Devon and Cornwall
Similar to last year, our Trustees Dr Shrestha and Dr Tripathi are coordinating a charity walk on the 29th of May 2022.
Details about the charity walk will be shared with interested members in due course. It was really fun last year and we encourage members to take his opportunity.
Please see pictures from last year’s event.
Our society is looking to offer a temporary role to help us with specific community engagement activities as outlined in the attached document. Please respond to us by 4th February 2022 if you want to speak more about the opportunity or want to share an expression of interest to carry out the work. Please email chairpersonsaas@gmail.com
Even though the opportunity is temporary in the first instance, we would consider extending the same over a longer period subject to satisfactory performance.
Dear Members
Due to the ongoing challenges and risks linked to the Covid 3rd wave, we decided to postpone our Annual Event. We anticipate that with the current booster vaccination drive, we should be able to run a face to face event in Spring. We will get back with an update by mid-February after due consideration.
Wishing you laughter, contentment, joy, and peace in 2022 and always.
SAaS Trustees
SUNDAY 28th NOVEMBER 2021, 10.30am 1.30pm and 3pm (3 groups of 6 individuals each)
SATURDAY 8TH JANUARY 2022, 10.30am 1.30pm and 3pm (3 groups of 6 individuals each)
6 groups of 6 (36 in total)
The new museum, art gallery and archive for Plymouth and the South West (https://www.theboxplymouth.com) has extended a special invitation to SAaS members to visit the museum and experience ancient stories from the world’s oldest continuing culture, told through more than 300 paintings and objects by over 100 different artists.
Visiting members will be taken on an epic journey that crosses three states, three deserts and some 500,000 square kilometres. With ceramics, paintings, sculpture, installation and film.
If you are interested, come and immerse yourself in an exhibition that uses the power of art and culture to connect us across time zones and international borders. The exhibition is going to be stunning.
For further information about the exhibit, please see the information published in the Guardian and on ‘The Box’ websites from the links below.
https://www.theboxplymouth.com/events/exhibitions/songlines
The guided tour will last for about an hour and there will be a special free workshop looking at how craft creates a culture to enjoy at the end if members wish. A complimentary cup of tea will also be provided. There will also be a chance to find out about volunteering opportunities in ‘The Box’ for anyone who fancies it.
The tour has been specially organised during the weekends so that SAaS members can enjoy with family and friends. If you are interested to visit ‘The Box’, please send the preferred dates and time slots, (mentioned at the top), the number of people visiting to Professor Awadhesh Jha (email: drjha2004@tiscali.co.uk) by Saturday, 20th November. As the numbers are limited (only 36), allocation will be on a ‘first-come-first-served basis.
On behalf of the SaaS, I had a meeting with the Associate Dean of Internationalisation (Faculty of Health, University of Plymouth) this Friday. We discussed a number of initiatives for creating a sense of the value of international students among the local community. To facilitate this, a ‘Meetup’ group titled ‘Global Plymouth (https://www.meetup.com/Global-Plymouth/) has been set up, expressly devoted to creating opportunities for our international students and staff to meet receptive members of the local community, in safe, friendly environments. Please do feel free to join the group if you are interested in such events.
They are also planning a ‘major do’ on the evening of Saturday 16th October 2021 (6:30 pm onwards) at ‘The Plot’: https://shop4plymouth.co.uk/inside-union-streets-the-plot-clipper/ (You can find The Plot at 80-84 Union St, Stonehouse, Plymouth PL1 3EZ). The Lord Mayor of Plymouth will be present along with other guests. There will be plenty of free nibbles with a choice of non-vegetarian, vegetarian and vegan nibbles. Given the nature of the event, they are unable to cater specifically for those with food allergies. You may of course bring your own food to partake, or even better to share with the guests. Guests will be allowed to bring their own drinks free of corkage.
Live entertainment will be headlined by Plymouth’s own Jon and Friends. If anyone of you is interested in performing there (Dance, Music etc.) then please let us know and we will put you in touch with the organisers. We encourage members to attend as It will be a good opportunity to raise awareness of our Society as well as connect to the South Asian students coming into Plymouth.
Best wishes
Mahrukh
(On Behalf of SAaS Trustees)
| We cordially invite you to participate in the 2021 Virtual Annual General Meeting (AGM 2021) of SAaS Date – Sunday, 17th October 2021 Time 6pm – 7:30pm Location – Online Zoom [link emailed to members] |
| Meeting ID: 952 1043 4625 Passcode: 495090 Agenda: 1. Welcome by SAaS Chairperson 2. Secretary report 3. Treasures report. 4. Discussion – Annual Event and future events 5. Discussion – Membership management and expansion 6. Members comments- AOB If members want to discuss anything in particular please email us (chairpersonsaas@gmail.com) your agenda item by 10th October so that we can add it under the AOB Meeting item. All trustees please email (chairpersonsaas@gmail.com) at least 2 weeks prior to AGM (i.e.3rd Oct 2021) that you would like to continue as a trustee for next year. We strongly encourage others members to come forward and contribute to our society as Trustees. If anyone would like to join as an associate trustee, please send an email to chairpersonsaas@gmail.com by 3rd Oct 2021. We look forward to seeing you all during the AGM. Thank you SAaS Trustees |
SaaS organised a fun-filled boat trip, a charity event on 30th Aug 2021. Following the past 18 months of lockdowns, isolations and social distancing, this beautiful Bank holiday evening couldn’t be spent any better.
