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| Sunday, 25 December 2005 |
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Junior Observer |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
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Christmas trivia
1. In Frosty the Snowman, who brought Frosty back to life? 2. Who tells you she's in town by tap, tap, tappin' at your windowpane? 3. What is the biggest selling Christmas single of all time? 4. Where was I when I saw Mommy kissing Santa Claus? 5. Where was Mommy when she was kissing Santa Claus? 6. Name the three reindeer whose names begin with a "D"? 7. What was the first gift my true love sent on the sixth day of Christmas? 8. Who kept time with the Little Drummer Boy? 9. In The Night Before Christmas, where were the stockings hung? 10. What is the name of the little girl in most versions of The Nutcracker? 11. What is the last ghost called in 'A Christmas Carol'? 12. What colour is the Grinch? 13. How many pipers piping did my true love give to me? 14. What was Rudolph's punishment for his red nose? 15. What carol contains the word "Fa-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la"? 16. What glittery bits of metal are hung on a Christmas tree? 17. On what street did a Santa Claus miracle occur? 18. Counting Rudolph, how many reindeer are there? 19. What happened to the drummer boy's lamb when he played his song for the Baby Jesus? 20. What did Rudolph never get to join in? 21. Traditionally, does the eldest or youngest family member open the first present? 22. What song was originally titled "One Horse Open Sleigh"? 23. What country started the tradition of exchanging gifts? 24. What is the most popular tree topper? 25. What did the Little Drummer Boy give to the Christ Child? 26. After red and green, what are the two most popular Christmas colours? 27. What was the name of Rudolph's dogsled driving friend? 28. Where did Santa land his sleigh in "The Night Before Christmas"? Remembering tsunami victims
Who can forget December 26, 2004, the bleakest day in Sri Lanka's history? This is the day when the Indian Ocean tsunami hit our shores in all its fury. The Boxing Day tsunami, as we all know now, was caused by an earthquake off the coast of Indonesia's Sumatra island. The waves travelled thousands of kilometres, picking up speed and strength as they went on, and wreaked havoc across Sri Lanka as well as many other countries in the Asian region including Indonesia, Thailand, India, Malaysia, Bangladesh and the Maldives. The total death toll passed 270,000. The earthquake, measuring 9.3 on the Richter Scale, was the world's most powerful in more than 50 years, and the second biggest quake ever recorded. It triggered giant waves as high as 10 metres, that slammed into villages and seaside resorts across Asia, wiping out entire cities and taking with them many thousands of men, women and children to a watery grave. Thousands more are still missing. In Sri Lanka, the waves first hit the Eastern Coastal Belt, and moved south, devastating Hambantota, Matara, Galle, Kalutara and Beruwela, before moving westwards. Over 30,000 persons were killed, while millions of rupees worth of property was damaged. It left a massive trail of death and destruction, rendering millions homeless. In the aftermath of the tsunami, we witnessed the best and the worst of humanity coming into the fore. Aid and support poured in from all corners of the world with even little children helping in every way they can. Not only that, many countries put in their collective efforts together to establish a tsunami warning centre for the Indian Ocean such as those already existing in Hawaii and Japan. An interim system is now in place to warn the region of an impending tsunami while a long-range plan for a warning system is also in the offing. This includes a full network of quake gauges, ocean-seabed sensors, national tsunami warning centres in each country, improved data analysis capabilities and public education. Until this plan falls into place, countries will receive seismic data from the alert centres in Hawaii and Tokyo and the existing monitoring facilities will be upgraded. All these measures are being taken to avert a similar disaster in the future. The devastation caused exactly a year ago is too terrible to comprehend even now. As you get ready to usher in another new year, it is only right that you think about the thousands of people who may have lost everything they had in the world, their family, their homes and their property, and everything they could call their own, and are now living in misery, in some makeshift camp. As children, you could especially think about the large numbers of children affected by the tsunami. Maybe you could visit some of them in a camp, share a meal and maybe some gifts with them, or just talk to them and be their friend. It could mean so much to them! Tsunami concert The Sri Lanka Children Self Creation Development Foundation, in collaboration with Sampath Bank Ltd., will organise 'Malpeththak saha Mahada Muhuda' (A petal and the sea, where my heart is), a musical concert and exhibition to commemorate the first anniversary of the tsunami disaster. The event under the theme 'A New Nation in Peace, Unity and Cohabitation' will be held at 5.30pm tomorrow at the Namel-Malini Punchi Theatre, Borella. The performances will be by child victims of the tragedy. Entrance is free. The Sri Lanka Children Self Creation Development Foundation has been helping tsunami survivors especially children over the last 11 months through support and counselling. The experiences of the victims have been creatively compiled and retold through children's books, CDs and street shows; the concert will be another step in this direction. Facilitating Year One admissions Five national level primary schools will be established in five districts before January 15, 2006, to avoid problems created in admissions to Year One in schools next year. These schools will be located in Colombo, Kandy, Galle, Matara and Kurunegala districts, Education Minister Susil Premajayanth said recently. He added that every child will get a school under the new government proposals and new primary schools were to be established as a step under that project. January 19 will be the date for admissions to Year One in Government schools, and it is the responsibility of the Government to provide schools to those children on that day, the Minister said. Once these children reach Year Six, facilities would be made to admit them to national schools in those respective areas. The Government plans to implement long- and short-term programmes to
improve education in the country. |
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The following is a list of trivia questions based mostly on Christmas
songs and jingles, stories and legends. See whether you know the answers
for them and check your answers with those given at the end. 
