Never Say Never Die

It’s a year since the cowardly, heinous massacre of innocent people in Mumbai by twisted trained Terrorists. The perpetrators who aimed to inflict a great blow to the very fabric of India- its secularism, thus hoping to derail its growth and economic progress, fell flat on there face. Defeated by the very common people who held on to their nerves and dealt with the situation, deeply united, bouncing back and returning a stronger nation than ever before.

Mumbai has shown time and time again that it’s resolve and resilience cannot be shaken by terror or tragedy. I Myself, having left with in close call on two testing situations the city underwent earlier, one on Mumbai flooding day and other on Serial blast 2006 , witnessed the terrific moments from close proximity. It’s amazing to see how the people of this city who totally let down by the authorities and the governance dealt with the situation rallying behind each other to address the issues and propel the city back to normalcy. As the saying goes “Mumbai never sleeps” Yes it’s true and its also true that “Mumbai never tires”.

This great business hub, The hallmark of India, symbolizes our strength and reflects our resolve to withstand injustice acts of cowardice inflicted upon us.
No doubt, time and again we have shown the character and withstood against all adverse situations and look for peaceful means of solving issues such as building external consensus through dialogs and discussions but isn’t it time we take our internal security matters into our hand and stop looking elsewhere??. Isn’t it time we act like a responsible nation and priortise the protection its people above rest.

After all, what a strong economic power is?, if it is not able to protect its People? Protect its borders? and provide justice by bringing the perpetrators of this crime to their knees denying them access to spill any further blood of innocent unharmed civilians on the streets.
This great nation resonates with deeds and doings of its great leaders who set exemplary examples by living the talk, so much so that leaders like Mahatma Ghandhi lived a simple common life so much so that he denied himself good cloths as vast majority of his people during that time could not afford clothes.
Its time our leaders who feel comfy in the safe ring of Z class realize that their primary responsibility is to safeguard the security and interest of the people who elected them and not just themselves. Its time they wake up

On this day, Lets pay our homage to people who laid down there lives on 26/11/2008 by joining our hands together at NDTV’s human chain
Jai Hind
Murali

Fengshan Divali Night

Having learnt about ‘Fengshan Divali Night’ a bit late, we weren’t sure about securing a ticket for this event. It came as surprise when we heard from the community member that they may be able to accommodate us. Having managed to get an entry, it didn’t surprise us to find ourselves at one of the back row table but soon it was all smiles as the very same table turned out to be among the lucky one to win a table price.
The Event was very well organized, the audience were entertained by a few amazing dances by Malay kids who danced to Hindi songs and Chinese kids, who displayed a lantern dance, the orchestra of traditional Tamil songs was good.
The south Indian traditional band dance was amazing; it filled the hall loud and clear and reflected the festivities back home. It also doubled up as a welcome party to greet guest of honor Mr. Raymond Lee. The spicy Indian food not only added the aroma for the event but turned out to be delicious, to finish off it was the lucky dip.
It was indeed a good experience and was a nice opportunity to meet and greet members of different community who came together to celebrate the ‘Divali Night’. All in all it was a very well cherished evening at vicinity of home.
Murali

Deepavali Dhamaka

“Yeh Dil Maange More” ,

The Grand finale event lived up to the expectations and beyond. Providing us a wonderful day to spend with family, which was full of joy and fun.

The design and decorations of the Venue-central area was quite creative, The state of art lighting effect (drawn from individual contribution of serial lights) were simply great. Together they bought a professional touch and provided a great platform for the events to unfold. Thanks to the group ingenuity and congregate effort

The weather played along, what was suppose to be an overcast day turned bringing the much needed cheers all around. The cultural events were a treat to watch, the young ones shun the shy and performed elegantly the group dance ‘Mukunda Mukunda Song’, The ‘Hokey Pokey Dance’ were amazing to watch.
The Chinna Chinna Asai song, The Des Rangela Dance, The Aahun Aahun Dance were great entertainers. The dual synchronized effort in ‘Chudi Jo Khanke Dance’ was outstanding. This great performance along with the pleasant Nostalgic song presented by ladies, will definitely go on to prove as a “lead by example” to our Longvale kids for them to come forward, embrace the challenge and to exhibit their talents unhindered, exploiting the true sense of this get-together, which is to provide a platform for our kids to perform, enjoy and excel

The program compering was a nicely executed and well managed, The pride moment of awarding rewards and ‘Longvale Duniya’ certificates to winners on this occasion was definitely an encouraging step.

