'Santa's Workshop' at Cinnamon Grand:

A day of fun and frolic

by Nilma DOLE

It was jingle all the way when Cinnamon Grand held 'Santa's Workshop' for 200 dynamic kids this season.

First off, the children were treated to Dinesh the magician who mesmerized them with magical tricks. By pulling a rabbit out of a hat and even making flowers change colour, he made the children happy with his magic. Dinesh gave cool gifts for the kids to take home like whistles, sweets and even ruler bracelets.

The kids were then grouped into five where they did various activities in the booths at the Atrium Lobby of the Cinnamon Grand.

There was a Christmas Bauble stall where they learned how to decorate baubles for the Christmas tree. The kids learned how to make decorative angels where two beautifully-winged angels helped them learn the finer aspects of it.

The coolest stall with hanging snowflakes and dry ice gave the thrill of a real snow paradise. PR Manager Tharika Goonetileke told a story to the children about Santa. She said, "We should be mindful of conserving our planet's resources by turning off the light anytime we don't use it, turn off the tap when we're done and not to emit carbon emissions". According to her story, Santa might not be able to come with his reindeer because if the ice caps melt due to global warming, then there won't be a Christmas. In this sense, the story was a powerful message to get the children to save Mother Nature.

"We got the children to sign a pledge with their thumbprint and we sang a song about being a cool kid by being mindful of the environment" said Tharika.

General Manager of Cinnamon Grand, Rohan Karr said, "The 'Santa's Workshop' was so much in demand that we had to have it this year. We are happy that the children get to experience true Christmas by participating in activities that they will learn from." After the slide session about climate change, the children were ushered to a booth where they were enlightened on how to have a nature-friendly Christmas. Speaking to the Sunday Observer was Sadana who said, "We taught the children on recycling newspaper and old envelopes and making Christmas decorations out it. Also, we told them to reuse old Christmas decorations and be creative by turning old decorations into new ones."

Chef Ashan Liyanage held a special cookery demonstration and created a wonderful reindeer Christmas cake. In addition to this, the children were allowed to make their own shapes cut from edible parchment icing.He said, "We educated children on adhering safety standards when cooking and cleaning up after cooking." At the end of the day, the kids were give little gifts and trinkets to take home in memory of the fun they had at 'Santa's Workshop'.

All the kids said that they had fun and left with a fervent hope Santa's Workshop will be held again next year!