between 1913 and 1932. There are now eight locks, each 24.4 meters wide and 261.8 meters long. The canal runs perpendicular to the Niagara Escarpment and is the most direct route of all three previous canals. The canal today caters for ships up to a maximum of 225.5 metres long and 23.7 metres wide.

There are about 20 bridges that cross the Welland Canal, of which many have been removed, some are still lifted and lowered to allow the ships to pass through. There have been a few accidents of ships colliding with bridges. On September 30, 2015, a German vessel Lena J, travelling from Montreal to Colborne (upstream), hit a bridge near Port Colborne, closing the canal operations for several hours.

The most popular position to view the lifting/ lowering operations is at the observation deck at Lock 3. It is co-located St. Catharines Museum and Welland Canals Centre. The history of the Welland Canal and the St Catherines Town is brought to life through various exhibition galleries at the Museum.

The most attractive one, especially for the students of military history, are the galleries that portrays local stories from the war of 1812 to the current day to life.

The ships are lifted/ lowered with the help of gravity and large quantities of water in a watertight chamber called a lock. The force of gravity is used to fill or drain a lock moving about 95 million litres of water in about 11 minutes.

There are no pumps used to either fill or empty the locks. The water comes in from the ‘reach’ above each lock . When a lock is emptied, the water goes into the ‘reach’ below the lock. A small amount of electricity is used to open and close the valves. It is an example of brilliant, yet simple innovative engineering.

It generally takes about 30 minutes for a ship to cross a lock, even though the actual lowering/ lifting operation takes only about 11 minutes. Most of the time is spent manoeuvring the ship into position and tying it up called ‘Spotting a Ship’. Smaller Ships would take a longer time because more water is needed to either fill or empty from the lock in order to lift or lower it.

A ship being lifted upstream would enter a lock with lower water level at the open gate and a higher water level at the closed gate. The upstream gate is closed, holding back the water that the force of gravity is attracting downstream.

The water level at the open gate is at a lower level, about 12 meters below the water level at the closed gate upstream. The water level between the gates are always in level with the open gate.

A ship approaching the lower end gate of the lock, touches the ‘sliding wall’, an angular construction about 200 meters from the lock. This sets the bow of the ship on the right course to facilitate easy entry into the narrow lock. Here the ship may berth to facilitate passing of a ship in the opposite direction.

When the ship enters the lock, between the two gates, the lower gate is closed. This makes the lock a somewhat water tight concrete lock chamber. In Lock Number 3, the ship is secured in the lock chamber by a hands-free system that secures a vessel by using vacuum pads mounted to a rail fixed within the lock wall. In other locks, the ship is secured by tying ropes on to the bollards. This ensures that the ship remains stable during the lifting or lowering process.

Once the ship is secured, water from the reach fills the lock chamber by way of a filling valve.

When the water level in the lock reaches the same water level as that on the upstream gate, the ship has got lifted by about 12 meters from the position it entered the lock. Now the ship is untied from the bollards.

At this stage, the gate is opened to allow the ship to leave the lock. Before the ship leaves the lock. it signals its departure with a loud blast from the ship’s whistle. The ship proceeds ahead to the next lock, to be lifted again by another 12 meters, until the ship crosses Lock 8 on the Canal to reach Port Colborne on Lake Erie.

The reverse process is followed for lowering a ship downstream. The downstream gate is closed and after the ship enters the lock, the upstream gate is closed. Now the water level in the lock is about 12 meters higher than the water level outside the downstream gate. Once the ship is secured, the water in the lock is drained out and with it the ship lowers to a level outside the downstream gate. Now the downstream gate is opened and the ship proceeds ahead to the next lock, to be lowered again by another 12 meters, until the ship crosses Lock 1 on the Canal to reach Port Weller on Lake Ontario.

The Canal operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, from late March until Christmas week. By then, the ice is usually fairly thick and at times the last ship requires an escort by a tug. From January until the last week in March, the Canal may be drained anywhere from Lock 7 down to Lock 1 to allow repairs or reconstruction works.

The total cost of transiting the Welland Canal can cost anywhere from $19,000 to $38,000 Canadian Dollar per trip and is based on the gross tonnage of the ship, whether wholly/ partially laden, the type of cargo in metric tonnes and the number of persons aboard.

The Welland Canal is important because of its ability to move ships full of cargo up and down the Niagara Escarpment and therefore contribute to the economic growth and development of Canada and the United States. Approximately 40,000,000 metric tonnes of cargo is carried through the Welland Canal annually by over 3,000 ocean and lake vessels.

The transportation of goods is not the Welland Canal’s only purpose. The canal’s water is a major resource for industry in Niagara, serving steel mills, ship builders, paper mills and automobile parts manufactures. The canal also serves the people of Niagara indirectly, by providing water for their everyday use. The canal water is also used to generate electricity at a small power plant. It provides recreational pleasure to all who visit and use its connecting lakes, waterways and surrounding trails. The canal area is full of activity with people ship gazing, fishing, hiking and boating all summer long.

Photos Courtesy Veteran Colonel Abraham Jacob and Major Shona George, Regiment of Artillery, Indian Army

7 Comments Posted on November 17, 2015December 16, 2018 by Reji Koduvath Canada

City of Mississauga Remembers Its Braves

The City of Mississauga observed the Remembrance Day on November 11, 2015 at 11:11 AM at the Mississauga Civic Centre Community Memorial at the City Hall. The wreath laying and the commemoration ceremony was held at the Community Memorial. The Canadian Flags in the city were lowered to half-mast in honour of Remembrance Day.

The Community Memorial consists of a black granite rectangular enclosure with 21 electrically lit candles. These candles represents the 21 gun salute to all the martyrs. Atop the structure, the inscription ” WE WILL REMEMBER THEM” is etched in golden letters.

The proceeding was lead by Honourable Navdeep Singh Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development and MP for Mississauga-Malton. Apparently we were the only two India origin attendees among a thousand. The City Commissioners of Police, Fire, Transit, Emergency Medical Services, City Security, all were in attendance. About a thousand people of the City of Mississauaga braved the chilly November morning to assemble at the Memorial to pay their respects and honour the veterans who made sacrifices during times of conflict and those who are still making sacrifices today.

There was a choir of primary school children from the neighbouring school in attendance. The schools are where the children usually first learn about who and what Remembrance Day is for. Schools, from Kindergarten to High Schools, go into why we need to give respect and they will usually have an assembly and a veteran or a serving soldier addresses the students. After the assembly, the first hour in class is spent on discussing the sacrifices made by the soldiers and the students are urged to come up with the details of family members, relatives or friends who served or are still serving with the armies around the world.

The ceremonies begun with the singing of The Canadian National Anthem. The poem, ‘From the Flanders Fields’, from where begin the tradition of pinning the Red Poppy on Remembrance Day, was recited. The oldest Veteran of the city, Major Robert McNally, a World War II Veteran, gave the memorial address to a standing ovation by the crowd. This was followed by the sounding of the Last Post with a two minutes silence. After that was the wreath laying and all the people trouped past the Memorial, removed their Red Poppies and placed them there.

The history of the City of Mississauga can be traced to the Mississaugas, an Ojibwa band, which migrated South and settled in the area around the delta of Credit River by the 1700s. ‘Mississauga’ translates as ‘River of the North of Many Mouths’. Through the ‘Mississauga Purchase’ agreement of August 1805, entered by the British Crown and the Native Mississaugas, the Crown acquired over 74,000 acres of land. This area came to be known as the Credit Indian Reserve.

The Mississaugas surrendered all their lands later to the crown through various treaties. This area today forms the cities of Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton and Caledon. By 1847, the Mississaugas relocated and settled in the New Credit Reserve near Brantford, about 100 kilometers South-West of Toronto. The British settlers started arriving by 1800s. They established the villages of Clarkson, Cooksville, Dixie, Erindale, Malton, Meadowvale Village, Port Credit and Streetsville.

By the amalgamation of these villages, the Town of Mississauga was created in 1968, and the City of Mississauga was incorporated in 1974. Today, the City of Mississauga has grown to be Canada’s sixth largest city.

During the World War I, it is estimated that around 800 men enlisted from Mississauga. There are stories about a football team from Port Credit, where all six members reportedly went and enlisted after a game. It is also said about an article in a local newspaper chastising the Streetsville community for having a lower enrollment than Port Credit in an attempt to shame the men of Streetsville to enlist. These brave men fought and died at every major battle, including Vimy Ridge, Somme, Passchendaele and Ypres.

Many war cemeteries in all the villages in today’s Mississauga, stand testimony for the brave deeds of all those who fought in the two World Wars and the Korean War. Some important memorials are:-

Streetsville War Memorial

On July 01, 1926, this monument was unveiled in memory of local veterans who died during World War I in the Village of Streetsville. This 17-foot high Cenotaph has been the centre of many gatherings and ceremonies over the last 70 years. The names of veterans who served in World War II and the Korean War were later added. Over the years, the Cenotaph and its foundation had deteriorated, and the City of Mississauga, assisted by a dedicated community of donors, undertook the restoration work. The Remembrance Day ceremonies in 1993 was conducted at the restored monument. On November 11 of every year, ceremonies are held in remembrance of all those who laid down their lives, the veterans and the serving soldiers of Canada.

Malton Village Memorial

The village of Malton played a key role in aircraft production and development for several years. This memorial is featured in two parts. First is the traditional cenotaph, second is a static aircraft displayed in the same park.

The aircraft is a CF-100, which was produced in Malton, from 1951 to 1958. It bears the markings of the 414 Squadron from CFB North Bay. A plaque on the cement pedestal gives thanks to the local production of this all-weather fighter from the cold war era. The CF-100 monument was erected on this site in 1974 by the Malton branch of the Royal Canadian Legion. The Malton Legion was also a driving force behind the 1978 unveiling of the cenotaph which pays homage to the war dead of Malton and surrounding regions.

Port Credit Cenotaph

Mississauga’s oldest Cenotaph was unveiled on November 9, 1925. It was designed and constructed by Louis Temporale who received the Order of Canada for master craftsmanship in stone masonry. It was built to honour the men who answered the call to serve in World War I. In 1946 and 1983, the names of the soldiers from the area who fell during the World War II and the Korean Conflict were added.

Solomon P. Ortiz, Jr, a former Member of the Texas House of Representatives aptly said “To honor our national promise to our veterans, we must continue to improve services for our men and women in uniform today and provide long overdue benefits for the veterans and military retirees who have already served”.

7 Comments Posted on November 10, 2015November 11, 2015 by Reji Koduvath Canada

Women Power in Canada 2015

On November 04, 2015 the twenty-third Prime Minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau, along with his 30 cabinet colleagues were sworn in by David Johnston, the Governor General of Canada. The swearing in ceremony took place at the Rideau Hall called the ‘ Canada’s house’. It is the official residence in Ottawa, the Capitol city of Canada, of the Governor General of Canada.

The Governor General is the representative of the Canadian monarch, currently Queen Elizabeth II. He is appointed by the monarch on the advice of the Canadian Prime Minister, to carry out most of her constitutional and ceremonial duties.

It was a historical moment for Canada as it was for the first time that the grounds of Rideau Hall were opened to the public to facilitate the crowds to watch the proceedings on giant TV screens. Rather than driving down one by one in their separate cars, as had been the practice in the past, Trudeau and his cabinet arrived at Rideau Hall together on a bus. They then walked up the long driveway, together, while crowds of onlookers clapped and snapped photos. Keeping up with the technological developments, it was for the first time a live video stream of the swearing-in ceremony was shared on Trudeau’s Twitter account.

Finally, but the most important aspect was Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s ability to fulfill his pledge of gender equality in his cabinet. He had 15 men and 15 women as his ministers. Many supporters claimed that it was a giant leap for the Canadian politics and that Canada never really had gender parity in the past. Many opined that it was a historic day for women and it would send a great message to the country and to the entire world. Canadian politicians have been often talking about parity during campaigns but actually ever implemented it.

On hearing the news, I was reminded of the conversation I had a few years ago with Mr Smith, an octogenarian who lived three streets down our home. He said that when the Second World War broke out, he was living with his parents and two elder brothers up North in a large farm. His dad and the two brothers left to serve the army in Europe and he and his mother were left behind to look after the farm. He added that similarly, most farms, schools, businesses, banks and male dominated jobs like bus/ truck drivers, delivery, factory jobs, etc, were all taken over by the women folk. As per him, by 1945, when all the male folk returned, they could never take back control of what they had left in the care of women and to the present day, this scenario continues. He opined that this is the reason why we have Hazel McCallion as our Mayor (Click Here to read more about Hazel) (now Bernie Crombie) and Kathleen Wynne as the Premier of Ontario.

When the Prime Minister was posed a question about the gender equality at the swearing in ceremony, he bluntly remarked that it is 2015 and hence he has 15 women and 15 men in his cabinet. Taking a dig at his predecessor, Stephen Harper, Trudeau said that Harper took oath in 2006 and hence he had six women in is cabinet of 26.

Trudeau’s emphasise on gender parity in his cabinet has invited criticism from many fronts. Some termed it as ‘tokenism’ where in the merit has taken a back seat. Some claimed that by not making better qualified and more competent persons as ministers, Trudeau has compromised on national interests.

His supporters on the other hand claim that the women appointed to the cabinet are strong, able and capable. They expect many to leave a mark and also soar to greater heights in terms of competency, recognition and accomplishment.

Worldwide, Finland enjoys the best female representation at the top table of government with 10 women among its 16 ministers. Close behind is Sweden with 52.9 percent female representation. Today Canada ranks in joint-third place with France. In the United Kingdom’s cabinet, only a third is women. At the other end of the scale is Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, with no women in their cabinets. The statistics on women members on public company boards is still low with Norway at 36%, Finland & France at 30%, Canada at 21% and USA at 19%.

Prime Minister Trudeau is 43 years old and most of his ministers are aged under 50. This reflects a generation change and a commitment to uphold Canadian values in general, and gender equality in particular.. Justin Trudeau’s father, Pierre Trudeau was the Prime Minister of Canada from 1980 to 1984.

Many of the women ministers have been given key roles. A former journalist, Chrystia Freeland is now in charge of international trade. Maryam Monsef, who fled Afghanistan as a refugee 20 years ago, will oversee the democratic reform portfolio.The Health Minister, Jane Philpott, is a family physician.

Jody Wilson-Raybould, a First Nations leader and former Crown prosecutor, was made the Justice Minister and Attorney General. Catherine McKenna, a lawyer with a graduate degree from the London School of Economics and an impressive background that includes experience in international trade and social justice initiatives, was appointed Environment and Climate Change Minister.

The Minister of Sport and Persons with Disabilities is Carla Qualtrough. She is visually impaired since birth and she competed for Canada in two Paralympic Games, winning a bronze medal in the 4x100m medley relay at the 1988 Seoul Games, and two more bronze medals in the medley relay and freestyle relay at the 1992 Barcelona Games. She holds degrees in political science from the University of Ottawa and law from the University of Victoria. She also served as a legal counsel on the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal in Ottawa.

