The Australian government gifted SMD's Library with a collection of Australian books. The First Secretary, Mr. Damien Dunn and another officer, Mr. Krishna Karki came out to SMD to present us with boxes of brand new, colourful books, from beginner to advanced reading levels.

A gaggle of kids was waiting in the Library when Mr. Dunn and Mr. Karki  arrived. They'd been telling all the things they know about Australia...about unique animals like the platypus, the koala and the kangaroo. One student mentioned that the first people are the Aborigines and another informed us that Australia is 55 times the size of Nepal!

When the embassy folks arrived, our Principal Lama Sangye Tsering welcomed them with khatas (traditional white scarves + the wish that all be auspicious) and Lhakpa Dolma B334 along with Tsering Thinley B292 welcomed our vistors  and spoke a little about why Thrangu Rinpoche established this school.  These two were chosen because they'll be going to Melbourne, to take up scholarships at Ivanhoe Grammar School.

When Mr. Dunn spoke, he mentioned that he has a kind of  soft spot for us because he'd got a chance to know us when Jodi and Phil Tweed mounted the musical s'Plat. He went on to say what a happy task it is to be helping kids who are so lucky to get an education like the kids at SMD.

The kids loved what Mr. Dunn said and applauded their gratitude to Australia and to our founder. Pema Norbu wrote a thank-you, to Ambassador Susan Grace, Mr. Dunn and their team to say,  We are indeed very fortunate to get a  chance to study at a  school like this and we feel more of blessed to get support  from people like you (and your team). Your contribution will certainly help kids to learn better and inspire them to read more, especially with titles like, Diary of a Wombat, My Grandma Lives in Gooligulch, & Edwina the Emu!