The Games that followed was highly exhilarating and fun filled, As usual the time passed so quick that we were only to be reminded by the huger call, The sumptuous meal followed by Musical chair and Housie Housie provided a perfect finish before retiring for the day with the main activity ‘To be continued’ for the next week.

The successful event like this cannot be accomplished if not for the devoted volunteers, who have strived in various ways, sometimes working as a committee group and many a times individually on the background to make this event happen.
The efforts focused towards putting smiles on the faces of our Longvale children and building a community that provides a platform of appreciation and encouragement with events like these is definitely emerging and on track.

We can now proudly “Pat on Back” and say “Yes We Can”.

Folks, don’t forget our “Jadoo ki jappi” a “pat on the Back” for your fellow mates, will C U all on the Craking day to crak, crak, crak!!!!!!

Wishing you all a very Happy Divali
Murali

Longvale Live

As our competition events drew closer to finish, all eyes are now focused on the grand finale event that we can hardly wait.

Beginning with the thrilling carom game, where the participants fought it out till last frame, often producing a nail biting finish, a delight for audience to cherish.
Followed by which was the children’s drawing competition where the little hands drew and colored with whole lot of conviction.
Then it was to men to muscle a tradition of cricket with two wicket, next was a game of badminton, a mixed double competition.

They say “Pictures speak a lot than words”
Sure it’s been the case. Having missed all the action of this event and rest of the competition so far, I and I’m sure rest of all who missed it like me would still be able to gauge the amount of interest and effort that has been put by the competitors to make this such a successful one.
Guess, the most difficult job lied with those poor judges, Not surprisingly all the dilemma, discussions and deliberations in judging this event are shown in there expressions. In an event like this, there could be only one winner and it’s the spirit of our group ‘Longvale Duniya’

Kudos to the competitors, who have demonstrated that the roots of our traditions are intact, alive and kicking no matter where we are, Congratulations to the participating and organizing team, A job well done !!!!!!"

Logo competition

Section 1(Presented by -> Geetha)
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Section 2 (Presented by -> Meena)
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Section 3(Presented by -> Poonam Ganesh)
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Section 4(Presented by -> Rajani)
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Long Vale Duniya – Embracing Harmonious Living with Ideal Values of love, peace, prosperity and Unity

Section 5-(Presented by ->Akanksha Verma)
*********Winning Logo**********
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My Logo depicts the families in Longvale Estate.The red & white circle represents Singapore.The two bird houses represent our migration from India.The birds represent 'US' coming from all regions of India & united in Longvale Duniya.
*********Winning Logo**********

This Logo presented by "Akanksha Verma" secured 12 votes and has been judged the winner of our Logo Competition by our group members

Our heartily Congratulations to you ‘Akanksha Verma’


Section 6(Presented by -> Feroz)
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It captures Longvale estate, the people living in apartments and kids happily playing in the playground, with the outline depicting Singapore.

Section 7(Presented by -> Sonia)
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Logo Symbolizes the people living harmoniously and having fun at Longvale Duniya. Logo captures L&D of Longvale Duniya, people, apartment buildings and the playground, which plays the most significant role in creating this community. Various versions of the Logos are with the same theme in mind

Section 8 (Presented by -> Murali)
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The logo depicts a smiling cartoon of ‘Long Whale’ (‘Longvale’) king of the seas. This beautiful air breathing creature (Mammal like us) in not only known for its sheer size but as a symbol of strength to wade off any external threat, Symbol of courage to explore unknown dark depths, Symbol of endurance to move thousands of miles and above all its symbol of gracefulness, love, care and concern, exhibited by maintaining relations working in groups, communicating across thousands of miles, grooming their young ones on there footsteps by there side under watchful eyes. Which I believe is a clear representation of values a group should stand for

The cartoon character whale nick named ‘LV’ is been designed for our little ones to be passionate and part of this. It represents there naughty and joyful behavior. The character could eventually become our Mascot symbol and find a place on the back of our little ones in the form of T-shirts or caps

The building with the green shrub indicates our resolve to ‘Living Green’ making right environmental choices and taking actions to lead a healthier, sustainable livelihood in our very own ‘Desi Duniya’ where our drama unfolds every day.