Kirsty Duncan holds the Science portfolio, has a Ph D in geography and she taught meteorology, climatology, and climate change at the University of Windsor. She has been an outspoken critic of the degradation of scientific research in Canada with government libraries shuttered and government scientists muzzled.

In Canada, women have come to the forefront and Prime Minister Trudeau by his decision to induct 15 women ministers in his cabinet has shown the way ahead. With more women in Governance, are we heading towards the ideal of a more sane, compassionate and benevolent world?

11 Comments Posted on November 3, 2015September 30, 2022 by Reji Koduvath Canada, Travelogues

Niagara Gorge

Visitors to Niagara Falls, a geographic wonder, located at the border of Canada and US, generally view the falls and return without going into its geology and the natural history behind its formation.

Niagara Falls is the aggregate name for three waterfalls that structure the Southern end of the Niagara Gorge. The first person to see and describe Niagara Falls was Father Louis Hennepin, a French priest in 1678.

Niagara Falls is over 12,000 years old and were formed at the end of the last Ice Age, when the melting glaciers formed the Great Lakes. Water from Lake Erie at an elevation of 175 meters above sea level, flowed downhill towards Lake Ontario which is at an elevation of 75 meters. While the water rushed from one lake to another, the Niagara River, about 58 kilometers in length; a natural outlet from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario, was carved out. It is one of the rare rivers in the Northern Hemisphere that flows from the South to North. At one point, the river had to rush over a large cliff (the Niagara Escarpment). As the falls eroded over time, the Niagara Gorge of about 11 km from where the falls were initially formed.

The river formed the gorge, and the Falls has receded upstream and South toward Lake Erie, by slow erosion of hard rock on the surface rock of the escarpment and the relatively soft layers beneath it. The force of the river current in the gorge is one of the most powerful in the world. Due to the dangers this presents, kayaking the gorge has generally been prohibited.

The water that flows over Niagara Falls is greenish-blue and sometimes, after storms, which stir up dirt at the bottom of the river and the Great Lakes, the water briefly turns brown. An estimated 60 tons of dissolved minerals are swept over Niagara Falls every minute. The greenish blue colour comes from the dissolved salts and ‘rock flour,’ very finely ground rock, picked up primarily from the limestone bed and also from the soft rock beneath it.

At the Northern end of the gorge are two hydel power projects on the Canadian side – Sir Adam Beck Hydroelectric Generating Stations I & II. Adam Beck I contain 10 generators and first produced power in 1922 and Adam Beck II contains 16 generators and first produced power in 1954. Today, almost 2000 mega Watts of electricity is generated from these power plants.

In 2019, about 92% of electricity in Ontario was produced from zero-carbon sources: 59% from nuclear, 24% from hydroelectricity, 8% from wind, and 1% from solar.

On the American side of the border is the Robert Moses Niagara Power Plant and the Lewiston Pump Generating Plant, together generate more than 2400 mega Watts of electricity.

The falls still continue to erode, however, the rate has been greatly reduced due to flow control and diversion for hydro-power generation. Recession for at least the last 600 years has been estimated at 1 to 1.5 meters per year. Its current rate of erosion is estimated at 1 foot per year and could possibly be reduced to 1 foot per 10 years. Erosive forces include the action of frost from the spray, the dissolving action of the spray itself, and abrasion action of the softer shales by fallen limestone boulders.

The Great Lakes in general are very sensitive to high-or-low precipitation years, and this can affect the flow from Lake Erie into the Niagara River. However the levels have been regulated by the International Joint Commission (USA and Canada) since 1910.

The basis for determining the amount of water that can be diverted for power generation is contained in the ‘1950 Niagara Treaty.’ The treaty requires that during the daylight hours of the tourist season (0800 to 2200 hours local time, April 01 to September 15 and 0800 to 2000 hours local time September 16 to October 31), the flow over Niagara Falls must not be less than 2832 cubic meters per second (cubic m/s). At all other times, the flow must not be less than 1416 cu m/s.

From biggest to littlest, the three waterfalls that form the Niagara Falls are the Horseshoe Falls, the American Falls and the Bridal Veil Falls.

The Horseshoe Falls (from its semi-circular shape) lie generally on the Canadian side and the American Falls with the Bridal Veil Falls totally on the American side, differentiated by Goat Island. The best view of the falls is from the Canadian side and you can hardly see the falls from the US side. You are almost always guaranteed to see a rainbow if you are on the Canadian side of the Falls. The best time to capture this beautiful phenomenon is from about noon until sunset in the summer.

Niagara Falls by day is breathtaking, by night it is spectacular. Niagara Falls at night is well-known for the illumination on the falls with coloured lights coming from the Illumination Tower, located on the roof of the Table Rock Centre. The Falls are illuminated in glowing colours creating a stunning vista that can be viewed from near and far. The glowing waters against the dark sky elevate the beauty of the thundering wonder, making Niagara Falls at night unlike anything you’ve ever experienced.

A boat ride through the gorge to the Horseshoe falls (May through October) is indeed an unforgettable experience for everyone.

The greatest threat to the integrity of the Horseshoe Falls and the American Falls is rock falls. The American Falls has been the victim of many rock falls in the past. As the rock boulders collect at the base, it reduces the distance of the water fall and creates more of a cascade effect. On July 24, 1954, a huge section of rock collapsed at the brink of the American Falls, sending about 185,000 tons of rock into the Niagara River Gorge. Later, many controlled blasts were carried out to remove the fallen boulders beneath the American Falls.

What happens to the Niagara Falls during the freezing Canadian Winters?

Usually in January, after a heavy snowfall, the strong southwest wind breaks up the ice on Lake Erie and sends it down the Niagara River and over the Falls. The wet ice forced up out of the water below the Falls freezes into a huge mass, growing into a structure of considerable size and strength, called an Ice Bridge. In the 1890s, visitors to the Falls would often venture out on the ice bridge and many vendors would even set up stalls to sell refreshments. Since a tragic event in 1912, when the ice suddenly broke up and two tourists were killed, going out on the ice bridge has been strictly prohibited.

During the severely cold frigid winter days, the falls do appear to be frozen, but the water never actually stops flowing underneath. The Niagara River being an important source of hydro power, a long ice boom made of steel catches any icebergs, while ice breaker boats work around the clock to prevent the falls from jamming up.

On 29 March 1848, Niagara had stopped for thirty hours. The river bed dried up and those who were brave enough, walked or rode horses over the rock floor of the channel. Then, with a roar, Niagara was back in business. This phenomenon was due to high winds that set the ice fields of Lake Erie in motion and tons of ice got lodged at the source of the river, blocking the channel completely, until finally a shift in the forces of nature released it and the pent up weight of water broke through.

The flow over the American Falls was stopped completely for several months in 1969. The idea was to determine the feasibility of removing the large amount of loose rock from the base of the falls to enhance its appearance. Visitors from near and far traveled to see this once in a lifetime experience. On one side of the Falls only a trickle of water would flow over the brink, while the Horseshoe Falls were flowing stronger than ever. The project was abandoned seeing the high cost it involved.

The future of Niagara Falls is not easily predicted. The Falls of Niagara as we know it today will remain as it is for thousands of years to come. Erosion is the largest factor which will alter its appearance in the future. Some have estimated that the Falls would continue eroding Southward for the next 8,000 years at which time it would reach the limits of Lake Erie.

Perhaps the most realistic outlook is that the Falls will continue to erode Southward. There is no doubt that at some point in its future that the main Horseshoe Falls once it has eroded far enough South, will cut off the water flow to the American Falls. The Falls of Niagara will once again become one.

Archive Photos Courtesy Niagara Falls Library

6 Comments Posted on October 26, 2015October 25, 2021 by Reji Koduvath Canada, Family, Parenting

Nikhil’s Commencement

Commencement is a very special event for the graduating class, teachers, staff and the families of graduating students. The occasion is used to celebrate the achievements of students with many special guests in attendance. It is a formal celebration that has associated with it a high level of maturity and respect for one another’s achievements.

US senator Orrin Hatch aptly said about High School Commencement that there is a good reason they call these ceremonies ‘Commencement’, as graduation is not the end; it is only the beginning. It is one of the most important moments in a student’s life as it marks a transition from high school to university. Nikhil’s Grade 12 Commencement of the Woodlands School, Mississauga, was held on August 08, 2015.

The high school graduation ceremony in many ways is considered a rite of passage. It commemorates making it through the early, grueling years of homework and science projects. It marks the beginning of a new educational adventure.

The graduating students and the faculty wore the traditional black robe and the cap was not mandatory. The use of the graduation robe began in the Twelfth century. At this time no sufficient heating systems existed in universities. To ward off the cold, graduates started wearing long robes with hoods to prevent being cold during the long ceremony. Later on in that century, robes were made the official attire of academics.

The robes that students and faculty wear were modeled on priests’ traditional robes. Students once wore their robes to all classes and lectures (like Harry Potter and his friends at Hogwarts). Today robes are reserved for academic occasions, like graduations, but they still reflect particular academic achievements.

The square cap that graduates wear is called a mortarboard as it resembles to a tool used by masons to hold the mortar while applying it on to a wall. The term was first used in English in the 1850s . The caps became popular in the Fourteenth Century, when it was worn by artists and students, to signify superiority and intelligence. In those days the caps were commonly red in color to signify blood and life.

At the end of the graduation ceremony, many students toss their caps high in the air. This tradition was started by the US Naval Academy in 1912. Prior to the graduation of 1912, graduates of the academy were required to serve two years in the fleet as midshipmen before being commissioned as Navy officers, therefore they still needed their hats. The class of 1912 was commissioned from the time of graduation and received their officers hats, thus their hats were no longer needed, leaving the graduates free to toss their caps into the air and not worry about getting them back. The tradition then caught on at other institutions throughout the country. Now the action is regarded as a symbolic gesture of the end of a chapter in a graduate’s life.

The use of a tassel adorning a graduation cap only started in the last 40 to 50 years. The tassel was originally designed to decorate the graduate’s cap during the ceremony but it has come to have symbolism as well.

The gesture of moving the tassel from one side of the cap to the other symbolizes the individual’s movement from candidate to graduate. Prior to the ceremony the tassel is expected to be worn on the right. During the ceremony it should be moved to the left side after students receive their diploma.

The Commencement ceremony was a reunion for Nikhil and his friends as it was over a month into their university studies. Everyone appeared to be exchanging notes about their universities, classes and new friends. It began at 7 PM with the Academic procession, being lead by the Principal, followed by the two Vice-Principals, Heads of Departments, Ms Andrea Pils and Nikhil, being the valedictorian.

Ms Andrea Pils, Nikhil’s French teacher, was nominated by Nikhl to introduce him prior to his valedictory address. Ms Pils is the only teacher who taught him for all the three high school years and she was the one who recommended Nikhil for the cultural and educational exchange programme in France based on his performance in French. As per Nikhil, one month he spend in Nantes, France with the Le Floch family was very fruitful and memorable. It was not only an important career milestone, but also a personal one for him. It had a telling impact on Nikhil’s outlook and conduct.

The ceremony commenced with the Canadian Anthem followed by the Principal’s address. Then it was the distribution of degrees to the students who marched up the stage as their name was announced. It was a moment of pride for the student as well as the parents, who looked on with a sense of achievement as the first academic degree was conferred on their child. Along with the degrees, various prizes for outstanding achievements were also given to the students.

The high school diplomas were presented to each student as a roll tied with a string. In the earlier days, diplomas were made of sheepskin, hand-written, rolled and tied with a ribbon and from here originated the saying ” hang your sheepskin on the wall”. It was a phrase to represent showing your education. Many academic institutions still continue with this tradition and some have changed to handing over the certificate in a folder.

Click Here to watch Introduction by Ms Andrea Pils

After all the diplomas and awards were presented to the students, Ms Pils introduced Nikhil as the Valedictorian for the graduating class of 2015.

The Valedictorian delivers a speech known as the ‘valediction’ to his fellow classmates on behalf of them. Nikhil’s speech covered the ups and downs they have all gone through, and provided a humorous and youthful insight of a hopeful future. At the end of the speech, there was a standing ovation as a recognition of his outstanding efforts and success in academic life.

5 Comments Posted on October 19, 2015June 22, 2016 by Reji Koduvath Canada, Family, Travelogues

Algonquin Park – A Riot of Fall Colours

We along with Stephens went ahead with our plans to camp in the Algonquin Provincial Park and celebrate the Thanks Giving Day of 2015. (Please click here to read more about Thanks Giving Day). The children were excited about the camping and visit to the park to view the fall colours, especially after the good times they had in the summer camp in Northern Ontario.
Algonquin Provincial Park, about 7,600 square kilometres in area, is located between Georgian Bay and the Ottawa River in Central Ontario, Canada. Over 2,400 lakes and 1,200 kilometres of streams and rivers, formed by the retreat of the glaciers during the last ice age, are located within the park. The park is in an area of transition between Northern coniferous forest and Southern deciduous forest. There are over 1,200 campsites in eight designated campgrounds. I booked the Campsite # 45 at Achray Campgrounds in July for the October camping. Most camping sites are booked well in advance as only the early birds will catch the prey. The best time to view the fall colours in the park is during the Thanks Giving long weekend and the traffic on the roads are heavy with campers and tourists. After this weekend, the camp is closed to visitors and campers.

(Image Courtesy Google)
Achray Campground was selected because it was well into the interior of the park with no electricity and cell-phone coverage and also for the view it offered. Achray Campground is located on the East side of Algonquin Provincial Park at the southeast end of Grand Lake. The drive from Toronto took about 7 hours with the last 50 km accessed via a gravel road.
On entering the park, all vehicles and visitors have to register at the main gate and obtain necessary permits and passes. The park staff will brief about the rules to be followed, Do’s and Don’t’s, procedure for garbage disposal, etc. After the registration, we drove about 25 kms on the gravel road to the Achray Campgrounds. The store in the campground, the ‘Stone House’, was part of a railway depot complex that was built in the 1930’s, made with stone quarried on the opposite shore of Grand Lake. The store offers canoe rentals, ice, firewood, chips, chocolate bars, camper’s supplies and park merchandise.

We settled down at our campsite and after a sumptuous lunch, embarked on to the Jack Pine trail, in search of the place where Tom Thompson painted his famous painting ‘The Jack Pine’ which hangs in the National Gallery. Thomson worked as a fire ranger at Achray in 1916. We reached the spot marked with a plaque where the pine was (tree has since died), which inspired the artist.

The walk up to the plaque was mesmerising with the vivid red, yellow and orange colours the leaves of the deciduous trees – maples, birches, poplars, tamarack, etc – had turned into. The coniferous trees with their green needles added variety. The varied colored leaves and the brown pine needles that had fallen on the ground and in the cracks in the rocks provided an interesting view.

