Around Cootamundra - January 19

During that time, Fiona experienced an array of new adventures including festivals, performances, language classes and weddings! 

The Lord Ganesh Festival occurs every August, celebrating the birthday of Lord Ganesh. 

Close friends of Fiona’s hosted a Ganesh idol in their home to celebrate the occasion and after 10 days of various activities, the idol is paraded in the streets and taken to be immersed in Lake Pichola,Navratri. Fiona participated in local festivities and had a lot of fun dancing throughout the festival. 

Diwali is India’s version of Christmas and New Year rolled into one. It is one of the largest Hindi festivals in India. 

Fiona reports the streets were beautifully decorated and there are five days of holidays and festivities around India. People can also see lots of lamps lit around the perimeter of most houses. This tradition stems from a story in which two deities are led to their home by the light of the lamps. 

Fiona also travelled to Delhi for four weeks during her stay to attend Hindi language classes at the Zabaan Language Institute. Fiona was pleased to tell us she is now able to read and write in the Hindi script, however, she is still working on grasping the Hindi grammar and vocabulary. 

The trip ended on a high with one of Fiona’s friends hosting their nephew’s wedding. Indian weddings are very lavish affair with five days of ceremonies and celebrations. 

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While she enjoyed loads of fun experiences the main reason for Fiona’s trip to India was to help undertake renovations to a boys hostel in Bedla, Udaipur. 

Many local residents donated to this worthwhile cause in the lead-up to Fiona’s departure and she is pleased to report the work is complete. 

On August, 3 a small team including local girl Fiona Braybrooks, began a three-week renovation project at the hostel. 

Fiona said it was a rainy start to the project, “but it didn’t dampen our spirits as we began painting the roof area and made our way through the complex”. 

As they were only a small team of four, the team enlisted the help and skills of two local painters, Vijay and Dinesh to help complete the project. 

The whole project included painting two bedrooms, two office areas, one kitchen, two classroom areas, two  roof areas, the main courtyard, the toilet block and a number of stairwell areas as well as the main gate and outside wall. Some repairs to the existing facility were also completed. 

Fiona says “it has certainly brightened the facility for the boys! The whole complex needed at least two or three coats to cover the previous paintwork, so it took us quite some time to complete all the painting.”

All of the paint, ladders, additional local labour and tools needed to complete the project were purchased with generous donations from the Cootamundra community as well as funds raised from the Building a Brighter Future Fundraising Dinner held in Cootamundra at the end of May in 2014.

Fiona wishes to send the Cootamundra community a very big thank you to all who supported and donated towards the project.

A REMINDER that this Wednesday, January 21, will be a big day for local cricket fans! 

Supported by the NSW Government as part of the 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup, the Home Ground Cricket Tour has been designed to give local clubs across the state a taste of World Cup excitement.

Cootamundra is one of just 27 locations across NSW chosen to host the tour.

The Home Ground Cricket Tour will take over Albert Park to celebrate cricket and the role it plays in bringing people together for most of the day with the Cootamundra District Cricket Association getting in on the action on Wednesday night with a T/20 game in support of the Bat for Joe fundraiser. 

THE town pool continues to be a hub of activity for local residents flock to beat the heat. 

Opening hours are 6.30am until 8am and 9.30am until 7pm weekdays and 10am until 6pm weekends and public holidays. 

Recently the question was asked why the indoor pool (heated in winter) has to be closed during a lightning storm as well as the main pool with Cootamundra Shire Council explaining the two pools are connected, therefore if the water becomes electrified in one it will be unsafe to be swimming in the other also. 

THIS week’s movie at the Arts Centre is ‘Most Wanted Man’ (rated M).

The film stars Grigory Dobrygin and Philip Symour Hoffman and will be screed this Wednesday, January 21 in the Tin Shed Theatre at 10.30am and 7pm and again on Sunday at 5pm. 

General admission is $12. 

For more information contact the Arts Centre on 6942 4773 or email info@theartscentrecootamundra.org.au.