Section 9 (Presented by -> Ullekha)
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Rising sun

‘Jai ho’

It’s our 62nd Independence day. Little would have one imagined that a country which had great challenges to deal with when independent, such as burgeoning population, illiteracy, acute Food shortage, diversities in its cultures, religions, languages, castes, manners would ever stick together as one nation, let alone progress and prosper

Today, mighty economies have recognized India as a key emerging market and are looking towards it as part of a solution to solve this Global economic slump.

The reason behind this transformation is due to various factors but one thing that stands out distinctly and clearly evident is its people, The very factor that was viewed as a liability for countries progress turned out to be its greatest asset “Its billon strong minds” that have relentlessly strived laying the foundation and propelling this country forward from a little known “Snake charming nation” to this great sensation.

Certainly, India is not defined not only by the success and growth stories but its insufficiencies too such as poverty, illiteracy, corruption, bureaucracy, crippling infrastructure, inadequacy of basic health care resulting in highest number of deaths related to childbirth, Malaria, Aids etc etc, this reminds on the hard long journey ahead before the entire people of the nation truly feel independent.

The Nation which has together stood the test of time under adverse conditions be it manmade or natural has wisely learnt that “Together lies the strength” Bound by a various commonality we have, such as ‘Food’, ‘History’, ‘Traditions’ and ‘Bollywood’ to name a few act like converging factors bringing us much closer exhibiting our unique strength “Unity in Diversity” and for those external forces who are dreaming to mastermind a split, we have two words to say “Vande Matharam”

Happy Independence Day folks

Little Champs

Our neighborhood girl ‘Ullekha’ scored a medal in this year OSIM International Triathlon competition. Participating in this event for the very first time under 7-9 year girls category, she successfully completed 100mts sea swim,2Km cycling and 1Km run at a stretch and secured 19th position among 60 odd participants, In doing so she toped the table among Indian Participants in this event. do checkout the official results published online here

Congratulations kiddo, our best wishes with you and we look forward for a podium position soon

For sure, we have many young champs hidden around us; It just needs be noticed, recognized and encouraged. Let’s begin the process in house. If you have something to share about our Longvale little’s excellence be in any area be it Academics, Extra circular, Personal Hobbies, talents, Recognitions, Scholarships or anything that you would like to encourage the little ones on, then we would love to hear from you. So, its simple,Just write to longvaleadmin@gmail.com and watch them online at our LongvaleDuniya

Singapore Day

Singapore recently celebrated It's “Racial harmony” day to mark peaceful coexistence of it’s people who emerge from various ethnic backgrounds. This Island nation has rightfully attached significant importance to this event and has been celebrating the rich mixture of diversity among its people nurturing feeling of comradeship and brotherhood year on year.
Here the encouragement for racial equality and harmonious living is seen as a continuous ongoing process and not just being limited to a day, few examples of which are the public housing policies,Representation in social and regional committee etc.

It's quite surprising to find that somehow this idea of marking and celebrating the racial harmony seems to have gone unnoticed by members of international community. A quick search in google on “Racial harmony day” returns most of the result pages related to Singapore.
In this global village, isn’t there a need to mark and commemorate an International Day to celebrate ‘Racial harmony’ to promote tolerance and understanding among people of all races and religious backgrounds,? It certainly is, history stands as an example one of the common reasons of great sufferings and miseries of the people in this world has been the lack of empathy and understanding towards each other’s Race, Religion and culture.

Sure, when we can find a place for ‘Chocolate Day’, ‘Rose Day’, ‘Friendship Day’ etc in our International day’s list certainly we can and should have this day marked and celebrated world wide with the aim of fostering cohesion beyond boundaries.