The green leaf colour comes from pigments of chlorophyll, used by the trees to make food with the help of sunlight. There are other pigments namely carotenoids and anthocyanins present in the leaves, but are overshadowed by the chlorophyll in the spring and summer. Carotenoids create bright yellows and oranges like in corn, carrots, and bananas. Anthocyanins impart red colour to fruits like cranberries, red apples, cherries, strawberries, etc.

In the fall, trees break down the green pigments and nutrients stored in the leaves. The nutrients are shuttled into the roots for reuse in the spring. Some tree leaves turn mostly brown, indicating that all pigments are gone. Trees respond to the decreasing amount of sunlight by producing less and less chlorophyll and eventually stops producing chlorophyll. Now the carotenoid in the leaves show through and the leaves become a bright cascade of various shades of glowing yellows.

The fall season being characterised by short days and longer and cooler nights. When a number of warm, sunny autumn days and cool but not freezing nights come one after the other, the Maple leaves produce lots of sugar, but the cool night temperatures prevent the sugar sap from flowing through the leaf veins and down into the branches and trunk. The anthocyanins are now produced by the leaves for protection. They allow the plant to move down the nutrients in the leaves to the roots, before they fall off. The nutrients stored in the roots help the trees to sprout out their leaves in the coming spring. During this time, the anthocyanins give leaves their bright, brilliant shades of red, purple and crimson.

In a maple or a birch tree, the tender thin leaves, made up of cells filled with water sap, will freeze in winter. Any plant tissue incapable of living through the winter must be sealed off and shed to ensure the tree’s survival. As sunlight decreases in autumn, the veins that carry sap into and out of a leaf gradually close. A layer of cells, called the separation layer, forms at the base of the leaf stem. When this layer is complete, the leaf is separated from the tissue that connected it to the branch, and it falls. Coniferous trees like pines, spruces, cedars and firs, don’t lose their leaves, or needles, in winter. The needles are covered with a heavy wax coating and the fluids inside the cells contain substances that resist freezing. Evergreen leaves can live for several years before they fall off.
It is easy to track the changing colours on the Ontario Parks’ website with suggestions for the best viewing locations and links to ‘Great Fall Drives’ around each park. There’s also the Ontario Tourism’s fall colour report starting soon at http://www.ontariotravel.net.

In the evening, we celebrated the Thanks Giving with a dinner – but not with the traditional Turkey Dinner, but with chicken barbeque.
As per the old military adage, I decided to take a different route on our way back home the next day. The route was mostly through the country roads up to Peterborough. The roads passed through many townships, all dependant on agriculture and diary interspersed with few timber mills to convert the abundantly available wood into lumber. The region was hilly with many streams and small lakes and again a spectacular display of fall colours.

4 Comments Posted on October 14, 2015August 26, 2016 by Reji Koduvath Canada

Yogapalooza and Lululemon

Toronto city takes pride in hosting Yogapalooza, a celebration of Yoga, movement, music and meditation. Yoga, dance, martial arts and live music come together for an uplifting community experience. The festival started with Salimah Kassim-Lakha’s vision of bringing people from all walks of life together to share the benefits of the practice.

The first Yogapalooza happened at the Pride Festival in Toronto at Queens Park in 2010. Now Yogapalooza has grown into a multi dimensional festival championed by many. The flagship event takes place at Toronto’s Harbourfront in the third weekend of August. The festival offers free classes for families, those new to yoga, and experienced yogis which all will enjoy.

Many class experiences are on offer over the course of the two-day festival, providing the best opportunity for exploring different levels of Yoga, especially for beginners new to the lifestyle. Different kinds of yoga, including Hatha Yoga, Laughter Yoga and Kundalini Yoga are showcased. Guests can groove to the sounds of the drumming circle, stretch out their stress, and connect to their playful side through yoga, martial arts, dance and music. It includes a kids’ yoga space, wholesome marketplace, community booths, live music and more.

Yogapalooza serves to uplift individuals, families and communities with a mission to inspire connections though consciousness and open hearts. The festival to celebrate the age old Indian traditional Yoga is taking place in Toronto when remote Indian towns (including our town Kottayam) are celebrating opening of a new McDonalds or Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) outlet with mile long queues of the young generation.

Here is a great success story of Lululemon Athletica, a Vancouver (Canada) based company catering for Yoga apparels and equipment. The company generates over a billion dollars in revenue and has over 200 outlets in Canada, US, Australia and New Zealand.After 20 years in the surf, skate and snowboard business, Chip Wilson took the first commercial yoga class offered in Vancouver and found the result exhilarating. The post-yoga feeling was so close to surfing and snowboarding that it seemed obvious to him that yoga was an ideology whose time had come again.

Even though Yoga does not require the Yogis to wear any special clothing or shoes, most Yogis in North America were wearing cotton clothing which seemed completely inappropriate to Chip Wilson, whose passion lay in technical athletic fabrics. From this, a design studio was born that became a yoga studio at night to pay the rent. Clothing was offered for sale and an ‘underground’ yoga clothing movement was born. The success of the clothing was dependent on the feedback from yoga instructors who were asked to wear the products and provide their insights.

Founded in 1998, Lululemon’s first real store opened in the beach area of Vancouver called Kitsilano, in November of 2000. The idea was to have the store be a community hub where people could learn and discuss the physical aspects of healthy living from yoga and diet to running and cycling as well as the mental aspects of living a powerful life of possibilities. Unfortunately for this concept, the store became so busy that it was impossible to help the customer in this way and also sell their products.

So the focus of training shifted solely to the Lululemon educator or staff person. The goal was to train people so well that they could in fact positively influence their families, communities and the people walking into the stores. Although the initial goal was to only have one store, it was soon obvious that there was a huge demand for their products as the Yoga Craze had gripped the entire North America by then.

Lululemon Athletica during that time has gone from complete obscurity to now defining and dominating their category. In the process, they have taken away a significant market share from the brands like Nike, Adidas, Puma and Reebok. Unlike these mega-brands, Lululemon have chosen not to spend millions of dollars to sponsors like a Michael Jordan or David Beckham, instead have wisely opted for a more local approach. They identified 20 most respected yoga teachers, personal trainers and fitness leaders in the area and give them a couple of free shirts and bottoms. Simple enough, but they did not stop there.

They then took professional photos of these influencers and blew them up onto massive canvases to display in their stores. The ‘models’ now appeared as celebrities and this increased their credibility as respected and valued members of the community. Plus, because they contain captions such as, ‘Dana Cope, Owner of Chatswood Yoga’ it is free advertising for the local trainers which helped them to grow their business. The combination of free product, free exposure and the more subtle benefit of appreciation, meant these local identities become fiercely loyal and wear only Lululemon clothes.

As their business grew, more people saw and wanted the gear worn by their trainers, which led to hordes of new people into Lululemon stores. An excellent win-win scenario was born. Even though most of their products are high priced, they are in great demand as their business turnover proves.

Yoga for sure has been exploited by the North Americans in a great way to turn out Yoga teaching centers, apparels and equipment. Now let us watch out for the next Indian item on the agenda, waiting to be exploited by the North Americans.

5 Comments Posted on October 7, 2015August 14, 2025 by Reji Koduvath Canada, Parenting

Four-Year Undergraduate Programme

Education in Canada aims at developing all-rounded personality of a student. Graduation is the stepping stone to the employment market. Why does Canada/USA have four year graduation courses? After analysing the curricula our daughter and her friends went through for graduation in life sciences in Canada, my observations are as given below.

Finances. The students being over 18 years of age want to be financially independent and do not want to depend on their parents. All of the students I met (including our daughter) had taken student loans to pay for their education. As they were paying for it with their own money, they wanted each and every penny to be counted, resulting in no bunking or whiling away time in the class – every minute had been paid for by them (not by the parents.)

Part-Time Work. Most students undertook part-time work (our daughter taught in the tuition centre for 10 hours a week) to pay for their other expenses that is not met from the student loans. Studies have proven that the students who take up part-time jobs are more dedicated to their studies, better at time management and outperform the students who do not take up part-time jobs.

Every Academic Year is Three Semesters Effectively. The academic year commences in September with the first semester and the second semesters beginning in January and ending by April. The period between May to August may be called summer vacation, but is used up to complete any particular requisite course(s) which could not be taken during the two semesters or pursue a course of interest. Students use this time to volunteer both within and outside the country or join a research team, or work for four months to make money and also to gain experience. Many employers like the government, city, private institutions that conduct summer camps, etc, earmark jobs for the university students. They work as swimming instructors, life guards, kids’ camp guides, area cleaners, gardeners, etc.

Course Content. I was flabbergasted to see our daughter taking Bollywood Music and Prem Chand Kahaniya as optional subjects in the second and third year as part of a life science course. I am sure no Indian Universities would be offering such subjects. Here the students have a variety of courses to choose from and there are different pre-requisites for post graduation in different universities.

Assignments. Assignments typically consist of 15- 20 % of the total grade. One cannot get away by copying assignment from friends. Plagiarism is very serious and may even result in failing the course. Original works and ideas are well rewarded. Assignments are given every week or at least once every 15 days and are mostly corrected by the Teaching Assistants (TAs) of the professor. TA is generally a research student under that professor and the TA makes some money by assisting the professor.

Tests. There are anywhere from two to four tests in a semester. The midterm tests range from 25 to 40 % each. The weightage for the tests are about 50 – 80% depending on the professor. The key point is you do not lose all your points if you miss your final. So, if you get sick or have issues with some chapters, you are not penalised for that. The risk is evenly distributed. The catch is, you are forced to study all through the semester because you have tests every 4 to 6 weeks depending on number of tests. Some tests are comprehensive, but most are only part of the text. It all depends on the professor. The key thing is, Professor who teaches the class dictates the rules of tests and he is a God for the students.

Quizzes: The quizzes are quite important and are sometimes online and sometime they are pop-quizzes or surprise quizzes in class. The weightage for quizzes can be from 5 – 20 %. So, you have to be prepared every time with previous class material.

Group Projects and Individual Projects. They can be from 20 – 40% of the grade. The goal is that the professor wants the students to apply what they learned in the class. There are two types of projects. Group projects as name says, will be between 2 – 5 people. Individual projects, you only work on it. In either case, you end up giving final presentation in the class. The presentation skills are developed in the students from high school onward and they are well trained in executing group and individual projects.

Term Papers. Some classes do not have anything other than writing papers after extensive research. The research paper has to be based on a given format with full citations. One will have to follow the APA or any other similar format as per the university policy (it starts from High School here). For arts and literature classes, there will not be any exams like mid terms and they usually have two or three papers to write during semester.

Class Participation. There is about 5 – 15 % of marks for class participation. The students have to actively participate in discussions and hence have to be fully prepared for each class. The TAs sitting behind the class do the marking and the professor will award the final marks.

Co-op. This is where the industry and the academic institution come together to offer the students a chance to work in the industry during graduation. In some universities it is mandatory for all students to take up co-op assignments. This ensures that education remains at par with the developments in the industry. The curriculum aims to provide the students exposure of actual industrial and business processes. Students’ projects are mostly related to real problems identified with the industry/ business.

Recommendations. For applying for any job, even part-time or for a post graduate course, it is mandatory to provide recommendations of two to three professors. In case you are not well known to them, the professor would end up saying that he/she is not comfortable giving the recommendations. It is not all that easy to buy these recommendations.

The economic progress of a country is strongly linked with the quality of education. The Canadian education system from school level onward undertake periodic review of the curriculum and subject content to ensure that they are up to date and not outmoded or obsolete. They also ensure that the system effectively fulfills the requirements of the country in creating valuable citizens for the future. Norms and standards of education are set up so as to educate the students with appropriate skills suitable for a rapidly changing economic scenario.

We will always get an education system we deserve and not what we desire.

4 Comments Posted on October 6, 2015February 5, 2018 by Reji Koduvath Canada, Family, Travelogues

The Longwood Gardens

Visiting Marina’s sister Charm and her husband Cherian at Delaware, USA, every summer for the past decade, we always plan to visit the Longwood Gardens. The visit materialised only in the summer of 2015. The Longwood Gardens, one of the world’s greatest gardens of today, was established by Mr Pierre Du Pont when he purchased Peirce’s Park in 1906 in order to save the trees in the park. The park owner had contracted a lumber mill operator to remove the trees from the park.

Mr Du Pont was born in 1870 in Delaware, USA. He was president of the world famous DuPont Company from 1915 to 1919, and served on its Board of Directors until 1940. He also managed General Motors from 1915-1920, became GM’s president in 1920 and served on GM’s Board of Directors until 1928.

During his early years in Wilmington, Delaware, he was influenced by the area’s natural beauty and by the Du Pont family’s long tradition of gardening. His jobs took him to Europe many a times and he was always exposed to a wide variety of garden settings, fountains, grand architecture and the latest technology.

After buying the Peirce’s Park at the age of 36, Pierre started to create a garden, which today is the Longwood Garden. He built the gardens piecemeal, beginning with the Flower Garden Walk and he followed no grand plan or design. He added an open-air theatre in 1912, inspired by an outdoor theatre near Siena, Italy. He then added the “secret” fountains that drenched the unaware visitors.

As a wedding gift to Alice Belin, whom he married 1915, he added a conservatory – Longwood’s first “winter garden” and planted exotic foliage and created a small marble fountain. In 1921, he opened the Conservatory, a perpetual Eden which used the latest technology of the day to heat, water, and power the complex. All the systems were hidden in tunnels so as not to detract from the grandeur of the glass-covered and surrounding rooms. He then opened the greenhouse to the public.

By the mid-1930s, Longwood had grown from the original 202 acres to over 1000 acres due to Pierre’s purchase of 25 contiguous properties over the years. Today the Longwood Gardens has a yearly budget of nearly $50 million and a staff of 1,300 employees, students, and volunteers. Longwood is continuously evolving to become one of the world’s greatest gardens. The garden is open to visitors year-round to enjoy exotic plants and horticulture, events and performances, seasonal and themed attractions, educational lectures, courses, and workshops.

The Longwood Gardens consists of 20 outdoor gardens and 20 indoor gardens within 4.5 acres of heated greenhouses, known as conservatories It contains 11,000 different types of plants and trees, as well as fountains. The Gardens also has extensive educational programs including a graduate program, and extensive internships. It hosts 800 horticultural and performing arts events each year, from flower shows, gardening demonstrations, courses, and children’s programs to concerts, organ and carillon recitals, musical theatre, fountain shows, and fireworks displays. It also hosts an extensive Christmas light display during the holiday season.