We all set to sail from the Commercial Wharf, Barbican around 5 pm on the largest boat, the
Plymouth Venturer. We sailed along the River Tamar, taking in the spectacular views of Plymouth Hoe and Drakes Island. About 90 of us, dressed in bright and colourful attire, wearing the widest of the smiles added vibrant colours to the grey sky. The kids were having fun counting the waves, enjoying the ride. While the adults appreciated this opportunity of getting out of the virtual world and virtual parties!
There were games organised for the kids as well as adults. Many were seen posing for some lovely clicks while some were happier in their selfies. The quiz for adults brought out the competitive facet of some of us. There were some impromptu music and singing performances and we all tapped our feet to the beats. There were raffle draws that added to our charity pot for Devon Mind.
Of course, an event is incomplete without food. We all enjoyed a tasty Paneer wrap which wrapped up the evening perfectly. Our DJs aka AC & Raja, our chairperson and Treasurer played the best tunes to let our hair loose till we returned to the Barbican landing.
As I went to bed that night, tired, happy, heart full of memories to cherish, these words flocked my mind …
“The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart “ – Helen Keller –
Dr Arunima Kisku
by Abhishek Mishra
The South Asian Society organised a trek in Dartmoor National Park on 8th August 2021. Two of their members took the lead in organising it and a small entry fee was taken from all the participating adults. The trek was going to be around the Burrator Reservoir car park. The reservoir is located on the south side of Dartmoor in the English county of Devon. It is one of a number of reservoirs and dams that were built over the course of the 19th and 20th centuries in the area now covered by Dartmoor National Park to supply drinking water to the city of Plymouth and other rapidly growing towns in the surrounding lowlands. The tranquil water and surrounding mixed woodland contrast sharply with the open moor and the rugged Dartmoor tors. The location is a hidden gem in Devon’s crown.
I have to admit that the trek was not easy but at the same time, it was worth the effort. The steep inclination of the hill which we climbed, made the trek challenging. The weather prediction was misty and windy, overcast with some chance of precipitation. Members had been asked to come prepared for wet and rainy conditions. It started raining as soon as we started from the car park. We were walking uphill and there were ferns and rocks and scrub interspersed with trees. Though we did not see any Dartmoor ponies, their droppings meant that they were not far away. The terrain was filled with huge rocks and at times were helping each other as we climbed over these and kept going uphill.
In this phase, the walk was strenuous and we were glad that it was not a sunny and warm day as we were warm despite the slight spitting which soon turned into a drizzle. As it had rained the day before, the grass was wet and slippery. I remember that after every 10 minutes of steady climb, many of us were panting and needing small breaks. But we would take a break and chat and laugh and look around at the greenery and the views.
I was often breathless and would stop to look around and appreciate the different shades of green, the fresh breeze and the different times of bracken, foliage and sheer tonality of colours and the textures. There was so much to observe. I would stop and take a short break and keep looking and observing.
All of this effort and hard work made sense when we reached the summit. The view from the top was amazing. It was all green and wherever you looked you were astounded by the splendour of nature, its sheer scale and diversity. The river Meavy was also visible from the top. The whole group was filled with joy and enthusiasm when they reached the top. Some were striking up Bahubali poses for photographs, some were jumping – all were drinking in the beauty of nature and rejuvenating themselves.
We took a different route for coming down. This route was easy but we had to ford many streams across water bodies. Most of us were not wearing waterproof shoes. Perhaps only wellingtons would have been useful. There were muddy patches on the way, but the terrain was flat and easy to walk. However, caught up with the walk, and surrounded by good company and beautiful terrain and nature, no one was complaining.
I remember that 6 of us somehow got lost while coming down. For some reason, the mobile network was not there, so we were unable to call anyone. It was like Enid Blyton’s secret seven adventure. We were trying to find the path which would take us to the car park. Later on, we followed our instinct and finally reached the car park. This trek was an adventure that I will never forget. The combination of breath-taking views with stunning views and cool mizzle weather made the trek an adventure of a lifetime.
The walk for Charity was a great initiative that allowed members to have fun, socialise while undertaking physical activity in the spectacular Dartmoor National Park and collect some money for Charity. We were coming out of the restrictions imposed by Covid 19 and this seemed a great idea to meet and socialise in the wide-open spaces of Dartmoor. The organisers made sure that the activity was a safe and thoroughly enjoyable event for all age groups. Full credit goes to Dr Shrestha and who was familiar with the terrain and was able to organise such an awesome trek.
Charity Family Walk organised around Burrator Reservoir on Sunday the 8th of August. The walk will be roughly for 2 hours.
Details:
Meeting point – Burrator Reservoir car park at 9.30 am.
The walk starts at 10.00 am sharp led by Dr Bharat Shrestha & Dr Smita Tripathi
Duration of walk roughly 2 hours for Adults. If walking at a slower pace, it may take slightly longer.
A minimum voluntary donation of £5.00 per family (towards Devon Mind) is desirable.