The emergence of Singapore as a force to reckon with could be due to various factors, it’s future focus, Its efficiency in functioning , business oriented governance reforms, strong leadership and administration, Ability to attract and retain foreign talent etc but one would not disagree that it is the people of the nation that are the building blocks behind this success.

As the nation prepares to celebrate its National Day, Its time to remember its diverse people whose relentless effort has catapulted the name and fame of this Island nation to heights exponentially larger to its geographic size in the global arena.
Lets together, wish all Singaporeans and its residents an year full of economic Success, Peace and Prosperity on the occasion of Singapore National Day
Happy Birthday Singapore !!!

Humming The Hymns

The holidays are over and children are back to school braving the threat of flu. Looking back, it feels that the weeks just flew by for all of us, often keeping ourselves involved in planning and execution of interesting activities for kids. Although the fun always got ahead in mind, I’m sure the learning wasn’t left far behind.

One such learning activity that happened on the background was the Sloka classes pioneered and successfully conducted by Mrs. Meena Venkatesh.
Mrs.Meena came up with the idea of engaging our little ones productively by proposing to teach Shloka to interested kids to kindle a sprit of spirituality with these young kidooos, Here is what she said had to say when initially proposed it
“..Believe that spirituality is latent in all of us. It just needs to be awakened and age is no bar."
The classes were successfully conducted and concluded by her, what was interesting though was the zeal, enthusiasm and eagerness in which the kids attended this classes much to the surprise of their parents.
Here is what the children’s got to say
“ Sloka class were very very interesting Meena aunty took lot of efforts in preparing the material and making the teaching interesting for us. We learnt a lot in these few classes”

“ The classes were made interesting by the “home library” in which Meena aunty allowed us to borrow old comic books among which some belonged to her child hood days”

Wonder if it makes sense to continue such programs and expand this idea beyond holidays covering larger group’s interest. Perhaps,Public speaking and debate lesson, Music classes, Indian language exchange sessions, Weekend Vedic Mathematics class, Rangoli drawing classes and much more.
Everything got to have a beginning and we now have a successful one, will this generosity become contagious and spread in this conducive atmosphere, time to wait and watch.
Thank you Mrs.Meena, your efforts are much appreciated:)

Glimpses of Fathers Day

The Invitations sent out clearly indicated the intent. Words written in bold meant it all “Expect the Unexpected” before the night fall.
The launch location was just right for the occasion, brightly lit basketball light, made it look as though we were in broad day light.
The women volunteers were right at front with full force of strength and as they unfolded their events one by one, it splendidly covered everyone.
The kids fashion show was full of surprise Doctor, Airhostess, Musician,Chinese Man and Poets appeared and performed on the Dias.
The following event was the one on which there was much talk, Yes,it was Ramp walk.
Hand in hand, the Men and Kids moved gracefully,posing for the waiting cameras cheerfully.
More to come was the blind folded men, who accompanied with there young one mesmerized everyone.
Followed by which was the three legged race where the participants were quick in pace, working together they came good and It was time for all important food

‘PavBhaji, ‘MasalPuri’, ‘DahiPuri', 'SevPuri' and 'PaniPuri' were nicely spread in the hall, reminding us of the ‘Chowpatty’ stall. Spicy and yummy looking ‘Chaat’ really confused us, where to start?
The cuisine and hospitality were class apart, indicative perhaps, the women really know the way to their Men’s heart.

Yet an other exciting day flew past by, with Laughter Cheer and Joy
The Love and warmth spread, will certainly find a place in everybodys head
Days might come and pass as will, but the memories of this Father’s day would forever stay still :)

Daddy Cool!

A Dad is a person,who is loving and kind,
And often he knows,what you have on your mind.
He's someone who listens,suggests, and defends.
A dad can be one of your very best friends!
He's proud of your triumphs,but when things go wrong,
A dad can be patient and helpful and strong
In all that you do,a dad's love plays a part.
There's always a place for him deep in your heart.
And each year that passes,you're even more glad,
More grateful and proud just to call him your dad!
Thank you, Dad...for listening and caring,
for giving and sharing,but, especially, for just being you!