Longwood Gardens is renowned for its extraordinary fountains. The astonishing shows gather attention from far and wide, and are a favorite among visitors of all ages. Inspired by the success of the Italian water gardens and open air theatre fountains, Mr Du Pont unveiled the Main Fountain Garden in 1931. The goal was to rival the fountains he had seen in Europe. Today, this open air theatre conducts fountain shows featuring 750 jets in changing patterns, this showpiece comes alive with five-minute shows set to music. Since its 1914 Garden Party debut, this Italian-style outdoor theatre has expanded from its simple original fountains to the 750 jets that create the rainbowed curtain of water.

Tucked into a protected courtyard (accessed via the Conservatory), this stunning outdoor garden features aquatic plants from all over the world. The garden is open from late May through mid-October. Peak bloom occurs mid-July through September (depending on weather). The water-lilies and tropical aquatic plants are displayed here in five large pools. The aquatic plants consists of lilies, lotus and incredible Victoria water-platters with leaves measuring up to four feet in diameter. This leaf might have been used to float the infant Lord Krishna, to be discovered by Markandeya. The same leaf could have been used by Kunti to float infant Karna and also may have been used in the case of infant Moses.

The Orchid House displays a fraction of the 7,500 orchids at Longwood Gardens. To ensure a continuous display, the orchid grower hand picks and replaces the plants three times a week with others from the five orchid growing houses. Orchids were a passion of Pierre Du Pont and his wife, Alice. Orchids were one of the first plant collections—started in 1922. In 1948, the collection was greatly enlarged when Pierre DuPont’s sister-in-law, Mrs. William Du Pont, donated her well-known and respected collection of more than 2,300 orchid plants to Longwood.

The Palm House opened on Palm Sunday, 1966 with a landscape of palms in all sizes and shapes from all around the world. Mr Du Pont preferred temperate houses because they were less expensive to heat and only the small conservatory in the Peirce House was warm enough for an occasional palm.

The Silver Garden houses the cacti collections. Through the glass roof the moonlight appear to bounce off the gray and silver-foliaged plants that fill this garden. This mimics the dry and arid landscapes found in Mediterranean and desert regions. Slate, rocky outcroppings, and exotic plants combine to create this multi-textured garden. The gray-blue slate pathway gives the impression of a dry streambed that would be found in a desert. The greenhouse containing this garden was built in 1921 and was originally used to grow peaches and nectarines. Following a major structural renovation, the Silver Garden came into being in 1989.

These are some of the few specialities of the Longwood Garden and must be included in the itinerary of anyone visiting this part of America.

3 Comments Posted on September 28, 2015January 30, 2023 by Reji Koduvath Indian Army

Post-It Notes

Mr G Sivakumar, our senior at school commented on my earlier blog ‘For your kind information and necessary action please,‘ that he had worked for a boss who used to write PDTN on the noting and he thought it meant ‘Please Destroy This Note,‘ where as the boss intended ‘Please Do The Needful!‘ On Googling PTDN, I found ‘Professional and Technical Diversity Network‘ and ‘Please Do The Needful!‘ (India.)

The expression ‘Please Do The Needful‘ is currently used in Indian English. The expression was in vogue in both British and American English until the early 20^th Century, but is now considered obsolete and improper.

‘Please Destroy This Note‘ expression reminded me of my tenure with The Army Headquarters at New Delhi where the Post-It notes were used extensively by the senior officers. The yellow coloured piece of paper, which neither stuck nor stood, always irritated me, both in its colour and also in what was written on it. The senior officer when not in agreement with the junior’s noting on a file, or when he thought that noting may raise hackles with his seniors, resorted to sticking up the Post-It note with instructions to change the noting. I always thought that in case the senior officer felt that my line of thought was incorrect, he must put in a note saying so. As the days passed by, I realised that many of the seniors did not have the conviction to do so and hence resorted to much more use of the yellow paper.

Every time a file came back to me with a Post-It note, I removed it and returned the file without any changes to my original note. In most cases, I was summoned by the senior officer and in the end, the case was taken off from my responsibility as I failed to budge and tow someone’s lines. The files that went to the Ministry of Defence came back approved/sanctioned or with a query, but never with the yellow paper stuck on it.

Similarly, the noting sheets used at the Army Headquarters ranged from drafting paper to the photocopying paper. Many a time the noting of General Officers and even the Defence Minister was on a drafting sheet. However, the very same officers when commanding brigades or divisions end up demanding that all the documents put up to them must be on ‘Bond’ paper. Bond paper is a high quality durable writing paper having a weight greater than 50 g/m². The name comes from it having originally been made for documents such as government bonds.

After the tenure at the Army Headquarters, I took over command of the Regiment and I ensured that the Yellow Post-It note and the ‘Bond‘ paper was banned from all the offices of the unit. I encouraged all the officers to place on record their thoughts, even if it was not in accordance with my thoughts or with the common military thoughts. In case anyone up the chain did not agree with the note, they had to record their disagreement on the same file. This ensured increased faith in the system by the junior commanders and also gave them a feeling that their opinions were heard and many a times adhered to.

My aversion for this poor yellow Post-It note made me research into its origin and development. It appears that the invention was a mere accident at the 3M lab. The 3M Company, formerly known as the Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company, has more than 55,000 products, including: adhesives, abrasives, laminates, dental and orthodontic products, electronic materials, car-care products, etc.

Spencer Silver in 1968, researching at the 3M lab to create super strong adhesives for use in the aerospace industry, ended up creating an incredibly weak adhesive. They found that the adhesive when stuck to any surface, can be peeled off without leaving any residue and was re-usable. 3M could not think of any practical and marketable use for this adhesive and hence the research was shelved.

In 1973, Silver came up with a bulletin board with the adhesive sprayed on it. One could then stick pieces of paper to the bulletin board without drawing pins or tape. The paper could subsequently be easily removed without any residue being left on the board or the paper. As the bulletin boards were not much in demand, the idea was dropped being uneconomical and unmarketable.

Chemical engineer Art Fry, worked for 3M and had attended one of Silver’s seminars on the low-powered adhesive. He realised that this adhesive could be used to stick page markers on his church choir book. This facilitated him to turn to the correct page using the markers and the markers never fell out of the book. From his experience, Fry suggested use of the adhesive on the paper than being used on the bulletin board. The early prototypes had the problem that the adhesive often detached from the paper and stayed on the object the paper was stuck to, or, at least, leave some of the adhesive behind.

Have you wondered as to why most of the Post-It notes are yellow in colour? The colour was never selected but was also an accident. It is believed that the lab next door to where they were working on the Post-It note had some scrap yellow paper and later the developers stuck with the colour. However, 3M’s official version is that good emotional connection with users and that it will contrast well stuck to white paper.

Post-It notes became extremely popular internally at 3M labs and in 1977, 3M began running test sale runs of the Post-It note, then called Press ‘n Peel. It did not become popular and after five years of rejection it slowly became a success and today is a mainstay in offices all over the world and is one of the top five best selling office supply products in the world.

There are many uses I found for the Post-It notes, but never the one as was being used at the Army Headquarters or by the many indecisive bosses in offices. Some of the uses I found are:-

Book marker.
Mark the notes or glossary at the back of a book for easy repeated access.
Coffee coaster.
Memory aid
Decorating tool.
To-Do List.
A reminder for the children to be left on their door-knobs.
An ideal tool to clean the gaps on the keyboards and other instruments.
To be stuck on the refrigerator door as a shopping list, wherein everyone can add their requirements so that I could buy them at the supermarket. The note can be removed and stuck on to the wallet when leaving for the supermarket and at the supermarket it could be peeled off and stuck to the handle of the shopping cart.

Thomas Alva Edison once said that “I never did anything by accident, nor did any of my inventions come by accident; they came by work.“ It is mostly true with many inventions by the humanity, but some were mere accidents.

3 Comments Posted on September 22, 2015October 25, 2022 by Reji Koduvath Canada, Family, Parenting

The Burden of Pay

Our son Nikhil, a grade 12 student, applied for a position as a volunteer at the local hospital. The aim of joining the volunteer team at the hospital was to have a firsthand feel of the hospital environment as he intends to pursue a career in the medical field. Volunteering gave him a chance to explore different occupations in the hospital and he would be exposed to a wide range of health care workers, from front line nursing and medical staff to program administrators. He got to know the people, challenges and rewards involved and gain a better understanding of the roles and jobs available.

It was also intended to help him manage his time better. Statistics show that students who work or volunteer are better time managers and fare better in the universities. Volunteering provided him chance to meet new people and through them expand his network, opening up new opportunities. It also facilitated him to use the French language he had improved with a one month stay in France. It also provided him a chance to find out how other people viewed him and his strengths.

Nikhil was called for an interview by the volunteer coordinator at the hospital and motivated with the above factors, he faced the interview. The last question he was asked was about the difference between a job and a volunteer position. Nikhil answered “there is no difference at all except that there is no burden of pay being a volunteer.”

Nikhil was also hired by the Mississauga City to be a swimming instructor and a life guard at the swimming pool. This job he got after volunteering as an assistant instructor at the pool for an year. To be a swimming instructor one got to be a certified lifeguard by the National Lifeguard Service. The certification involves about twelve levels of swimmer training and a swimming instructor course. Further one got to be certified in first-aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) by the Canadian Red Cross and also be certified in child psychology. All these certifications are valid for only a two year period after which he has to re-certify in all.

In many provinces of Canada and US, forty hours of community service is mandatory for graduating from high school. Nikhil had already completed this requisite as he had volunteered at the pool for over 100 hours. The purpose of the community involvement is to encourage students to develop awareness and understanding of civic responsibility and of the role they can play and the contributions they can make in supporting and strengthening their communities. This also gives the kids the opportunity for new experiences, whether it be visiting a senior-citizens’ home, volunteering in a hospital or working in the library.

Students who engage in community service have many opportunities for personal growth. They gain exposure to people and experiences that broaden awareness and understanding of the world around them. Most kids learn new skills in these situations and work with people of diverse backgrounds and lifestyles. This is often the first time some of them have worked for a boss, and it is helpful in learning how to follow orders on the job.

One of the biggest problem students face in school is lack of motivation. Many students are unable to fathom the gap between the curriculum and their everyday lives. Community service provides an opportunity to apply academic learning to real human needs and to make the knowledge gained usable. This would motivate a child to research further into the subject being taught.

Studies indicate that students who volunteer have demonstrated improvement in positive feelings and mental health, and have helped them to reduce depression and stress. Many students feel that it is ‘cool’ to volunteer and many flaunt their volunteer T-Shirts in the school. Many students have reported an increased sense of social responsibility, and a subsequent desire to “give back” to their communities. This attitude help create social capital, that is, social networks of trust and cooperation.

Most well paying jobs in the health related fields in North America is regulated and the licensing procedure is applicable to both immigrants and the North American students. This is mainly applicable to doctors, pharmacists and nurses. The licensing test consists of a written and a practical element and covers all real-life scenarios encountered in the profession. Most Canadian students are well versed with the system as they undergo on the job training, mostly as volunteers and thus qualify these tests with much ease. The immigrants find it pretty difficult as they are not well versed with the North American system and also they have learnt many an incorrect practices back home. The only way to learn the North American system is to volunteer and obtain some experience.

Most hospitals have over 500 volunteers on their role and some have even over a thousand. There is a long wait-list of people who want to enroll as volunteers. They are high school students and retirees; they are the veterans from the Canadian forces; they are university students, young professionals and seasoned executives. Some have an interest in health care, some are considering a medical profession, while others have spent much time in hospitals recuperating from some serious illness or accidents. To enroll into the volunteers corps at a hospital as a student, one got to get two recommendations from the teachers (not easy to come by) and after the interview with the volunteer coordinator undergo a medical examinations, mainly to ensure that they are not carriers of any communicable disease.

In North America one needs experience to get a job and the best way for gaining experience and showcasing one’s talents and skill is only through volunteering. This not only looks good on the resume, the recommendations by the supervisors at the volunteering organisation also gives one a better chance of getting the job. Volunteering is the only way a new immigrant can gain US/Canadian experience and many immigrants are reluctant to take up a volunteering position as it does not pay or there is no burden of pay.

13 Comments Posted on September 17, 2015June 28, 2016 by Reji Koduvath Canada, Indian Army, Travelogues

Cadet Yaseen’s Graduation Parade

Our family friends – Hussain and Fatima, invited me to attend their son Cadet Yaseen’s Graduation Parade at the Cadet Training Centre (CTC) Blackdown, Ontario on August 14, 2015. CTC conducted a training camp for six weeks to train Cadet Instructors in Drill & Ceremonial, Survival Techniques, Adventure & Expedition, Fitness & Sports, Military Band and Pipes & Drums. Cadet Yaseen was attending the Drill & Ceremonial Instructor Course. The Graduation Parade marked culmination of their training.

On August 14, by 3 PM, I picked up Hussain from their home and drove towards the CTC. Fatima could not attend as she was indisposed. The CTC Blackdown is co-located with the Canadian Forces Base Borden (CFB Borden) and is about 100 kilometres North of Toronto, in the heart of Simcoe County, one of the major tourist areas in Ontario. The drive through the picturesque country side was breathtaking. Being a summer Friday evening, the traffic was heavy on the highways with vehicles towing boats and camper-trailers and cycles, heading to the cottage country to spend the weekend.

On reaching the CTC, the Military Police points-woman on duty directed my car to the parking lot adjacent to the parade ground as the vehicle had the Veteran’s plate. That was the first time I ever got a preferential treatment after receiving the Veteran’s plate.

The ceremonial parade was in keeping with any British Army parades, being followed by the armies of all the Commonwealth countries. The Reviewing Officer of the day was Lieutenant General Chris Whitecross OMM, CD, a Three-Star General. She is the first lady officer to hold the rank of a Lieutenant General in the Canadian Forces.

Lieutenant-General Chris Whitecross enrolled in the Canadian Forces in 1982, joining the Canadian Military Engineers after spending 4 years in the Cadet program. Her postings have taken her from Germany to Afghanistan and almost every province in Canada. She had served with United Nations Protection Force in the Former Republic of Yugoslavia and Commanded 1 Construction Engineering Unit.

Lieutenant-General Whitecross has a Bachelors Degree in Chemical Engineering from Queen’s University and a Masters Degree in Defence Studies from the Royal Military College. She is a graduate of both the Command and Staff College and the Advanced Military Studies Course, both conducted at the Canadian Forces College. She is a recipient of the Order of Military Merit and was awarded the US Defense Meritorious Service Medal for her service at Kabul, Afghanistan. Currently, she is the Commander of the Canadian Forces Strategic Response Team on Sexual Misconduct. She was promoted to her current rank on 26 May, 2015.

The graduating cadets smartly marched into the drill square in 14 Squadrons and after the General Officer received the customary General Salute, the reviewing of the parade took place. There were 14 officers and veterans, mostly Lieutenant Colonels, who reviewed each of the squadrons. This allowed opportunity for the reviewing officers to speak with each of the graduating cadets.

