There were so many great memories made during this trip. One of the highlights must have been the opening of the library located at the Tondong Raja primary school. It took an hour and a half to reach the school. It was located deep inside a forest. The forest was lush green and rather chilly.
We were surprised to see that we weren’t only greeted by the students of Tondong Raja primary school but also the students of neighboring schools. Students of Mbeliling secondary school, which is located across the road of the primary school, presented a traditional dance in front of all the guests.
The dance is known as the Caci dance and was performed by 4 boys. It is one of the most famous dances of the region. The village elderlies also took part in the dance, chanting and singing along to the percussions of the dance.
Teachers and parents approached the Rainbow Reading Gardens many times during the ceremony to express their gratitude for opening the library. We were even more grateful to receive such a beautiful ceremony and delicious banquet. We were even told that each parent donated a cup full of rice so there would be enough to eat during the ceremony. It was incredible to see the solidarity between the people of Tondong Raja.
Anton, the principal of the school, expressed his gratitude in his opening speech, while miss Henny, the school librarian applauded and agreed. About 1400 books have been distributed and they were all ready to be read by the students of the school. We everyone enjoys their new books and will be inspired.