Few Lines Of Love From Longvale’s Little Poets

A person who cares, shares,
Source of motivation, determination,
and encouragement.
A Person who leads us in correct path
is none other than - "FATHER"
By R.A. Manasa

I like my Father.
He is funny.
He is sporty.
He is supreme.
He is super.
No one can battle him.
He is thye best in the world.
By R.A. Mridulla

A fathers love is like the sea flowing endlessly around me
It comforts me when I’m sad and also when I’m mad
You can’t find a better person as there will not be any
I’m telling you a fathers love is more pervious than money
If there is a person more Loving than a father, he is nothing but a bother
By Ullekha

Fathers love is brilliant as the sea
And as we grow it will be better then ever
So have a fun time with your fathers love
By Raksha

We’re In!....

Amazing day it was, Volunteers from all over the island pored in to Expo hall. I was accompanied by the ever persisting elder one, As usual questioning started, this time a bit earlier than expected, Where are we going?, What would we do?, How is it going to be etc etc. Having no clue on this I preferred to preach patience.

It dint take long for the curtain to raise, the event started as per schedule, the process of registration was very interestingly planned in the form of a journey. Each volunteer was issued with a passport using which he or she is expected to complete a journey that Kris crossed across many booths that were setup with the idea of delivering a key message such as The History of Olympics, Volunteering Singapore Youth Olympics Values (SYOGOC), Youth Olympics facilities, Culture and Education programs and host of fun activities for people of all age.
The successfully emerged ones got to pose for the camera I guess for the ID card and with it they confirmed there registration as a volunteer for Singapore youth Olympics 2010.
It was a very well organized event with loads of fun activities, on stage music, cheer group events, light refreshments and Olympics resource pack to give away…….finally, Yes we made it through? Wish you had another chance, here it is.…you can still enroll even now…

I'm In Are You?

Hi Folks, The proud movement of hosting youth Olympics in Singapore for the very fist time is not far away and with it comes life time opportunity for us to watch it, A MRT station away, like to participate as a volunteer for this event, if so rush to expo tomorrow by 12 noon, for further info check out the official site here, I'm going, are you joining?

Our Visit to Kusu

The Sunny humid day didn’t deter the determined lot to make a day out count. There were quite a few second time Island visitors in the group, who were out to make this group activity fun filled and memorable one.

The Party started early morning exactly as per the IST with the assembly of families near coffee shop before riding on to Harbourfront station.
The curiosity of kids to learn what lies on Kusu was quenched by the experience lot, knowing the history of the place the kids were eager to encounter tortoises(Kusu in malay) but ‘Mridullha’ also reminded what Kusu stands for in Tamil and sure she was right, very soon we were there, the mozzies made their presence felt. As they picked up soft targets, few cries went up in air, which were quickly answered by the watchful mothers. it dint take long for these concerns to fade away as the Party began.

The inaugural was the Men’s Cricket match (Perhaps high of T20 fever still), After gulping the hand out of fresh sandwiches by ‘Simar’, The men took to the willows, The format and rules were quickly decided, pitch catch out, Hit a tree- its four, ball goes to sea you get 6 runs, ball not recoverable don’t even think of continuing and off course no runs for overthrows and byes. As the men sweated out on the far side the women were enjoying a game of cards in the shade.
No, they weren’t been lazy it’s just that they spared the best for last, An evening session of cricket to close the day.
It was Time for lunch, the ladies were kind enough to lay out the lunch in a buffet style which they had carefully prepared and preserved for the moment. It’s all Veg Day(doing our bit to save the friendly earth).
The wide variety of items and their amazing taste made the lunch comparable to a buffet spread in a good Indian restaurant here.
The Panner Masala, Rajma, Bonda, Samosa, Alu sabji, Puliyogare, Curd rice, Samosa and Gulab Jamoon were just right for the occasion.

After lunch it was a strolling time, The Kids put on there adventurous cap exploring far and wide of the island accompanied by men on guard. Much to there curiosity, they found many tortoise on the island. Few in the wishing pond, few outside, the kids were v.happy to finally find them, a few got brave, led by ‘Bigas’, the little ones mustered courage to touch them and hold in hands as well. Concerned Parents don’t worry, they did wash there hands in the near by shower….Kudos to the Singapore authorities who have managed to install a fresh water shower in this remote Island.