The Cadets were well turned out and looked very smart. Boys and girls, Army, Navy and Air Force Cadets formed the Squadrons based on the type of course they underwent at the CTC. The Army cadets wore the berets of the Regiments to which their school’s Cadet Company was affiliated to. Cadet Yaseen wore the Red Beret with the Military Police Cap-Badge. Some cadets were wearing Regimental Kilts, Stockings, Belts, etc. This practise of wearing the Regimental accoutrements by the cadets will surely go a long way in inducing pride in the cadets.

The General Officer reviewed the Band Squadron and at the end of the review addressed all the Cadets of the Band and appreciated them for an excellent show. She reminisced the days she was a cadet in her teens, playing in the very same band and as to how the training she received at the very same place had stood in great stead with her till today. This gesture from the General Officer would have surely enthused the cadets of the Band Squadron.

The review, which took about 30 minutes was followed by the Reviewing Officer’s address. The General Officer was so roused by the spirit of the cadets that she spoke from the saluting base, without moving to the pre-designated rostrum. She opened her speech with the line that she was not going to follow the script that she had prepared and which was duly placed on the rostrum by her Staff Officer, but would speak from her heart. The speech was electrifying and inspirational – in its content and in delivery. She complimented the cadets for the successful completion of their training and exhorted them to carry what they learnt to their Cadet Companies back at school and impart the skills to other cadets there.

The squadrons then marched past the saluting base, saluting the General Officer and each squadron was applauded by the audience with a standing ovation.

On culmination of the Parade, Cadet Yaseen left to collect his Course Certificate, Movement Order and his belongings and Hussain and I met Lieutenant Colonel O’Leary from the Artillery Regiment (Gunner) of the Canadian Army. This marked the meeting of two Gunners from two different countries and we exchanged pleasantaries and notes about the life in both armies. A Gunner will always reamin a true Gunner in deed and in spirit, irrespective of the army they served was proved once again.

We bid goodbye to Colonel O’Leary, picked up Cadet Yaseen and drove home. Enroute I treated Cadet Yaseen to a sumptous dinner in appreciation of him graduating from a tough course and also for providing me an opportunity to attend such an august function (in August). We all enjoyed the dinner, especially Cadet Yaseen, as it was surely a welcome change from the usual camp food.

Photographs – Courtsey Hussain Chirathodi ‎

4 Comments Posted on September 14, 2015June 22, 2016 by Reji Koduvath Canada, Travelogues

The Home Coming

On 29 June 2015, Monday, by afternoon, we checked into Fairfield Inn Hotel of the Marriot group of hotels at Sault Ste Marie. Everyone was in a hurry to take a shower, something they missed for the four days they were out camping. After the shower, Nikhil stretched on his bed and he said that it is a great luxury to have running cold and hot water, a comfortable washroom and a refreshing bath. A soft bed at the end of a tiring day is what looks forward to and one must be thankful to the God and the parents for providing us kids with all these luxuries. I felt that the aim of the camping has been achieved to a great extent.

Nikhil found the Mermon Bible (The Book of Mormons) in the room and settled down on the couch to read it. The Mormons are one of the most successful and prosperous cults that owns large pieces of land in Utah, Hawaii and Canada, along with owning the Marriott Hotel chain, Beneficial Life Assurance Company and many television and radio stations. The cult was started in New York State by a farm worker in the 1820’s named Joseph Smith. Mr Smith was driven to action after he claimed to have been visited by a vision of God and by an angel called Moroni who revealed the whereabouts of buried golden plates to him. The Book of Mormons is based on these very same magical golden plates. Mitt Romney, who ran as Republican Party’s nominee for US President in 2012 election an and who served as the Governor of Massachusetts from 2003 to 2007 belongs to the cult.

In the evening we drove to the Harmony Beach for a swim and dinner thereafter. By evening everyone retired to the bug free environs for a good night’s sleep. After the courtsey breakfast at the hotel, we checked out and drove to Sudbury, about 300 km along Trans National Highway 17. This city of about 160,000 has the most happy people in the country according to Statistics Canada report of 2015. It is also the largest city in Ontario by area and the seventh largest municipality by area in Canada. The city was founded following the discovery of nickel ore by Tom Flanagan, a Canadian Pacific Railway blacksmith in 1883.

We drove to the Science North, an educational resource for children and adults across the province. The centre provides hands-on experience for kids and the exhibits can be handled by kids and they can perform various science experiments. This place is a must visit place for all middle and high school students. Some of the impressive exhibits were:-

Northern Forests – In this area, you learn and see animals who live in northern forests. Some of the animals include the Northern Screech Owls, the porcupine and the skunk. Other notable animals include the Northern Flying Squirrels, the Grey Rat Snake and the Big Brown bats. The nocturnal room allows people to see active nocturnal animals during the day. The intricate bee hive, behind a plate glass window, allows visitors to see into the hive.
Rivers and Lakes – In this area, animals that live in rivers and lakes are featured. The Beaver, Common Snapping Turtle, Northern Water Snakes and local fish found in Northern Ontario Lakes feature in this section. This sections allow people to get a better understanding of the aquatics systems that surround Northern Ontario and the difficulties and challenges these systems are currently facing and how erosion effects the landscape around us.
Tropical Invertebrates – This is where the visitors can learn why our bugs are so small and find out what a snail feels like in your hand or how millipedes protect themselves by touching and handling the real thing.
Discovery Theatre – The discovery theatre is where visitors watch live science shows on topics ranging from fire to sound.
BodyZone – The exhibits are about DNA and how it makes you unique, and how our body works. There are stations that allow the visitor to measure various body performance.
FedNor CyberZone – The focus of CyberZone is on computer and communications technology. You can mix your own music at the DJ station, play with green screen technology, and create stop-motion animation movies.
Space Place – This lab focuses on astronomy and space exploration. Exhibits include a 6-foot gravity well, a microgravity drop tower, and information on Canadian space exploration.
TechLab – Technology and engineering area where you can create your own circuits, take apart old electronics, and play with pulleys and gears.

At the end of the visit was the film Wildfires! A Firefighting Adventure in 4D. It is a remarkable experience in that it uses 3D film techniques combined with motion seating and special wind, water, scent and smoke effects to explore the science of fire behaviour and firefighting. The film takes you into the heart of a major forest fire to give you a close-up and unforgettable look at how fires are created and ultimately controlled, and how scientific research and practical experience have combined to develop effective forest fire fighting techniques used today. The film captures the valiant efforts of the firefighters and pilots from the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources’ Aviation, Forest Fire and Emergency Services section – and the equipment and knowledge they use to battle this incredible force of nature.

The entire film was shot during the biggest forest fire in Ontario in nearly a decade. The film also provides visitors with the rare opportunity to ride in a Bombardier 415 Superscooper waterbomber aircraft and experience the intensity of a raging inferno that destroys everything in its path. This aircraft is a Canadian amphibious aircraft specifically built as a water bomber, specifically built for aerial firefighting. These planes move to a pre-reconnoitered lake near the forest fire, then descend from 15 metres altitude, scoop 6,137 litres of water during a 12-second 410 metres long run on the water at 70 knots (130 km/h), then climb back to 15 metres altitude. With the water in their belly, they fly to the place of the fire and discharge this load to quench the fire. That kind of flying takes special skills, training and bravery.

We departed from Science North, had lunch and drove home to reminisce our camping experiences. During the drive the children were more anxious about our next camping and hence I booked for a two day camping at Alogonquin National Park to witness the changing colours of the Fall Season in October. From the last week of September though October, the leaves in this park are alive with various shades of red, yellow, purple, black, orange, pink, magenta, blue and brown. In the Fall, as daylight hours shorten and temperatures cool, the veins that carry fluids into and out of the leaves are gradually closed off, reducing the chlorophyll contents in the leaves. At this time, the other pigments in the leaves take over and results in a riotous display of colour and then the leaves fall off.

4 Comments Posted on August 24, 2015October 25, 2021 by Reji Koduvath Canada, Parenting, Travelogues

Going Gets Tough

On the morning of 28 June 2015, Sunday, after a sumptuous breakfast, everyone got into action, packing up the camp. The children got into dismantling and packing up of the three tents. It took them some time and effort to fold the first tent to fit into its bag. The parents were busy packing up the rations and the cooking equipment and also garbage disposal. We bid goodbye to the Fort William camp at about 10 AM and drove back to Wawa on the picturesque Trans Canadian Highway 17. A 83-kilometre section of the Trans-Canada Highway, between Thunder Bay and Nipigon, is renamed the Terry Fox Courage Highway to honour him for his courageous one-legged a cross-country run for cancer research – the Marathon of Hope. At the intersection of Highway 17 and Highway 11, about 10 kilometers from Thunder Bay, stands a nine foot high bronze statue of Terry, set on a 45-ton granite base, at the Terry Fox monument. The monument also offers a breath-taking view of Lake Superior.

We reached Wawa by 3:30 PM and halted for lunch. After lunch, we drove for an hour to reach the Visitor Centre of the Lake Superior Provincial Park located at Agawa Bay. Being a Sunday, the centre was closed, but there was a self-serve kiosk for the campers. We filled the form to camp at the Crescent Lake Camp Ground, giving details of the vehicle, number of persons and the number of tents to be pitched. The form along with the money towards the camping charges were deposited in the box placed there.

The kiosk also had literature giving out details of the camping grounds, the actions needed from the campers to protect the ecological integrity of the park. The mantra appeared to be “Leave your pristine surroundings just as you found them; take nothing but pictures, leave nothing but footprints“.

We drove another hour South along Highway 17 and took a diversion on a gravel track and drove for about 5 kilometers to reach the Crescent Lake Camping area. The camping ground was empty as the camping season had just commenced with the closing of schools. The camp sites are picked based on first-come-first-serve basis and there are no reservations.

Crescent Lake is an undeveloped lake surrounded entirely by the remote Superior National Forest. It is characterised by clean, blue, unpolluted, undisturbed, quite waters. This quiet campground has waterfront campsites with easy access to fishing, exploring the nearby wilderness and simply enjoying the beauty of the natural area. Superior National Forest, located in northeastern Minnesota’s arrowhead region, comprises of 3 million acres. The forest spans 150 miles along the United States-Canada border. Superior National Forest is known for its coniferous forest ecosystem, numerous clean lakes and diversity of plants and animals. The entire campground is heavily wooded with white pines, red pines, spruce, balsam, birch and aspen. Birds and wildlife are abundant, from moose and bear to bald eagles and Canadian Goose.

The campground has 32 sites situated on a peninsula that juts out into the lake, providing many sites with nice views of the water and some sites with access to the water. Picnic tables and campfire grates are provided on each site. We drove through the camping area and chose a site closest to the water front and parked our van. The children got into the act of pitching the tents. Alas! they did it in 10 minutes flat – with all the experience they had from the previous location. The parents were into setting up the barbeque to cook the dinner.

After pitching the tents and unloading the necessary bedding, rations and cooking utensils, I led the children into the woods to collect firewood for the campfire. Walking on the forest ground, I felt a spongy feeling, as if walking on a rubber mattress, which I had never experienced in the coniferous woods of Kashmir or Sikkim. That was when I remembered the lesson on coniferous family of trees by our botany teacher at Sainik School, Mr AD George. He had taught us that the coniferous forests are found mainly in the Northern hemisphere, called Taiga or Boreal forests and they cover vast areas of North America from the Pacific to the Atlantic. Coniferous trees thrive where summers are short and cool and winters long and harsh, with heavy snowfall. The needle-like leaves have a waxy outer coat which prevents water loss in freezing weather and the branches are soft and flexible and usually point downwards, so that snow slides off them. The coniferous trees shed their leaves and grow new ones. The needles fall to the forest floor and form a thick springy mat. Thread-like fungi help to break down or decompose the fallen needles. These fungi provide nutrients from the decomposed needles back to the roots of the trees.

The major concern for everyone was to ward off the mosquitoes and the bugs. The best methodology was to wear a track pant and a jacket with a hood. One has to apply the bug repellent lavishly to all the exposed parts. The repellants now available in Canada are surely not as messy and does not have the pungent smell as the ones I was used to while in the Indian Army. Everyone was extra conscious not to let any insect into the tents. The scariest of all was to go into the woods to relieve and one had to carry a can of repellent to keep the insects at bay.

We set the campfire going and I got into cooking the dinner – mainly barbequing the meats and the veggies. The children entertained us all with their singing, mimicry, storytelling and et all. After dinner, everyone set out to take precautions to ensure that no wild animals came calling on to our site. It was mainly garbage collection and storage in the van for the night. Based on the instruction pamphlet we got from the kiosk, all the trash, leftover food, and litter were packed into a bag. All the spilled food was collected and the dishes and plates were washed and stored in the van. All the leftover rations were also placed in the van. Everyone retired to sleep after a tiring day.

At night, as there was no ambient light from any human settlements and as the sky was clear, we did a bit of star gazing. The Astronomy knowledge I had gained during the Regimental Survey Officers’ Course I did in 1984 came in handy. We could locate the Pole Star, Jupiter, Constellations like the Ursa Major (Big Bear), Ursa Minor (Small Bear), Cassopia, Orion etc. We could also see two meteors shooting across the sky.

Next morning, after breakfast, everyone had a swim in the lake and went on a trek along the trail in the campground. Children improvised a fishing rod, line and hook as we had not carried any angling equipment (an inadvertent omission on my part), and tried their hand at fishing, but was not a successful one. The least, they learnt to improvise. By about noon, ladies prepared lunch and all other got into the packing up drill. After pack-up, it was garbage disposal at the designated site in the campground. The site again had huge animal proof bins. After lunch, we drove to Sault Ste Marie (Soo), about an hour away, to check into a hotel that we had booked.

Some of the lessons learnt:-

Plan your route and learn the park regulations.
Carry proper clothing and equipment – including angling equipment. Be prepared for extreme weather, hazards and emergencies. (Luckily we had none.)
Pack food in reusable, leak-proof containers to minimise waste.
Inspect your campsite and rest areas for trash or spilled foods. Pack out all trash, leftover food, and litter. Do not bury garbage as animals will just dig it up.
Respect what you encounter. Leave any natural object where you found it. It is illegal to cut any live vegetation, harass wildlife or disturb or remove cultural artifacts in a park.
Clean your boots, vehicles and gear so you do not transport invasive species.
Pack food securely and hang your pack between trees, at least 6 metres above the ground or store them in the vehicle. Do not bring food of any kind into your tent.
Remember that sound travels across water. Noise pollution disturbs wildlife and will diminish everyone’s wilderness experience. Chances of seeing wildlife are better if you travel quietly and camp in smaller groups.
Before you leave, complete a final scan of your campsite. Ensure the fire is out, all garbage is collected and all your equipment is packed away. Leave the area in better shape than when you arrived.

Home Coming in the next Blog

4 Comments Posted on August 17, 2015May 29, 2025 by Reji Koduvath Canada, Travelogues

Camping at Thunder Bay

When we decided to go camping with the Josephs, many of my army friends had only one question – “Aren’t you fed up of camping? Haven’t you had enough of it?”

