Nepalese Meal and Golfing

Namastē!

Bath has been very sunny this weekend. Nina and Katya were involved in school matches on Saturday against Prior Park College and they were victorious. Vladislav played in the staff, parents' and pupil matches today. Tonight we have enjoyed a wonderful BBQ put on by our amazing Catering team for whom we are very grateful, not least because they supplied all the ingredients for our incredible Nepalese Meal last night.  This was the shopping list submitted to Catering to cater for nearly 40 boarders, prefects and staff!

Naan Bread

3 kg plain flour

Baking powder

Bicarbonate of soda

Nigella seeds

4 eggs

Ghee

Bhindi bhaji

6 medium onions

1.8 kg okra (lady fingers)

Turmeric

Mustard seeds

Ground coriander

Cumin

Curry leaves

6 red chillis

12 tomatoes

2 lemons

Nepali Chicken curry

4 kg of chopped boneless chicken

8 eggs

Turmeric

100g ginger paste

8 red peppers

8 onions

8 tomatoes

Sunflower Oil to fry

1 whole Garlic

Tomato

Red Chilli Powder.

Soy sauce

Ketchup

Fresh coriander

Dhal soup

1.25 kg of Lentils
5 Cinnamon leaves and 5 Bay leaves
35 small cloves of Garlic minced
5 teaspoon of Ginger
Cumin seeds
Salt at your taste
10 dried Chili
15 tablespoons of Ghee
2.5 teaspoon of Turmeric powder

Butter Rice in Nepali Style
Basmati Rice
Butter
Frozen Green Peas

Noelina, Praeasha, Surichi and Sudipti worked tirelessly to prepare the curry and the Bhindi Bhaji. The photos do not do justice the tears shed whilst chopping about 20 onons! It was a challenge using commercial size pans on a conventional hob, but we got there. I

 I never want to see another tomato again!

 Is that enough Okra, Mr Duke?

Ishika, Yuma and Praeasha did a terrific job turning the Naan dough made by Mr Duke into 40 Naans, which were enormously popular.

 The mess did disappear and the Naans tasted great!

t was great to have the whole house together as the term will end soon. There were a high number of clean plates and many asked for seconds. Mango ice cream for dessert was also very popular.

 Everyone tucked in to the delicious meal!

Happiness!

 

 Will and Jade, the prefects, helping to serve the dinner.

Praeasha tucking in to a meal she has helped to make!

Ayomikun and Nina were out at Daisy's for a birthday supper. Following the meal five Year 8 girls headed to Pheobe's Birthday party in Bathford, whilst the rest of the House worked to put the House back in order. Hohona, William and Ryan worked very hard washing up with  Mrs Duke, Jade and Will. Last night's film chosen by our four Year 7 chefs was a heavy number about the life of the recently deceased Professor Stephen Hawking called 'The Theory of Everything' featuring Eddie Redmayne. It was well-received and capped off an excellent night in Westwood. The boarders were allowed to stay up a bit later. My thanks again to our fabulous cooks!

A day on, the aroma of the spices pervades Westwood! We headed off for a choice of pitch and putt (for the more experienced) or Crazy Golf. Praeasha showed good skills from tee to green and with a little coaching most Westwood boarders got better at chipping and putting. It would be wrong to say who had the best score card. Those who headed to Crazy Golf also had a top time and not too many balls got lost. It was a chance to link up with the boarders in High Vinnalls and we look forward to welcoming 6 pupils as boarders to Westwood in September. A good number of the boarders have been involved in an all day rehearsal for Bugsy Malone, which we will watch tomorrow night.

Getting ready to tee off!

Praeasha gets the ball off the tee cleanly

 Dominic, please do not fire the ball at me!

 Action photos of Monica.

  Ball going,

 ...going...gone!

The Crazy Golfers enjoyed Victoria Park's lighter-hearted approach to the Sport! The boarders played very positively and rose to the challenges. 

 Get in the hole!

 Suruchi watches her putt inch towards the hole with coaching from Sarafina and Noelina.

 Great concentration!

 Dasha using her new glasses!

 Marcus takes on the second hole!

 Marco lines up a putt.

 Mrs Duke being artistic with the iPad!

 Angel surveying the challenge ahead!

 What a lovely pose!

 I think that is Sasha hidden by the tree!

 Connie proud of a putt!

 Perry hoping the putt will drop

We have all enjoyed a great weekend and can't believe the term will be over soon, but we still have the camping trip next weekend. 

 

Episode V: The Wonder of Weston(wood)-Super-Mare

As thoughts ever so silently begin to turn to the end of term, our boarders wonder about what has been, what is; and what will be over the coming weeks. This weekend helped elicit that spirit of wonder as our boarders, following Westwood's Open Morning and their usual Saturday enterprises, indulged themselves in the book-turned-film tale entitled 'Wonder'. Herein, our viewers were invited to consider what it means to transcend external appearances and find hope, recognition and extra-ordinariness in a world so apparently devoid of each:

The theme of wonder continued into Sunday, with those boarders not involved in Bugsy Malone rehearsals travelling to a place where wonder comes to life (perhaps more so at night!): Weston-Super-Mare. Famed for its beach-side attractions and copious amounts of food outlets, Westwood boarders soaked up the overcast yet not too chilly weather; engaging in a variety of pursuits, from donkey riding and bouncy castles to mall shopping and food sampling!

A quiet start to proceedings...

...but it wasn't long before festivities began.

The pier was looking as grand as its title suggested:

For some, however, their directions lay elsewhere.

For Dawn, Katya, Daisy and Noelina, it was the beach!

As it was for Mrs. Curtis, whose selfie was photo-bombed by some strange individual wearing a Batman hat and a baby.

For Ryan, Dominic, Vic and Will, it was food that awaited them.

Meanwhile, here we see Mrs. Curtis protecting her lunch from the seagulls who awaited hers.

It wasn't long however before thoughts turned to the Bouncy Castle, which deserves a video all of its own (below)!

For those who didn't capture the sophistication of Katya's Unicorn pose, please refer to the still below:

For Mr. Thatcher and daughter, Elianna, the experience was just too much...

...whereas for Mrs. Thatcher and son, Nathaniel, coffee and energy reigned supreme!

Before embarking on the journey home, some of our boarders enjoyed a game of beach Frisbee. Monica at one point managed to 'faceplant' in the sand; below you can witness the immediate after-photo and also enjoy a video of the game in action!

Weston(wood)-Super-Mare, despite the overcast weather, provided our boarders with an opportunity to see a different part of the British coastline and wonder at its bespoke grandeur and charm. It has been another busy weekend but one that has been productive and enjoyable. Exposure to the sea air has certainly brought the veil of slumber into Westwood as this entry is being written. We now look forward to Episode VI: The Final Farewell, in two-weeks time.