By this time messengers were out to gather the dispersed lot for a game. It was brain teaser time….’Shreya’ had planned for some interesting game to engage the unruly elders in games, no points for guessing the first one, Ofcourse it was Anthakshari, The team was split into four groups, The rules were clear any legitimate song as long as the singer can sing, we saw no dearth of talented singers. Men or Women, Regional or National they sung all. The game went on and on until we decided to move on as nobody seemed to loose. The next game was a personality guessing game either from politics or Bollywood smartly covering both the interest of men and women. Each team would have 15 questions which they can ask with possible answers ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ and arrive at the Answers, It was a tough fight but not without a winner( So who was it? We all know, don’t we??) ha.ha.ha…..

By this time the women were planning to try their hands on cricket, It was bit surprised to be honest, where is all this motivation coming from?? Is it the bolywood influence in cricket or is it the contagious T20? But nevertheless comes as a relief as we men need not fiercely compete for the TV remote during the cricket match telecast…come on ladies…Keep it up…

It was a pack up call; the ferry had arrived for pickup. We huddled back on ferry and made ourselves comfortable in the AC cabins; we arrived at harbor front and then zipped home in our mini bus a thoughtful thinking and arrangement from ‘Ravi’.

It was a indeed a very hot day out, the sweetly timed drinks break and fresh fruits circulation kept on infusing right amount of hydration and energy to keep us going, the Mango and watermelon were most welcome and reminded of Indian summer days.

The highly spirited group shun the raising mercury and joined together to make best of the day. It turned out to be yet another wonderful day out.
This June 6th would certainly go down as yet another memorable day for us isn’t It.…Three cheers for the Group that made this happen…Hip Hip Hurray...Hip Hip Hurray...Hip Hip Hurray…

Like to share your exp? We would luv to hear from you...Please feel free to comment the post or write a new, send your write up to Longvalelifeadmin@gmail.com and watch it online soon. Kids what are you waiting for???

Can speak chinese? if not, Never mind lah!!

Mrs Meena Venkatesh like to share this valuable piece of information that would enable us say.....can,can...

Also, checkout the SINDA’S June Holiday Programme 2009 that includes exiting workshops to build Communication,Leadership and Relationship building skills for students of classes 4 to 7

Think Global Act Local

A Better India, A Better World
Sounds like an Indian election slogan? Well actually not, it’s a book written by our Mr.Narayana Murthy, Chief Mentor and Chairman of Infosys Board. The release of this book was held at GIIS Queen’s town premises yesterday by none other than the first Prime Minister of Singapore and current Minister Mentor Mr. Lee Kuan Yew. This was a real nice opportunity to have come our way to witness two great personalities on one stage here.
Apparently, this was the first ever book release done by Mr. Lee Kuan Yew, what a very nice gesture of him to have chosen to release Mr. NRN’s book as his first. A proud moment to any Indian, As expected it was a full house, We did manage to find a place and this pic :))

Also,Thanks for your overwhelming response and words of support and encouragement. With all our participation we can put this platform for better use by sharing our experiences and events.

How can we contribute?
It’s as easy as following these 3 simples steps,
Start it, Share it, Show it

Start it - Start what you want to share,it could be (Events, Birthdays, Occasions, Experiences, cooking recipes, children’s achievements or Just about anything you like to share)
Share it - Send what you have completed along with the images (if you would like) to Longvalelifeadmin@gmail.com

Show it - The publisher would publish it on the very next occasion to show it on LongvaleLife

Last but not Least please Comment it ….your feedback is most essential for the success of every posting

Happy Mothers day

You can see it in their eyes,
in tender hugs and long good-byes,
a love that only moms and daughters know.
You can see it in their smiles,
through passing years and changing styles,
a friendship that continually seems to grow.
You can see it in their lives,
the joy each one of them derives,
in just knowing that the other one is there...
To care and to understand,
lend an ear or hold a hand,
and to celebrate the memories they share.
Once upon a memory
Someone wiped away a tear
Held me close and loved me,
Thank you, Mother dear.