Every parent today is busy with their lives, profession, social activities, etc and the children are equally busy with their studies, sports and extra-curricular activities. Living in a campsite and sleeping in a tent is a sure way to get everyone together in close proximity. It facilitates the family to explore new activities which would not be possible at home. Every event and chore becomes a family affair and everyone chips in with their bit. Camping ensures that the family works together to setup the tents, cook and serve the meals, clean up after every event, fetching water, collecting firewood, starting up a campfire, etc.

The activities like hiking, fishing, roasting marshmallows, star gazing, exploring, storytelling and singing around the campfire, and that too with the children away from their computers and without a cell phone in their hands is indeed a great achievement.

Research all over the world has proved that children who experience nature are happier, healthier and also helps with cognitive development. It is amazing to note that only 20% of the children of today can climb trees. They surely know more about their cartoon characters, movie superstars and their favourite sport hero than they know about wildlife, plants and nature.

We reached the camp site at Fort William Historical Park, Thunder Bay at 2 PM on 27 June 2015. Located on Lake Superior, Fort William became the key midway transshipment point and a trading post for the French located at Montreal. The aboriginals paddling from the West carrying precious furs bartered with the French coming from the East bearing valuable trade goods and supplies. The treaties that followed the American Revolution (1776 – 1783) banned the Montreal traders from entering the area South of the Great Lakes. From 1804 then until its own absorption by the Hudson’s Bay Company (British) in 1821, the North West Company (French) exercised a virtual monopoly of all trade into the North-West directed from Montreal. As the company’s inland headquarters, Fort William became the pivotal point in a vast fur trading empire. In 1821, the Hudson Bay Company closed down the Fort William trading post as they were focused on the fur trade from the North-West of the Great Lakes, to the Arctic.

Being the first camp, we booked a site with amenities like electric power, water and washrooms. The camp ground caters for about 250 sites and there were many spots already occupied by tents, RVs, camper vans and caravans. Each site had a picnic table, a fire ring for campfire, a water tap, an electric outlet and adequate space to pitch about three tents. The first task was to unload the van and pitch the fly-proof tent around the picnic table. The fly-proof tent is of 10’x10′ size with a canopy and a zipped up net cover all around, thus making it fly proof. This tent effectively covers a picnic table. These tables are placed in all the camping grounds and parks of Canada and are of standard size of 8’x6′. The outdoors in Canada in the wilderness is famous for the bugs and mosquitoes. They will any day beat the ones of Meerut and Kochi.

With some assistance, the children managed to set up the tent in about 20 minutes. By then Marina had started cooking Mutton Biryani. She had marinated the meat and had frozen it the day before and carried it in the ice-box. The children then proceeded to set up the living tents. The tents are made of water-resistant fabric and has a cabin-like design that includes a hinged door and angled windows that keep rain out even when they are open. The tents are much lighter, easy to carry, more comfortable, water and wind proof and easy to pitch when compared to the ones we had in the Indian Army. The first tent was pitched in 25 minutes and the second in 20 minutes. Everyone felt that they achieved something and were tired and hungry. That was when Marina served her Biryani and not a morsel was left. It is sure that the children will eat more while outdoors and working hard.

After a hard days labour, sumptuous lunch and tired from travelling for about 15 hours, everyone retired into their tents for a well deserved siesta. By 6 PM the girls had prepared the evening tea and after tea everyone had a refreshing bath. At that time there was a big group which arrived to camp. It was a marriage party. The bride, the groom, the best man, the maids, guests – all had arrived with their tents and were busy pitching it. After an hour, they all got dressed and moved to the banquet hall of the centre for the wedding. It seems the bride and the groom met first at a camp and wanted to celebrate their wedding at a camp.

The evening begun with setting up of campfire. There was the usual barbecue of chicken and pork by me and the ladies laid out the salads. The camp area came alive with the music from the banquet hall and accompanied by the swarming bugs and mosquitoes. Everyone sat around the campfire and the children got busy with the roasting of marshmallows, storytelling and singing.

In the evening Joseph and I decided that we must move to a tougher camp site as the children have got adjusted to the camp life. In hindsight, it was a wise decision to select the first site with basic amenities to put the children through the drill of setting up a camp. After passing instructions to all that after breakfast, we will up stick from the present location and move into a new campsite, deep in the woods in the Lake Superior Conservation area near Wawa, the parents retired to bed and the teenagers as usual continued into the early hours of morning with their usual activities.

The lessons learnt at the camp at Fort William:-

Do not over-pack, especially food items. Carry the least and in case you need more, you can always buy them fresh from the local stores.
Be prepared to cope with inconvenience, especially washrooms, The parents must lead by example with a positive can-do attitude.
Organize the camp well. Fix locations for important items like forks, spoons, knives, tissue rolls, etc.
Brief every member – adults and children about the layout of the camp site. There is every possibility of someone losing their way at night, especially after a visit to the washroom.
Ensure that all children are involved in meaningful camp chores, such as gathering firewood, collecting water from the tap, etc.
Teach the campers about the knots, hitches and lashings as it would save a lot of time in tent pitching.
Pitch the tent in your backyard the previous weekend. This will teach the campers about tent pitching, managing space inside the tent, entry and exit without letting insects in.

The going gets tough – in the next blog

7 Comments Posted on August 11, 2015June 22, 2016 by Reji Koduvath Canada, Travelogues

Camping in North-Western Ontario

The schools closed for summer by end June 2015 and our son Nikhil graduated from Grade 12. We decided to celebrate it with a camping out in the wilderness of Canada. Our family friends the Stephens also agreed to join the party as their son Jeevan had also graduated from grade 12. Joseph Stephen and Annie Stephen were both my mother’s students while at school and their daughter Jeena and our daughter Nidhi, both are university students. Jeevan’s friend Alex also joined us. The party being complete, I booked the camping site at Thunder Bay, about 1,500 kilometers from our home.

Everyone was enthusiastic about the trip from the word go. The parents were really fired up and the children had to be. The preparations commenced with equipment procurement of two eight-person tents, one insect proof tent for serving of food, a portable charcoal barbecue etc. Administrative instructions regarding the clothing and bedding to be carried, meat to be marinated, veggies, bread etc.

As the party was large with a good amount of administrative loads, a 12-seater van was rented for the trip. The van was a real boon that it could carry all the persons and the administrative loads and it facilitated relief for the drivers on the long journey.

The aim of the exercise was to get the children out of their backyards, and into an environment that is going to allow them to see and experience nature unlike their home. Nature delivers a complete sensory experience; amazing scenery; glimpses of wildlife; vast starlit nights, and a great way to initiate the children to appreciate nature. Making the children live in harmony with the nature and without the luxuries they are used to at home, will surely make them better human beings and will kindle the survival instincts in them. The situations thrown up would make them come out with real time ingenious ideas to solve the problem at hand. The children will also get trained in setting up a camp, tent pitching, cooking, organising a camp fires, etc. The research shows that children who experience nature are happier, healthier and also helps with their cognitive development.

The children were tasked to research and plan the itinerary to include the activities they would like to do enroute. The first leg of the journey was the 1,500 kilometers drive to Thunder Bay and it commenced around 11 PM on 26 June after everyone returned home from work. Everyone took turns at the wheel and by the dawn of 27 June we reached Sault Ste Marie and stopped for morning tea.

Map Courtesy Google

The Soo, as the city is nicknamed, was established by the French Jesuits in the mid-1600s French traders crossed Lake Superior in their quest for furs. Later, English explorers arrived, followed by lumbermen and exploiters of the mineral deposits. Sault Ste. Marie is a low-rise metropolis spread over undulating hills and flanked by the vastly wooded Algoma wilderness, with the St. Mary’s River at its door. The town is one of the gateways to the US and is located in the narrow neck between Lake Superior and Lake Huron. Canals and Locks, operated jointly by the US and Canadian governments facilitates lifting of ships about 21 feet from Lake Huron and Lake Superior. It is fascinating to watch a big ocean liners, freighters, barges, tugboats being raised and launched on to the next water level the year around.

The drive from Soo to Thunder Bay was on Trans Canadian Highway (Highway 17). The highway passes along Lake Superior, the biggest fresh water lake in the world. The Trans-Canadian railway line also runs parallel to the Highway 17. The original Trans-Canada Route was Highway 11 (designated “The King’s Highway”) was started in 1923 and completed on a war footing to provide toad access to mining towns of Northern Ontario. In 1960, it was realigned and became the new and much shorter Trans-Canada Highway.

Map Courtesy Google

Driving Westwards to the town of Wawa about 230 kilometers on the highway, the beautiful Lake Superior falls on the South with the dense forests of the Lake Superior National Park on the right with vast and beautiful area of wilderness known simply as ‘North of Superior’. As we drove along the highway, we could spot bears, deer in the wooded hills, sand hill cranes, turkey vultures feeding on an old moose carcass, an accident victim who might have had an encounter with a truck at night.

All along the highway, there are signs to warn drivers about the dangers of wild animals crossing the roads. There has been many such accidents and many have lost their lives due to such accidents. The highway is a two lane road, one lane either way and mostly frequented by trucks, cars and a few buses. At many a places, there are small detours of about 50 meters, to park the vehicles. These detours have been mostly made at points providing a scenic view of the Lake Superior. There are garbage cans placed and these garbage cans are ‘bear proof’ and for the first-time user, a bit intriguing to open one. There are restrooms, picnic tables and a covered picnic area in some of them. These are the favourite spots for many bikers, cyclists and trekkers whom we crossed all along the highway.

As we drove along, the landscape changed from rock and forest to a narrow band of farm land, known as the Canadian Shield’s north shore clay belt. We reached the town of Wawa and at the entrance to the town is a large, free-standing, metal sculpture of a Canada Goose as ‘Wawa’ is an (Red)Indian word for Canada Goose. Wawa came into prominence in 1897 with the discovery of gold, followed closely by that of iron ore and more recently diamonds. The area is well known for its pulp industry as the forests around the town is abundant with soft wood trees. Wawa has a municipal air field and a few eateries and we had our breakfast here.

The next stretch of 480 kilometers was to the final destination – Thunder Bay. The road passes through the mining towns of through the communities of White River, Mobart, Marathon, Terrace Bay, Schreiber, Rossport and Nipigon. Most of these towns have shrunk due to the mines closing down. Only the paper pulp industry and farming seems to be active in these towns.

We reached Thunder Bay by 3 PM. The city of Thunder Bay was formed by the amalgamation of the cities of Port Arthur and Fort William. Thunder Bay is located on the shores of a bay formed and protected by the Sleeping Giant rock formation. The myth is that the Ojibway tribal chief was cursed by the Gods as he let out the secret of the silver mine to the European explorers and was converted into a rock to guard the bay. Thunder Bay is a stopover for ships from around the world who have negotiated the St. Lawrence River and locks on the Great Lakes to reach the most westerly Canadian inland port.

The Eastern edge of Thunder Bay is the site of the Terry Fox Memorial. The cross-Canada Marathon of Hope undertaken by this courageous young man ended near Thunder Bay when his cancer flared again. In 1980, with one leg having been amputated due to cancer, he embarked on a cross-Canada run to raise money and awareness for cancer research. Although the spread of his cancer eventually forced him to end his quest after 143 days and 5,373 kilometers and ultimately cost him his life. Terry Fox continues to be an inspiration for Canadians and Terry Fox Run is held in communities across Canada each year in September to raise funds for cancer.

After driving about 1,500 kilometers North-West from the City of Mississauga on the shores of Lake Ontario, and along the shores of Lake Huron and Lake Superior; crossing 10 degrees Longitude to the West and 5 degrees Latitude to the North – we were still in the province of Ontario.

Maps Courtesy Google Maps

Camping at Thunder Bay in the next blog

10 Comments Posted on August 4, 2015October 25, 2021 by Reji Koduvath Canada, Family, Parenting

Nikhil’s Grad Breakfast

Grad Breakfast is a wonderful high school tradition where the graduating Grade 12 students get together one last time and enjoy breakfast as a group. This is an excellent opportunity to celebrate the hard work and achievements of the graduating students. The Grade 11 students serve the Grad Breakfast for the graduating Grade 12 students, generally during the last week of the class. It may also be a charity event and the money generated may be send to a deserving charity. This occasion also marks the passing of the mantle to the Grade 11 students, who will now be the seniors in the coming academic year.

The Woodlands Secondary School from where our son Nikhil is graduating from, had their Grad Breakfast on Friday, June 12, 2015. The occasion is also used to select the valedictorian from a pool of applicants. The prospective candidates apply to run as a Valedictorian and the application got to be validated by two high school teachers. All candidates have to deliver a short speech at the Grad Breakfast, in front of the graduating Grade 12 students. The term ‘Valedictorian’ is an Anglicized derivation of the Latin ‘vale dicere’ meaning ‘to say farewell’, historically rooted in the valedictorian’s traditional role as the final speaker at the graduation ceremony. So the valedictory address generally is considered a final farewell to classmates, before they disperse to pursue their individual paths after graduating from the high school.

The major criteria for the Valedictorian applicants was that the valedictorian must be a well-rounded individual whose accomplishments reflect the values of the school community. The recipient of this honour would have to meet the requirements for Graduation with a minimum of 30 credits; must be a honour student (80% average) from Grade 9 to 12; have demonstrated respectful behaviour in school as well as in the community at large; have not been in any discipline cases; must be a positive role model for the junior students; must have demonstrated leadership in various aspects of school life throughout the school career; and be able to represent the entire graduating class.

Nikhil along with four other classmates had applied to be the Valedictorian. After the Grad Breakfast, all five candidates delivered their speeches. Nikhil spoke about the changes the graduating students are going to bring to the community, the country and the world. Click here to listen to Nikhil’s speech on YouTube.

The graduating students were asked to vote online to select their Valedictorian. This was not merely a popularity contest, but the chances of an unpopular candidate winning it despite an awesome speech is very slim. Nikhil was confident that he would win it. After a few days it was announced that Nikhil was selected as the Valedictorian for 2015.

Being a Valedictorian, it will surely confer one bragging rights and will also and a line to one’s resume and will also look good. It normally does not provide you any extra boost for your university admissions, but for sure, the admission panel will take a close look at it.

Now Nikhil had to nominate one of his teachers to introduce him as the Valedictorian at the Commencement. He chose Miss Pils, his French teacher. Ms Pils is the only teacher who taught him for all the four high school years. She was the one who recommended Nikhil for the cultural and educational exchange programme in France based on his performance in French. As per Nikhil, one month he spend in Nantes, France with the Le Floch family was very fruitful and memorable. It was not only an important career milestone, but also a personal one for him. It had a telling impact on Nikhil’s outlook and conduct.

