Report by Jacob Richard Machado –Salalah for Daijiworld  Media Network
(with input from Micheal Periera  and photographs by Clement  D’souza)

Salalah, Jan 24: The  Catholic Mangalorean community of  Salalah  started the year with great enthusiasm and planned their first ever outdoor family get together for  the members of their community. It was with great anticipation that the entire community waited for the 19th of January 2007 to meet as scheduled at the Al Bahar Farm .

The special guest for the day was Fr. Albert, assistant Parish Priest at the Church of Sts. Peter and Paul, Ruwi.

By 10 am. the entry of members at the picnic spot  made it quite evident that it would turn out to be a memorable day. As the members walked in they were grouped into two according to the place of residence.

The two groups so formed were referred to as ‘Igharzi Vaado’ and ‘Kursa Vaado’.

Victor and Ilona  had taken up the task of making it a day of fun by including many games and activities.
All through the day the groups competed with each other with games like  ‘The dog and the bone’ and
‘Tug of war’.Points were alloted  to the teams in case of a win or a draw. The enthusiasm and involvement of each person in their team was worth noting.

There were  games like ‘Bombing the city’ for children, and games that were based on blind-folding for adults which allowed the groups to expose their sense of humour and team-spirit.

The children  had their share of fun at the swimming pool.With their appetite built, it was with great spirit
that the children were  the first to make a dash towards the already set buffet table for lunch.

Before tea-time there was ample time for the adults to enjoy themselves at the pool or relax before continuing the next round of games.

Later the crowd was all glued to their lotto ticket and ears tuned to the voice of Alan D’costa who conducted the game. Fr. Albert did the honours of handing over the prizes of the Lotto and games to the respective winners.

Summing up the event one can say it was a great opportunity for the Mangalorean Catholic Community
in Salalah to strengthen bonds and enjoy a fun-filled day. With the encouragement given by Fr. Albert and the support of  all the members, one can truly say that such an event could soon be a regular annual feature.