KOCHI: Liza White, a hypnotherapist by profession in London, came to Vypeen with her two children, a few weeks back. The purpose was to get treated by an Ayurveda doctor for her neck pain. She was much relieved by the treatment that lasted only one week.Feeling much better, she thought of taking her children to the well-known Mookambika Vidya Niketan in Paravoor to understand their teaching methods.The management received Liza and her children warmly and allowed them to freely mingle with the students.She recollects what a wonderful experience it was, and compares the system and culture with schools in England. The students of Vidyaniketan wholeheartedly welcomed them, she recounts. Liza and her children were allowed to join the picnic team of the school.They visited Athirapally waterfalls and Thattekkad bird sanctuary. Her children were thrilled to see the waterfalls. It was their first experience, she said, and the natural beauty of the state made it all the more memorable.She contrasted this with the system in schools back home where students are asked to sit quiet and are dissuaded from touching animals and other things during a picnic. But here she found that the students were allowed to play and enjoy to the fullest. The students exchange pleasantries with other picnicking student groups, share their snacks, took up adventurous programmes under the supervision of their caring teachers. The family bonds seen in Kerala is a model for the international fraternity, she feels. Parents and even grown up children live together taking care of each other. After a hard day’s work, they rush to their family to spent time with their dear ones.Liza is also touched by the kindness that perfect strangers in Kerala show to outsiders. “They were very gracious, graceful and humble,” she says.While her daughter liked colourful and different types of clothes, her son was overwhelmed by the natural beauty of the beaches, hills and valleys. But she does point out one negative aspect. The traffic, she says is a mess. “It should be regulated properly and people should obey the rules to ensure their and others’ safety,” she says.Liza relished the famed Kerala banana and describes it as ‘delicious’. She also liked the sunny climate here, contrasting with England’s cold, grey weather. The sunshine in January was fantastic, she exclaims.With sweet memories of her Kerala visit, Liza now returns back to England, but with a special request to the school management that she and her children should be allowed to mingle with the students again.
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