The Valedictorian has to deliver the Valedictory address at the ‘Commencement’, to be held in October 2015. There is no greater recognition of a graduate’s achievements than a high school graduation ceremony, or Commencement. Diplomas are conferred or handed out to graduating students. Various award winning graduating students are honoured during the ceremony. The speakers selected for this event often include community dignitaries, alumni and the valedictorian. During our daughter Nidhi’s Commencement in 2009, it was Ms Hazel McCallion, the then Mayor of our city Mississauga (Please click here to read more about her), who delivered an inspiring motivational speech to the graduating students.

US senator Orrin Hatch aptly said about High School Commencement that there is a good reason they call these ceremonies ‘commencement exercises’, as graduation is not the end; it is only the beginning.

4 Comments Posted on July 28, 2015October 25, 2021 by Reji Koduvath Canada, Parenting

SexEd Ontario

When the Ontario government unveiled the new sex education curriculum in February 2015, (the current policy is of 1998 vintage), a poll showed that almost half the population supported it, while 34 per cent were opposed. Two months and a new poll later, only 42 per cent still support the curriculum, while 40 per cent are opposed. In May 2015, 35,000 Toronto-area elementary students were kept home by their parents as a protest against the curriculum, while thousands more were absent from schools in the surrounding suburbs.

Clearly, Ontario has a sex problem. Opposition to the curriculum is growing, and the people behind it smell blood. They protested so noisily against the new curriculum when it was originally released in 2010 that the former premier, Dalton McGuinty, backed off and put it into a state of political freeze. It is very unfortunate that a man charged with multiple counts relating to child pornography had a hand in developing the failed 2010 curriculum. The opponents of sexed has used this handle to corrupt the minds of the parents. The same groups hope to pull off a similar coup now that the new Premier, Kathleen Wynne, has revived the curriculum and intends to have it start being taught in the session commencing in Fall 2015.

In the Ontario Legislative Assembly, the opposition Conservative Party member Monte McNaughton, openly criticised the updated curriculum and said that it is not the job of the premier – “especially Kathleen Wynne” – to tell parents what age is appropriate for their children. Wynne, who is openly gay, demanded that McNaughton explain why he feels she is not qualified to set standards for kids in schools.

The 2015 curriculum has been designed by experts from the fields of health, law enforcement agencies, child welfare, education, and policy experts, as well as over 4,000 heads of school parent councils across Ontario. The proposed changes are research-supported and intended to make children less vulnerable to exploitation, including over the Internet.

Many of the critics base their opinion on distorted facts, mostly sowed by the clergy and the so called protectors of ‘culture’. The sexed surely does not teach or encourage anal sex or masturbation as claimed by these keepers of ‘faith’. Many parents opposed to the sexed curriculum have let themselves to be manipulated by these keepers of faith and culture and have fallen prey to their misinformation campaign.

The curriculum is a wordy 240-page document, available on the internet, with the straightforward title ‘The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 1-8: Health and Physical Education‘. As per this document, students learn about fire safety, nutrition, wearing a helmet on a bike, nut allergies, why they shouldn’t open the medicine cabinet and swallow pills like candy, how to catch a ball and that it’s bad for you to sit inside all day watching television. When they get older, they learn about the impending changes brought on by puberty. The document also deals with sugary soda pop, cigarettes and sexually transmitted diseases.

It is not mandatory for the children to attend the sexed classes. Parents have the option to remove their children from all or part of the Physical and Health Education curriculum. Children whose parents make this choice are usually kept home or supervised in the library or another part of the school while the class takes place.

On the subject of sex, the curriculum is a reflection of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. It promotes diversity and inclusiveness protected by Canadian laws. Children are taught that, while they might have a mother and a father, some of their classmates might have two mothers, or just a dad, or maybe they are raised by a grandparent. They are introduced slowly to the issues of sexual orientation and gender identity, but this is done in the most neutral of terms. The curriculum covers some of the visible and invisible differences in people, differences that also include body size, clothing, learning ability, family background and eye colour.

It is this neutrality regarding sexual orientation that has in fact infuriated the keepers of faith and culture. They claim that the curriculum shows neither respect nor tolerance for traditionally-principled families. The values reflected in the new curriculum are not family values, but are society’s values.

The curriculum falls a bit short when discussing sex, it never mentions marriage or love. Marriage has its place and value in the society, and it is a fundamental part of many of the religions in Canada, and is also an important civil ceremony. Great nations are built on strong families and hence there is a need to modify the curriculum to acknowledge the role of marriage, traditional or otherwise. If children can learn over time about the different sorts of parents that exist in their world, then they can also learn that some parents are married and why that is important.

Based on the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, Canadians want children to be armed against abuse, to be able to grow on their own terms and with own identity, and also to accept the differences in others. Canadians want young men and women to grow up with a clear understanding of consent in sexual relations. These are the lessons that a public school system should teach, as long as it is done with care and the lessons are based on sound educational principles.

It is strongly felt that the students should start learning facial cues and how to read body language as early as Grade 1 to give them the ability to understand the concept of consent. This will surely help them in protecting them from sexual abusers. They would realise what happened to them and will surely report such instances to parents, teachers, health workers, etc. It is pertinent to note that in many cases, the child abusers are well known to the child’s family and some cases close relatives.

The curriculum addresses the issues faced by modern day children like Sexting, cyber-bullying and Internet porn.

As per the Ontario Government site, the salient aspects of sex education in various grades are:-

Grade 1: Identify body parts, including genitalia, using correct terminology. Children will be taught to use correct terms (penis, testicles, vagina, vulva) and to recognize exploitative behaviours such as inappropriate touching.
Grade 2: Basic stages of human development. Identify related bodily changes. Explain the importance of standing up for themselves. Describe how to relate positively to others and behaviours that can be harmful in relating to others, including both online and face-to-face name calling. The concept of ‘consent’ will be introduced very broadly as the right to say ‘no’ in threatening situations. This has been misrepresented by many critics as ‘teaching children the concept of consent,’ which is then in turn further misrepresented as ‘teaching children to consent to sex.’
Grade 3: Identify the characteristics of healthy relationships, including those with friends, siblings and parents. Describe how visible differences, such as skin colour, and invisible differences, including gender identity and sexual orientation, make each person unique. Identify ways of showing respect for differences in others. Develop safety guidelines for Internet use.
Grade 4: Describe the physical changes that occur at puberty, as well as the emotional and social impacts. Demonstrate an understanding of personal hygienic practices associated with the onset of puberty. Identify risks associated with communications technology and describe how to use them safely. Describe various types of bullying and abuse and identify appropriate ways of responding. The concept of human and animal reproduction — presented broadly as the union of the egg and sperm will be introduced in Grade 4.
Grade 5: Identify the parts of the reproductive system. Describe the processes of menstruation and spermatogenesis. Describe stresses related to puberty and identify strategies to manage them. Explain how a person’s actions, either in person or online, can affect people’s feelings and reputation, including making sexual comments and sharing sexual pictures. First discussion of sexual intercourse occurs in Grade 5.
Grade 6: Identify factors that affect a person’s ‘self-concept,’ for example stereotypes, gender identity and body image. Describe how to lay a foundation for healthy relationships by understanding changes that occur during adolescence. Assess the effects of stereotypes on social inclusion and relationships. Masturbation is defined in Grade 6 and characterized as normal and not harmful, but students are not ‘taught to masturbate.’
Grade 7: Explain the importance of understanding with a partner about delaying sexual activity and the concept of consent. Identify common sexually transmitted infections and describe their symptoms. Identify ways of preventing STIs and unintended pregnancy. Assess the impact of different types of bullying or harassment, including sexting. Oral-genital contact and anal intercourse are discussed in Grade 7. They are listed as potential sexual activities that one should consider abstaining from or delaying and is not offered up as alternatives to delaying vaginal intercourse. This is aimed to reduce teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted infection rates and raise the age of onset of first sexual activity.
Grade 8: Identify and explain factors that can affect decisions about sexual activity. Demonstrate an understanding of gender identity and sexual orientation. Demonstrate an understanding of contraception and the concept of consent. Analyze the benefits and risks of relationships involving different degrees of sexual intimacy.
Grade 9: Demonstrate an understanding of the benefits and risks of using communication technologies. Describe the relative effectiveness of methods to prevent unintended pregnancy or STIs. Demonstrate an understanding of factors influencing a person’s gender identity and sexual orientation. Apply their knowledge of sexual health and safety, including to the concept of consent.
Grade 10: Demonstrate an understanding of factors that enhance mental health. Describe factors that influence sexual decision making. Describe some common misconceptions about sexuality in our culture, and explain how these may harm people. Explain how being in an exclusive relationship with another person affects them and their relations with others.
Grade 11: Demonstrate an understanding of a variety of mental illnesses and addictions. Describe how proactive health measures and supports, for example breast and testicular examinations, can be applied to avoid or minimize illness.
Grade 12: Demonstrate an understanding of the effects and legal implications of different types of harassment, violence, and abuse in different relationships and settings and describe ways of responding to and preventing them. Demonstrate an understanding of how relationships develop and how to maintain a healthy relationship.

The curriculum (both 2015 and 1998) also indicates that students should seek guidance from trusted adults in their lives, such as parents, doctors, elders, or religious leaders, when considering sexual choices. The curriculum also supports the rights of parents to influence their children’s values and beliefs when it comes to making decisions.

Very little has actually changed from the previous curriculum in terms of what is actually being taught. There have been major, necessary updates in keeping with law and technology — changes to marriage equality, social media and digital safety. The main difference between this and the 1998 curriculum is that the 2015 curriculum includes much more detail.

4 Comments Posted on July 22, 2015October 25, 2021 by Reji Koduvath Canada, Family, Parenting

Nikhil’s Prom

Prom (promenade) is a semi-formal dance or gathering of graduating high school students. It is a celebration of hard work and friendship these teens underwent during their four years at the high school. The term ‘prom’ comes from the word ‘promenade,’ meaning a march of guests into a ballroom to announce the beginning of a formal event or ball. This event is typically held near the end of the year for the Grade 12 students. Prom is a major event among high school students and is believed to be the most important teenage event in Canada. Many teens feel this event to be an important event in their life, next to their wedding.

In the early 1900s, prom was a simple tea dance where high school seniors wore their Sunday best. In the 1920s and 1930s, prom expanded into an annual class banquet where students wore party clothes and danced afterward. In the 1950s, proms became more extravagant and elaborate, moving to hotel ballrooms and country clubs from the school gymnasium, bearing similarity to today’s proms. With this, competition blossomed, as teens strove to have the best dress, the best mode of transportation, and the best looking date. In 1975, President Ford’s daughter Susan held her high school’s senior prom at the White House.

Our son Nikhil attended the Prom in June 2015 with his date Vivian Elizabeth as both were graduating from Grade 12. The preparation for the event started in full earnest in May after Vivian accepted Nikhil’s proposal to be his Prom Date. This event is called a ‘Promposal’ and can mimic marriage proposals. Nikhil with a bouquet in his hands, dropped down to one knee, and proposed to Vivian to be his Prom Date.

Many of Nikhil’s friends did come up with creative methods for Promposal. Some did a ‘Bhangra’ with a ‘Dhol’; some sang a song duly supported by chorus of friends; some proposed with flowers and special cup-cakes; some had flash-mobs; some had special T-Shirts with a message and the list is endless. With these creative methods, teens are making each other feel special. This trend can be attributed to the power of social media and every teen want to post something special about every important event and promposal is really important.

Nikhil wanted to wear a tuxedo for the event and we went to the store renting tuxedos to pick up one suiting him. He did not want to invest in the costly outfit as he realised that he is hardly ever going to wear it after the prom and in all probability will outgrow his tuxedo soon. He had to procure a bow-tie and a pocket square in Royal Blue colour to match with Vivan’s dress.

Two days before the event, Nikhil visited the barber for a stylish haircut and also procured a set of perfumes and creams to wear on the prom day. He went to the florist and placed an order for a corsage for Vivan. The boutonnières to be worn by the boys are procured by the girls. The entire exercise cost us around $400. When our daughter Nidhi had her prom seven years back, it cost us around $600.

In case of girls, they got to buy their evening gowns and the jewellery to go with it. They got to get a pedicure and a manicure done, got to do up the nails, put on an apt facial makeup and also get a hairdo for the occasion. All these cost handsomely and all appointments have to be booked well in advance and the father got to get her to each place well before the appointed time.

On the day of the prom, prom-couples gather at a park, garden, or their own and their dates’ houses for single and/or group photographs. In Nikhil’s case (and also Nidhi’s), the location for the photo-shoot was the Rhododendron Gardens located at Port Credit on Lake Ontario. The Rhododendron Gardens as the name suggest has about 60 different hybrids of Rhododendrons and are in full bloom by late June, as if to coincide with the high school proms. The park has a micro-climate that suits rhododendrons because of its acidic soil, the humidity from its exposure to Lake Ontario and its tree cover, which includes many white pine and oak.

At the park, the prom couples gathered by 3 PM, exchanged the corsage and the boutonnière and after the photo-shoot, which took about three hours, proceeded to the banquet hall for the dinner and dance. The dinner and dance is organised by the school and is supervised by a few teachers.

The mode of transport for prom couples is another important aspect as everyone wants to make a grand entry. Normally the parents drop off the children to the venue. Some hire limousines for the event. One Nova Scotia student rented a helicopter for around $2000 to make a grand entry. One teen showed up in an ambulance as a ‘Sleeping Beauty’, to be kissed by her prince charming to wake her up (she later had to apologize after a severe social media backlash). The teens outdo each other by showing up to prom in vehicles such as fancy cars, horse chariots and even ox-pulled carriages.

The grand entry to the prom party will remind you of the Oscars. It is a red-carpet moment and the boys and girls really feel like a prince and a princess. It has all the glamour, glitz, camera flashes, etc.

After the dance and dinner, group of friends congregated at a student’s home for the after-party. Some moved from one after-party to another and we picked up Nikhil the next morning.

Since high school prom only happens once in a teen’s life, many feel it worth investing in it. Every teen wants to look back on pictures and remember the fun they had and how it was a night they felt and looked at their best. Everyone wants these memories to last forever, so they want to make sure they are the best ones.

High school prom with all its glamour surely contributes to the increased stress in the present day teenager’s already cooked up life. It also pinches heavily on the parent’s wallet. With every passing year, the marketing companies, media and the social media hypes the event and the pressure on the teens will surely keep increasing.

8 Comments Posted on June 23, 2015January 29, 2023 by Reji Koduvath Canada, Family, Parenting

Matha Pitha Guru Deva (Mother Father Teacher God)

माता पिता गुरु देवा * மாதா பிதா குரு தெய்வம் * മാതാ പിതാ ഗുരു ദൈവം

‘Matha Pitha Guru Deva’ translates into most Indian languages as ‘Mother Father Teacher God’. It owes its origin to the Vedic times and is said to be the greatest truth. It is the order of reverence as laid down by the Hindu philosophy.

First comes the mother (Matha), obviously as she is the one who carried us in her womb for ten months, developed as into a human being from a mere cell, who gave her essence to create us and brought us into this world.

Then is the father (Pitha), as he has contributed 23 chromosomes. Nearly half your traits are inherited from the father. The mother and father then take us to the teacher (Guru), and it is the guru(s), through their teachings, develop our minds and channelize our thinking. All the three have a very important role in identifying our Gods (Deva) and bringing us closer to the God.

As per Hindu mythology, Lord Shiva and his consort Parvati received a ripe mango. Their children Ganesha and Karthikeya, both wanted it. To break the impasse, Lord Shiva asked them to go around the world and the one who returns first would win the mango. Karthikeya immediately set off to encircle the world on his mount, the peacock. Ganesha realising that his mount, the rat is no match for the peacock, went around his parents once and claimed the prize saying that the parents are the whole world to him and by going around them once, he had in effect gone around the world. The happy parents gifted the fruit to Ganesha. When Karthikeya returned after going round the world, he saw Ganesha with the fruit in his hand. His non-understanding of this simple truth upset him so much that he is believed to have gone away to live alone and meditate in the hills of Palani in Southern India.

Based on my earlier articles about our teachers at Sainik School and the National Defence Academy (NDA), Veteran Brigadier Azad Sameer expressed his views. He said that many of our teachers are unsung heroes who have mentored a generation of students and taught them values and ideals which are everlasting. He is reminded of many of teachers in school, especially those associated with English, maths, physics, boxing, football and so on. Besides the subject proper, many of them taught lessons that one carries for life.

Brigadier Sameer is of the opinion that essentially this reverence for teachers is born out of a typical Indian value. A special bond between the teacher and pupil. 5000 years of Indian history will bear testimony to this special bond and special value system. Elsewhere in the world, he wonders whether one get to see this emotional connect between the teacher and the taught.

In my opinion, in case such an umbilical cord between the teacher and the students did not exist in the entire world, we would never have had the novel and then the movie like ‘To Sir With Love.’ The reverence for teachers exist in all the societies across the world.

Jesus Christ in the bible is referred to as Lord, Savior, Master, and Redeemer. In the four Gospels, out of 90 times Jesus was addressed directly, 60 times he was called Teacher. As per St John (13:13), Jesus is supposed to have said that ‘You call me Teacher and Lord, and rightly so, for that is what I am.‘

The reverence for their teachers what students demonstrate here in Canada is very much the same as what the students do in India. Most of the Indian guru-shishya (teacher-student) relationship of today is mostly hypocritical and that was what many of my classmates on leaving our school realised. We always addressed our teachers as Mister Raman or Miss Murphy; we never added the typical ‘Sir‘ as what most Indian teachers expect the students to. When our classmates reached their universities, they addressed their teachers in the same way and they faced castigation not only from the teachers, but also from their peers. Many took offense to addressing the professor as ‘Mister.’.

The teachers in Canada, expect the students to address them as ‘Mister/Miss‘ and some even insist on being addressed with only their first name. The teachers in Canada are much more straightforward in their relationship with the students. Here the teachers earn the students’ respect rather than forcing themselves on the students.

I feel that the teachers in Canada give more freedom to the students for developing their ideas and thoughts. The teachers are much more approachable and appear to be multi-talented and many have both formal and informal qualifications and experiences in varied fields other than the subjects they teach. The students discuss anything and everything under the sun with their teachers. We were lucky during our school days that we had similar teachers as in Canada.

The importance of high school teachers for the students are much more in Canada as the students need at least two teachers’ recommendations for university admission. For any job as a teenager or even later, two high school teachers’ recommendation is mandatory, even if it is for an assistant’s job at a coffee or burger shop. Our son Nikhil needed it while applying for the job of swimming instructor and lifeguard at the city’s swimming pool and also when he applied for a volunteer position at the city hospital.

About 70% of a high school student’s assessment is done by the teacher throughout the semester. The assessment is based on various assignments, presentations, written submissions, tests, quizzes, etc. The attitude and aptitude of the student and his organisational ability is also reported upon. The final semester examinations generally carry only 30% of the marks. This demands real effort from the students to maintain a healthy relationship with their teachers.

The teacher-student relationship is celebrated during the valedictory address by the student valedictorian of Grade 12 and also at Grade 8 during the graduation ceremony. You must have watched many valedictory addresses posted on the YouTube or social-media.

Teachers play an important role in nation building by developing young students into responsible citizens. Teachers through their perseverance, love and sacrifices has shown us the right path in which great men have built the nations. Any strong and powerful nation is endowed with committed and dedicated teachers, without whom these nations would never have achieved glory.

In the modern world of information overload, we may even define it as ‘Matha, Pitha, Google, Deva.’

7 Comments Posted on June 16, 2015November 3, 2022 by Reji Koduvath Canada, Parenting

Smile Knows No Barriers

“Let us make one point, that we meet each other with a smile, when it is difficult to smile. Smile at each other, make time for each other in your family,” said Mother Teresa. Happiness comes from one’s heart and if you are happy on the inside, it will show on the outside, especially through a smile. You must put a smile on your face as it will not only encourage others to do the same, but you will feel good and probably have a better attitude for doing it.

While walking our dog Maximus in the morning and evening, I come across many passersby, some walking and some in stopped cars at the traffic intersections. I make it a point to exchange a smile with most of them. Some do reciprocate and some do not.

One day in the evening during my walk, I met a lady carrying two heavy bags in her hands and walking. Many who passed by her, passed a sympathetic glance, which is for sure not going to mitigate the suffering of the lady. As I reached the lady, who appeared to be a new immigrant from South East Asia in her mid thirties, she had put down the two bags and was taking a breather. I suggested to her that I will carry one bag and she can carry the other. Very reluctantly she agreed after saying to me that it would be difficult for me to handle the dog and carry the bag.

We moved ahead with me carrying one bag and she the other. Maximus it appears had sensed the situation as he followed me meekly without his usual explorations of the fire-hydrants and the traffic signal posts. (Please refer my blog http:/rejinces.net/2014/07/15/fire-hydrants-and-the-dogs/). The lady asked me as to why I was helping her, to which I said that I thought that she deserved my assistance and my assistance will surely mitigate her agony to some extent. Then I spoke to her about Simon who carried Jesus’ cross. Simon had never heard of Jesus before and when he saw a man being abused and made to carry a cross, he went to help Him when all the Jesus’ disciples had deserted Him with Peter, supposedly the most trusted disciple, even denying that he ever knew or heard of Jesus.

After few steps, the lady asked me as to why I smiled at all the passersby and I said that it was a practise I developed mainly to mitigate my own difficulty of walking about 5 km and managing the dog and also to spread a little happiness around. The lady said that she did not smile at people as she did not know proper English. To this I said that a smile knew neither any language nor any boundaries and is the best way to spread happiness around you. You may even add a ‘Hi’ or a ‘Good Morning/ Evening’ if you wish to.

The lady said that many a times she did try to smile, but was hardly reciprocated. To this I said that in my case too it was the same. I considered anyone who did not smile back to be less luckier and less happier than what I was and that was why that person did not smile back. One should be thankful to God that one is capable of smiling, despite all the problems one has on hand. The person who did not smile back might have had a bad day at work; may have fought with someone at home or office; may be suffering immense pain or may be sick; or may have lost someone close.

After walking a kilometer, we reached the apartment building of the lady and she thanked me immensely for helping her out. She also said that she will make it a point to smile at everyone she came across. As I was about to leave, the lady said that I must become a preacher, to which I said that I do not intent to sell any God.

I have always been fascinated by the ‘Smiley ‘ with its various avatars, especially the modern Emoticons. For sure a simple tool to spread happiness in the digital world. The Smiley arrived in the early 1970s and it was the perfect yellow circle with a childlike depiction of a happy face of two vertical, oval eyes and a large, upturned semi-circular mouth. The yellow background colour was the colour of spring and the sun.

The origin of the design of Smiley is contested, it seems that it first appeared in 1963 in American children’s TV programme The Funny Company, which featured a crude smiley face as a kids’ club logo with a message ‘Keep Smiling’. Harvey Ross Ball, a graphic artist from Massachusetts was the first person to come up with the smiley faces . A company had employed him to come up with something that would boost the morale of its employees. The smiley face was popularized by two brothers, Bernard and Murray Spain, who were in the business of making would-be fad items. Over the period of time, small variations were made on the same idea, but it maintained its original yellow colour. Ball was paid $45 for his 10 minutes work. However, neither he nor the company copyrighted the design. A Seattle designer called David Stern later claimed authorship.

In September 1970, two brothers Bernard and Murray Spain, came up with the classic Smiley design to sell novelties. Adding the words Have a Nice Day, the Spains shipped at least 50 million Smiley badges in 1972. Later it appeared on key chains, coffee mugs, caps, badges, stickers, etc.

From the Smilies, the modern-day emoticons we use in emails, texts and instant messaging emerged. These emoticons can be traced to Scott Fahlman, a professor at Carnegie Mellon University, who is widely considered to be the father of the emoticons. Fahlman started it with a message “I propose the following character sequence for joke markers. :- ) Read it sideways.”

Emoticons took off as instant messaging became a popular form of quick online communication. AOL’s Instant Messenger in the 1990s provided 12 emoticons. This helped users convey a wide range of emotions with a simple click of the mouse. Emoticons became much more popular with the popularity of online communications and mobile devices. They soon multiplied into a cast of thousands and the users found that they could covey much more without using any words.

So Keep Smiling and spread happiness around.

18 Comments Posted on June 9, 2015October 7, 2022 by Reji Koduvath Sainik School

English Teacher

Mr George Joseph (Mr GJ – that is how everyone addressed him) taught us English in Grade 10 and 11 at Sainik School Amaravathinagar. He joined the school in the vacancy of Mr Seshadiri who left the school (with his daughter Sita from our class) in 1973. I started interacting with him at a personal level in Grade 11 when we went on a trek from Munnar to Idukki in Kerala in September 1977. That was the first time he opened up with me about his teaching experiences.

Mr GJ’s first class in our school was for the batch of David Davidar (three years senior to us), who authored The House of Blue Mangoes (2002), The Solitude of Emperors (2007) and Ithaca (2011). On the very first day, Mr KG Warrier (https://rejinces.net/2014/09/16/the-linguists/), head of the English department had forewarned him that the linguistic capability of the students was at a very high level and he had to be fully prepared to face them, let alone teach them. Mr GJ on many occasions claimed that he actually learnt English by teaching students at our school. During our school days, Mr GJ was a bachelor and hence had all the time in the world to himself. One could mostly see him spending his spare time at the library, reading up all the books which he could not during his university days.

Mr GJ was a good basketball player and coached the school basketball team. He was a good swimmer and hence joined Mr Krishnan Kutty (the crafts Master) (https://rejinces.net/2014/08/08/arts-and-crafts/) to form the nucleus of the canoeing club. He later took over the reins of the canoeing club, once he mastered the art of canoeing and could navigate through the Amaravathi Dam’s waters. He again claims that he perfected the art of canoeing by learning the same from the senior students.

During the boxing competitions at school, Mr GJ was a judge always. He once narrated that he had never seen a boxing bout in his life until he joined our school. One day when Mr CM Nair (Physical Training Instructor) (https://rejinces.net/2014/07/23/233/) while preparing the gymnasium for the boxing competition realised that he was short of a judge as Mr Venkateswaran, the biology teacher had left the school. Whether Mr CM Nair found some similarity between Mr GJ and Mr Venkateswaran in their physical appearance, or not, he summoned Mr GJ and requested him to be the boxing judge the following week. Obviously Mr GJ showed his reluctance having had no experience in the field, why even he had never witnessed a boxing bout and now he has been tasked to be a judge. Mr CM Nair conducted a detailed clinic for Mr GJ and handed him over the rule book of boxing. After the clinic, Mr GJ became very confident and every year till we left the school, he was always a boxing judge and never was his judgement ever questioned.

Once he threw the towel in to the ring to stop a bout, as he realised that the contest was really uneven and the loser of the bout might suffer an injury. This raised a few hackles then, but now looking back one realises how apt his decision was and also that his action befitted that of a seasoned boxing judge.

During our trek from Munnar to Idukki in 1977, the first day’s halt was at a village called Vellathooval. We started the trek early in the morning from Munnar and reached Vellathooval by late afternoon to be received by the Headmaster, staff and students of the Government High School there. The school organised a special assembly of the entire school to welcome us and Cadet Benoy Zachariah (now a cardiac surgeon at Boston, USA) was tasked by Mr GJ to deliver the English speech and I was tasked to deliver a speech in Malayalam, to motivate the students to join Sainik Schools and then the armed forces. That was the first motivational speech I delivered and as per Mr GJ we did a decent job of it. The preferential treatment we received at this school was because Mr GJ had arranged the same with our class mate George Paul’s father who was the Educational Officer, under whose jurisdiction this school came.

After three days of trekking we reached Idukki and then went around sightseeing for the next three days. One evening I was talking with Mr GJ and the subject was regarding the difficulties faced by the teachers while managing the students during various treks and hikes at the school. Mr GJ narrated his very first hiking experience at our school the year he had joined. Mr GJ was tasked to lead the hike to Yercaudu in Thamizh Nadu, a quiet little hill station on the Shevaroy hills of the Eastern Ghats. During the train trip to the base of Yercaudu, Cadet Appu fell off the train. Mr GJ got the entire entourage to disembark from the train at the next station and he walked about five kilometers along the track back and found Cadet Appu lying unconsciously near the rail track. Mr GJ administered first aid to Cadet Appu and carried him on his shoulders and walked back to the railway station where the rest of the entourage was waiting. They then boarded the next train and continued with the hike.

Like most classes at our school, Mr GJ’s English classes were mostly group discussions with the teacher in the lead and acting as a moderator. Among some of the memorable discussions we had, one was about opening Sainik Schools for girl cadets too. Mr GJ brought out that the boys would be better disciplined, better dressed, better behaved if girl cadets were studying along with us and the overall performance of the cadets would surely improve manifold. This discussion took place in the days when no one in India thought of opening military service for women.

Once Mr GJ opened up a discussion by his justifications for men resorting to domestic violence. As expected, all cadets in the class opposed it tooth and nail. At the end of the class Mr GJ concluded by saying that had he not put up a few arguments in support of the motion, no worthwhile discussion would have emanated. He brought home the point that to get noticed in the group discussion, at times one would have to support a cause which one is sure will have no takers. He always encouraged us to approach an issue differently; mainly to stand out and also to try out a different method or a path.

After we moved on from the school, Mr GJ moved out as the Principal of Navodaya Schools in Kerala and is now retired and has settled down at Palai, Kerala. He can be contacted on Cell # 944 636 8276 and email gjay51045@gmail.com.

REJINCES